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Erin Burnett Outfront
Trump Admin Missing Deadline To Reunite Migrant Kids; Source: Pompeo's North Korea Trip Went "As Badly As It Could Have Gone;" Dems Demand Trump's SCOTUS Pick Divulge Views On Abortion; Interview with Ken Starr; Russian Company Had Access to Facebook User Data; Interview with Governor Ricardo Rossello of Puerto Rico; All 12 Boys and Soccer Coach Rescued from Thai Cave. Aired 7-8p ET
Aired July 10, 2018 - 19:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[19:00:00] WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: Thank you very much for watching. I'm Wolf Blitzer in THE SITUATION ROOM. "ERIN BURNETT OUTFRONT" starts right now.
ERIN BURNETT, CNN HOST: OURTFRONT next, falling short of a crucial deadline. The youngest of the children separated from their families at the southern border still not reunited tonight. The President's plan, don't come to the U.S. illegally.
Plus, Pompeo's North Korean disaster, new details about just how badly his trip went and how a "Rocket Man" CD meant for Kim Jong-un never even got to him. And Democrats vowing to take down Trump Supreme Court nominee, Brett Kavanaugh. Ken Starr is my guest tonight. Let's go OURTFRONT.
Good evening, I'm Erin Burnett. OURTFRONT tonight, failure. The Trump administration falling far short of a crucial deadline to reunite babies and toddlers with their parents by today. Now, when I say babies and toddlers, I'm talking about just that, all children under the age of five. They were separated from their parents at the southern border, as a result of President Trump's zero tolerance immigration policy.
Today was the deadline, they were all -- every single one of them supposed to be reunited. That's what a judge said. It's a deadline that has been in placed for nearly two weeks, and yet the administration didn't get there. Ones more leniency, today the painful truth.
The Trump administration acknowledging in a court filing that, of the 102 youngest children, only 38 are expected to be reunited with their family by today, the deadline. Now, our cameras did spot some children being loaded in to vans, expected to be reunited with their parents. They, though, are among the lucky few. They account for less than half of the very young children that are right now in the U.S. government's custody.
Meantime, the judge that caused this deadline, reminding the Trump administration, "These are firm deadlines not aspirational goals." OK. That's what the judge said. So, what is the holdup? Well, the Vice President Mike Pence just spoke to our Dana Bash and here's what he said.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MIKE PENCE, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: What we don't ever want to do is return a vulnerable child, age three, age four, to somebody who may be a threat to them. Who may be human trafficker, who is not their parent.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BURNETT: We all want to protect these innocent vulnerable children. But the truth is, they are separated from their parents because of a policy that the Trump administration, including Mike Pence, put in place. According to the New York Times, more than 700 kids were separated from their parents between October of last year and April of this year. And since April, when Trump zero tolerance policy officially took affect, that number increased to more than 2300. It surged, and now we're learning that number is actually even higher than that. The administration now says it's closer to 3,000.
Look, it's deeply troubling that even knowing the number of kids separated is an art and not a science for the Trump team. That should be a very specific and exact thing as we're talking about human lives. We've all seen images of these children. Some of them behind chain link walls, some others crying for their parents.
The Trump administration pulled off a logistical feat of flying these children to facilities around the country, right, getting them on planes, setting them to places, getting them registered on some level. That's a logistical feat but they did not seem to track who belongs to whom, or even to know which children they were actually taking.
I mean, think about this. Late today, the administration admitted that at least one of the separated minors may actually be an American citizen. So, today's deadline missed and now there's another one looming which is the deadline for all 3,000 kids. So, that's every child, even those over five or, you know, whatever that number actually is, since it keeps changing to be reunited with their family. That date is two weeks away, July 26th.
So what is the President's plan to fix this embarrassing situation? Well, he told us today.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I have a solution. Tell people not to come to our country illegally. That is the solution. Don't come to our country illegally. Come like other people do. Come legally.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: Don't come to our country illegally. OK, that's, well, whatever that is, it's not a solution to reuniting families that are already in this country that the President separated in the first place. Keep in mind, it has been 20 days since President Trump tried to undo his own policy of separating these families. Twenty days since he said this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: We are keeping families together and this will solve that problem.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: Again, that was 20 days ago. And tonight, plenty of Republicans are not happy. It's not a partisan issue. Senator Ron Johnson telling CNN, "We are not making progress in terms of reunification."
Ed Lavandera is on the scene. OURTFRONT live outside the detention center in Harlingen, Texas which is right near the border.
[19:05:00] And Ed, you have been covering this issue since the beginning. Tonight, the deadline, and it doesn't look like the government is anywhere closes to reuniting all of these families.
ED LAVANDERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: No, it doesn't appear that way as you mentioned those numbers. What this deadline refers to today, Erin, is 102 children under the age of five. The federal government earlier today is said that it would be able to reunite 38 of those 102, far short of the deadline imposed. The federal government and DHS officials say that there are number of reasons behind that. They stress that the safety and well being of these children is their number one priority.
And that some of these cases that verifying that they are being turned over to adults that are their parents. They say, it's a slow process, that there been a number of adults with criminal background who would -- the children would not be turned over to. But the vast majority of the 102 don't fall under those categories.
The federal judge in California earlier today said that, he saw no reason why 63 of the 102 couldn't have been transferred over to their families at some point today, but here we are. Thirty-eight out of 102. And as you mention, there's still a, another looming deadline here in the next couple of weeks on July 26th, of the 3,000 children who have been separated from their families.
So a lot of critics, immigrant advocates, immigration attorneys who have been following these cases closely over the last month and a half, are really wondering if the federal government wasn't prepared to be able to handle and reunite 102 children with their families, how in the world are they going to be able to handle the vast majority of the much larger number of 3,000 kids with that looming deadline here in the next couple of weeks. Erin?
BURNETT: Obviously the crucial question here of these deadlines being missed. Thank you so much, Ed Lavandera.
And OURTFRONT now, I want to go to the Democratic Mayor Brownsville, Texas, Tony Martinez, Brownsville, obviously right there on the border and his city as detention center as of earlier today had 36 children under the age of five separated from their parents. The center overall has another 100 on top of that, age 10 to 17 separated as well.
So, Mayor, let's get straight to this. The 36 kids we're talking about in your detention centers under the age of five. We have a few hours left I guess technically today. Do you expect that any or all of them will be reunited with their families?
MAYOR TONY MARTINEZ (D), BROWNSVILLE, TEXAS: I don't anticipate that they will be reunited today. I keep track of these kids because I'm concerned for their safety and their health. But out of the 36, according to the executive director of southwest keys, all 36 are ready to go. They know who they're supposed to go to.
There's probably six that have some sort of deportation or some question as to exactly where they are supposed to go. But they said, they're been ready to do this for some period of time. So, in our situation, obviously, it's the administration that is, for whatever reason, not complying with the court order, not because the provider --
BURNETT: But what is the holdup? I mean, you're saying you've got 36 kids ready to go and six of them there maybe questions. But these kids are ready to go, you know, they know who they belong. Everything is in place. What is causing the delay then, do you think?
MARTINEZ: Well, no, like I said, I was one of the, you know, casa grande, I think, casa padre. You know, for some reason, there's a disconnect between the providers of the care and the administration. You know, they're not reaching out. and I ask them, why don't they let them know that they're here, and you know who they're belong to and what they should be doing because they've got another close to 200 of 10 to 17-year-olds that were separated here in Brownsville.
And for some reason they said they asked them to wait until they got more instructions. And so, it's a very troubling situation. I think it's very outrageous. I think it, to some degree, from an outsider looking in, it looks somewhat deliberate in not complying with what this judge has asked them to do.
BURNETT: So that's a significant thing you're saying somewhat deliberate. Because the administration is saying, the HHS, to be specific, an official there, tells us today, quote, we would be putting them in the care of a rapist, a kidnapper, a child abuser and someone who is accused of being a murder in their home nation", if they went ahead and just, you now, put these kids back with their families. Is that fair or is that a deliberate excuse?
MARTINEZ: You know, that's not the information I got. And I have basically went straight to the coordinator of the entire southwest keys, and according to the information I got, and like I said, I've been there, they claim to be able to have all the information necessary and ready to go. And for whatever reason, it becomes somewhat out of their control as to how they go from here and out.
So, there may be a miscommunication somewhere, but I felt like I got a good answer from the executive director of southwest keys and saying we're ready to go and ready to move on. But they're just waiting there in limbo.
[19:10:15] BURNETT: Mayor Martinez, Secretary Alex Azar from HHS just moments ago was on CNN. He said that the deliberate pace, I guess that's the wording here, is actually saving lives. And I wanted to play for you his justification and get your reaction. Here he is.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ALEX AZAR, SECRETARY OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES: If we hadn't done this work, if we hadn't done our work to protect child welfare by confirming parentage and dong criminal background checks on these individuals, these children would have been reunited in exceedingly dangerous situations. I'm proud of the work that we do. I believe we are saving kids lives here.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BURNETT: Do you buy that?
MARTINEZ: Well, no, not at all. The problem is, is that we've been after this situation, we know what we have here in Brownsville and we're probably as concerned as anyone else. I mean, we are all parents and grandparents and my whole city council believes in the human aspect of this whole idea. And so, you know, we don't think that that's the case.
Again, unless someone is not being honest with us, the information that we have and we have been pretty diligent in trying to pursue, everything that we can to make sure that these kids get reunited with their moms. That is all.
BURNETT: All right, Mayor Martinez, I appreciate your time. Thanks for coming back on the show.
MARTINEZ: Thank you.
BURNETT: And I want to go to our Senior Political Analyst, John Avlon. I mean, John, you just heard what the mayor there said at Brownsville. Obviously major location and you've got a lot of kids there. He is saying he doesn't buy these excuses. And he thinks that what -- that the delays we're seeing here are deliberate. He was careful with the words he used. Do you think the administration has a real and specific plan to reunite these families and that they care about these deadlines?
JOHN AVLON, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: I think they are struggling and scrambling to meet these deadlines, but it's been an absolute objective fail to date. And that's because, Erin, we know from the government's own lawyers that there was not a plan to reunify these kids. So it's a combination of incompetence and callousness and cruelty.
But here's what doubly doesn't make sense to me. You heard the administration, the HHS Secretary, the Vice President say on our air today that the delays are because they are trying ensure that no kids are released to rapists or traffickers. Certainly, we all agree with that goal.
But the HHS's own press release today said that there were 27 kids, they're very specific, in a, you know, situation where there's been very little specificity, 27 kids they've said could not be reunified, wouldn't likely to be reunified because of the threat. They were brought over by non-parental members, other situations that may include trafficking. That's specific.
So what about the other, what about the remaining? So their argument may be heartfelt, but it's really designed to play on the heart strings. It doesn't to play out. This is about incompetence, it's about a policy of zero tolerance and deterrence that still the President seems to be (INAUDIBLE).
BURNET: And there's numbers, of course, list according to Mayor Martinez, don't add up with what he is seeing on the ground, from his facility where he's got what, 36 kids tonight under the age of five alone, right? And then he said almost a couple hundred in that 10 to17 range.
And this, John, I think it's important for everyone to understand. It's a nonpartisan issue, not just a human level, it's deeply troubling, but on a political level, Republicans Ron Johnson, I mentioned, Orrin Hatch also saying they are not happy with the administration's handling of this issue. Is this problem going to get bigger for the President?
AVLON: There's no sign it's going to get smaller. They just blew past a deadline. And the judge was very firm that these not are aspirational goals. But, of course, Republicans not only have a political problem, they recognized it's one rooted in our values. There's one thing that unites us all, it's the love for children.
At the end of the day, this is about, as the Mayor just said, reuniting children with their mothers. That's a political problem. That's a human problem. And Republicans understand it that the only folks who don't are people who are committed to a policy of zero tolerance no matter what the judges say.
BURNETT: All right, thank you very much, John Avlon.
And next, President Trump about to come face to face with America's allies but that's not who he is looking forward to meeting.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: And I have Putin. Frankly, Putin may be the easiest of them all.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: And the President Supreme Court nominee, bracing for what will be a huge confirmation battle. Is he ready? Ken Starr has known Judge Kavanaugh for 26 years, and he is OURTFRONT. Plus, a woman berated in a public park just because she was wearing a Puerto Rico T-shirt.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Are you a United States citizen?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Can you please get away from me?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Then you should not be wearing that.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Can you please.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[19:15:24] BURNETT: Tonight, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's trip to North Korea apparently going, quote, as badly as it could have gone. This is according to a source with direct knowledge of the discussions between Pompeo and the North Koreans. That source telling our Michelle Kosinski that, "The North Koreans were just messing around, not serious about moving forward."
Pompeo had, of course, been promised a meeting directly with Kim Jong- un, that did not happen. And then Pompeo, actually, you know was bringing the present. He was bringing the "Rocket Man" CD from Elton John to give to Kim personally, I supposed to be a light moment. Well, he didn't meet Kim, so he brought it back to the U.S.
OURTFRONT now, Steve Cortes, a member of the Presidents 2020 reelect advisory council and Sam Vinograd, former senior advisor to President Obama's National Security Council. So Sam, let me start with you. The reporting here from our Michelle Kosinski, quote, the trip went as badly as it could have gone. So pretty stunning thing to tell a reporter, what do you make of it?
SAMANTHA VINOGRAD, FORMER SENIOR ADVISOR, NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL UNDER PRES. OBAMA: Well I don't think anyone disagrees with that assessment, even the North Koreans said that the trip was a disaster. They called it cancerous and regrettable. But it's not surprising to me that Kim Jong-un didn't agree to meet with Secretary Pompeo.
I think that, unfortunately, because President Trump himself met with Kim Jong-un just a few weeks ago, I don't think that Kim Jong-un views Secretary Pompeo as overly empowered anymore. And I think they're going to keep messing around, they're going to keep wasting time and not actually doing anything while the United States falls behind security wise.
We stopped their joint military exercises. We haven't levied any additional sanctions. And remember, every day that goes by the North Korean program is actually advancing. They prove nothing.
[19:20:02] BURNETT: I mean, Steve, this is the question, right? Pompeo came back with the "Rocket Man" CD. And I know people can kind of laugh and say whatever. But obviously he brought it because he thought it would be a light moment. He expected to see Kim personally, he didn't get to. Instead, Kim was, you know, I don't know if there were pictures of him coming out in khakis or something, maybe he was on a potato farm. I'm not even sure. Did the administration get played?
STEVE CORTES, MEMBER OF PRESIDENT TRUMP'S 2020 RE-ELECT ADVISORY COUNCIL: Erin, they did not get played. Look, there's a lot of unknowns here. We don't know if North Korea is serious about this arraignment about denuclearizing the peninsula. We certainly hope they are and we're pretty maximum pressure on them, something which was not done in the last administration or previous administrations to North Korea.
But what is know is that since the maximum pressure has been exerted, he has stopped lobbying missiles in to the Pacific Ocean, that is a great thing for Japan, for the U.S., for Hawaii. What is also known, he returned their hostages, he's agreed to return remains of war dead from Korea. So those are the knowns, those are achievements. Do we have the big, you know, magnificent achievement of denuclearization, we're not sure yet, but we're sure a lot --
(CROSSTALK)
BURNETT: I just want to point out, you know, the kind of -- the realistic view of this, right? Obama was able to free many more hostages from North Korea than Trump and Obama didn't succeed in anything to do with denuclearization. So, in and of itself, that wouldn't mean anything. In and of itself, promising to denuclearize has historically meant nothing from North Korea. They promise to do it, and within a year again and again and again.
CORTES: He's not shooting missiles. That means something.
BURNETT: That sort of have come out showing since the meeting in Singapore, they have expanded some facility. So, why do you say we don't know whether they're serious?
CORTES: Because he's not shooting missiles right now. And that is a huge victory --
BURNETT: But he doesn't have to shoot them anymore, does he?
CORTES: We're dealing with -- here's the thing. We're not negotiating with Italy or with Britain. We're negotiating with the most rogue regime on the planet. So it's not surprising that there's going to be ups and downs in this relationship. But here's the other thing I would point out by the way. You're relying on an unnamed source who told CNN, x, y, z, you're relying on the North Korean foreign ministry.
Mike Pompeo, who I choose to believe, former congressman, West Point graduate, Secretary of State, he says great progress was made. So I choose to believe his version of what happened in North Korea and we will see what happens from here. I'm hopeful -- BURNETT: You don't find it troubling that the Secretary of State goes
to North Korea for a meeting for Kim Jong-un who doesn't show up for the meeting? Doesn't raise a red flag?
CORTES: It doesn't trouble me because he said he himself, Secretary Pompeo said great progress was made, and I take his word before I take some unnamed source and before I take the North Korean foreign ministry's assessment.
BURNETT: Sam, I will give you the final word.
VINOGRAD: I think that we have to point out that the President -- Steve, are you taking the President's word or Secretary Pompeo's? The President tweeted that this rep from North Korea is gone. He declared mission accomplished. So we're not listening to the President, we're listening to Secretary Pompeo.
CORTES: He didn't say mission accomplished.
VINOGRAD: He said the threat from North Korea is gone, that's in the tweet. We can pull it up if you like. So are we listening to the President of the United States or Secretary Pompeo.
CORTES: Right now it is gone. He is not firing missiles in to the ocean.
(CROSSTALK)
BURNETT: So the threat is not gone. That's an absurd thing to say. He hasn't destroyed a single weapon. You're talking about intent which is impossible to make. But in terms of reductional ability, the threat has not changed.
CORTES: You know, it's amazing to me, by the way. When the President goes and does something, that is monumental and it is really monumental. The fact that he, for now, again, I'm not promising what he'll do tomorrow, right, Kim Jong-un, he is crazy. Who knows what he'll do tomorrow. But for now, he is acting like a responsible leader. You cannot give the President credit, even for that.
VINOGRAD: That's not true. I will give the President credit --
CORTES: In Korea --
VINOGRAD: I will give the President credit for the fact --
CORTES: OK, well then please do.
VINOGRAD: -- that missiles are not flying. So, in the short-term, the threat from North Korea in the short-term is --
CORTES: And that's a massive win.
VINOGRAD: It is a win. It's a win for Japan. It's a win for United States. But the nuclear threat from North Korea is not contained, it's continuing. And our Secretary of State just went and gave the North Koreans a gift, a CD and the gift that they gave us was public humiliation and sending him home empty-handed while they continue to proliferate weapons.
CORTES: That's not what he says. And I believe Mike Pompeo before I believe an unnamed source telling CNN a bunch of, you know, a (INAUDIBLE) version of events and before I believe in North Korean meeting.
BURNETT: Well, he's certainly a man of integrity but he also --
CORTES: And the fact is missiles aren't flying. All we know is -- what we know is missiles aren't flying.
BURNETT: Which is true for almost all the days during which they eventually did fly. All right, thank you very much. Both of you, appreciate your time.
And next, the President has promised a Supreme Court pick will overturn Roe v Wade. It was a promise he made again and again and again. Will Brett Kavanaugh keep that promise? I'm going to ask Ken Starr who has known Kavanaugh for 26 years.
Plus, breaking news, your personal data, now, possibly enhance of a major Russian company with ties to Vladimir Putin. Drew Griffin with his major report.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[19:28:25] BURNETT: New tonight, the battle on Capitol Hill, President Trump Supreme Court nominee going all out to get the vote, Brett Kavanaugh, escorted by the Vice President Mike Pence, first, kissing the ring of key Republicans, including the Senate Majority Leader.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. MITCH MCCONNELL (R), MAJORITY LEADER: I think the President made an outstanding nomination. We look forward to the confirmation processes and it will unfold in the next few weeks.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Can you get any Democrats?
MCCONNELL: Vice President (ph).
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: OK. Silence when the question of Democrats was asked, because there is no good answer to that key question. There is, frankly, no room for error Republicans will likely need Democrats to get Kavanaugh on the court and they're not sure if they have them right now.
OURTFRONT tonight, someone who has known Judge Kavanaugh for 26 years, Ken Starr. Kavanaugh worked under Starr when Starr served as the independent council, of course, leading the investigation in to then President Bill Clinton. There they are together. They spent a lot of time together. And Kavanaugh was crucial in that final report.
So, Ken, thank you so much, great to have you on. You know, I know that you speak with Judge Kavanaugh. Frequently, your relationship was close then you have remained in touch over the years. Was he surprised that he got the final nod?
KEN STARR, HAS KNOWN SUPREME COURT NOMINEE BRETT KAVANAUGH FOR 26 YEARS: No, I was very pleased, because there was this sort of backlash saying well, he is in Washington, D.C., and the usual kind of mantra about the swamp. But I was very pleased and proud of the President for overcoming those kinds of head wins, and looking at the record, which was just an extraordinary error, which I think speaks for itself. Obviously we will have the confirmation hearing.
But Brett is a -- Judge Kavanaugh is such a quality human being. He's been such a quality judge as illustrated by the fact and there are many. But one of the favorites is that Justice Elena Kagan, who was dean of the Harvard Law School, recruits him to come teach there.
So, it suggests to me --
BURNETT: Yes.
STARR: -- that he's going to be held in very high respect by the court once, as I hope and pray that he will, is confirmed.
BURNETT: Have you spoken to him since the announcement? What's his reaction?
STARR: No, no, I have not. He's been busy and rightly so. We saw what happened at the White House and the beauty of the family, I don't think he was able to coach his girls' basketball team today. But other than that, I think he had a busy day and also, of course, he will need to be focusing on completing his work as a judge. So, he is a busy guy right now.
BURNETT: And, of course, he's got this confirmation hearing and we both know, everyone knows this is going to be a huge fight.
Before it was announced, the Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, who is obviously a fan of Kavanaugh, actually made the case against him as his choice because of the lengthy paper trail that exists from Kavanaugh's time in the Bush White House --
STARR: Right.
BURNETT: -- and his time working for you, right, on the Clinton investigation. Democrats are now saying they want every one of those documents, every e-mail, everything out there.
Is there anything in those documents that could validate McConnell's concerns that there's something in there?
STARR: Well, obviously, I don't know the full reach of documents, but no. Brett Kavanaugh has conducted himself, I'm confident, with integrity in each and every aspect of his public service, which is so distinguished.
So, I do recall that the beauty of the nomination of David Souter many years ago now was he has no paper trail. He will be the stealth candidate. You just don't know the philosophy of the person. And don't worry, he won't answer any questions of the moment in the confirmation hearing.
I just don't think that serves the interest of the court for American people. Let's find those who have a very distinguished record, let's debate the record. This is a democracy, let's have a great conversation.
And Judge Kavanaugh is not afraid of a conversation. He is a fabulous debater. He will -- I think, equate himself extremely well indeed.
BURNETT: And he has an extensive trail as you point out, right? I mean, his opinions have been cited by the Supreme Court itself time and time again, right? This is a person who has a record. He is not afraid of it.
And that obviously leads me to the crucial issue here on the table which is abortion, right?
Dana Bash asked Vice President Mike Pence about that today, and here is how he answered, Ken.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DANA BASH, CNN CHIEF POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Do you still want Roe versus Wade to be overturned?
MIKE PENCE, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: And that was the focus -- well, I do. But I haven't been nominated to the Supreme Court.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: All right, very open about his point of view. He hasn't been nominated but, of course, Judge Kavanaugh has and the president of the United States promised his voters, I mean, it was a clear promise, right? I'm going to appoint someone who will overturn Roe versus Wade. Here is President-elect Trump.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JAKE TAPPER, CNN HOST: I know you are opposed to abortion. How important is that issue to you now when President Trump picks Supreme Court justices, would that be a litmus test?
DONALD TRUMP, THEN-PRESIDENT-ELECT: It is. It is.
DEBATE MODERATOR: Do you want to see the court overturn Roe v. Wade?
TRUMP: Well, if we put another two or perhaps three justices on, that's really what's going to be -- that will happen, and that will happen automatically in my opinion because I am putting pro-life justices on the court.
I'm pro-life. The judges will be pro-life.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: That's really clear, Ken. Does Judge Kavanaugh know that? Is he going to keep the president's promise?
STARR: He takes the oath that he's going to -- and this, I am absolutely confident of, treat each issue, including these most delicate issues with an absolute open mind. He will also have great respect for precedent. He has said that, he has said it in various and sundry statements that precedent, including the Supreme Court's precedent, in his most controversial cases, accounts. So, it's a huge factor to weigh in the balance.
So, is there a litmus test for Brett Kavanaugh? There cannot be, he cannot have made and he will not have made a commitment to vote in any particular way on any particular issue. Why? Because it would really be inconsistent with the integrity of the judicial process and frankly would be inconsistent with the oath to make a promise. This is the way I'm going to vote.
This is not Congress. This is Supreme Court.
BURNETT: So, you're saying you're confident, no promise on abortion, no promise on anything else?
STARR: That's -- if I know Brett Kavanaugh and I do, he will not have promised to vote in a particular way. He will as I'm sure you will hear time and time again say, I will listen to any position within reason. And I'll listen to it respectfully.
[19:35:00] And then there's the other thing, he is one vote and there's a deliberative process. You are in that room as a Supreme Court justice, just yourself. There's no staff giving you any guidance, any direction whatsoever. It's just the nine men and women who've been chosen to serve in this very important function and that in itself is a very weighty consideration to listen to your colleagues, respectfully, and Brett will do that.
BURNETT: Another concern out there, about Kavanaugh, of course, is that he may end up having to rule on disputes over the Mueller investigation. And Kavanaugh weighed in on the issue before there even was a Mueller investigation or a political President Trump, right, back in 2009, Ken.
He wrote in the Minnesota Law Review, Congress might consider a law exempting a president while in office from criminal prosecution and investigation, including from questioning by criminal prosecutors or defense counsel, criminal investigations targeted at or revolving around a president are inevitably politicized. And a president who is concerned about an ongoing criminal investigation is almost inevitably going to do a worse job as president.
Does Judge Kavanaugh, Ken, think President Trump is immune from prosecution?
STARR: Well, it's -- I don't know what he thinks. However, I would be surprised if that were his view. What I read that law view article as saying is Congress should consider this. That is this is a policy question. It's not for the Supreme Court to decide such an issue and to grant immunity, that we think it's a good idea because it's very difficult for the president to carry on his very important duties with a criminal investigation under way.
I happen to agree with that proposition. It is very difficult. It's one of those -- this is a shame for the president to be deflected this way.
And yes, I was in charge of the Whitewater investigation. So, I saw it. It is very, very disruptive.
But that's exactly the role of Congress to the say, you know, let's have a time-out. That, of course, is what President Clinton argued in the civil context, in the Paula Corbin Jones case.
BURNETT: Yes.
STARR: But the Supreme Court rejected that 9-0. So, the court has spoken, and essentially has turned it back and I think that's exactly what Judge Kavanaugh was saying.
By the way, during the Obama administration, so, I mean, he wrote this a long time ago, almost 10 years ago. So, I think he's talking about, here is a principal of government, he sees the burden on the president. What can we do about it? But it's up to Congress, not to him.
BURNETT: So, Ken, what would say though? Should he, because he wrote that, and this is possibly an issue that could come before his court, if he is, of course, you know, gets through the confirmation process, recuse himself if there's anything related to the Mueller investigation that comes in front of the Supreme Court, because President Trump, of course, appointed him?
STARR: I don't think so by virtue of a law review article. For one thing, it's a law review article. It's not an actual case. And moreover, as I say, he's simply raising a policy issue which thoughtful judges do all the time, in their lectures, in their writings and so forth.
The question is, sitting as a judge, did he say anything that would suggest -- and here's the key -- has he somehow prejudged the issue? And I just don't read the Minnesota Law Review article as coming close to prejudging an issue of a constitutional right of the president to avoid a criminal investigation. I think it's again, an issue for Congress, Erin.
BURNETT: All right. Thank you very much, Ken Starr. I appreciate your time, sir.
STARR: You are very welcome. Thank you. BURNETT: And next, breaking news an alarming development about your
personal information and whether it been accessed by a massive Russian company with close ties to Vladimir Putin. Facebook, again, at the heart of it.
Plus, an American woman relentlessly harassed. She was wearing a shirt with Puerto Rico's flag on it.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If she's an American citizen, why is she wearing that (EXPLETIVE DELETED)?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[19:42:26] BURNETT: Breaking news, first on CNN tonight, a major Russian Internet company with ties to Vladimir Putin may have had access to your personal data on Facebook and here's the crucial thing, long after Facebook said they didn't have that access.
Our Chief Investigative Correspondent, Drew Griffin is OUTFRONT.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MARK ZUCKERBERG, CEO OF FACEBOOK: Yes, there was abuse, and that's why, in 2014, we took the step of fundamentally changing how the platform works.
DREW GRIFFIN, CNN SENIOR INVESTIGATIVE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): When Mark Zuckerberg told the congressional committee his social network shut down apps that gathered user's personal information, he didn't mention this, a list of 61 app developers Facebook now says were given an extension, the ability to keep gathering data from Facebook users for up to an additional six months. Among them, the Russian internet giant, mail.ru, which ran hundreds of apps on Facebook.
What does that mean to you?
Michael Carpenter is the former deputy assistant secretary of defense covering Russia.
MICHAEL CARPENTER, FORMER DEPUTY ASSISTANT SECRETARY OF DEFENSE: What it means that all data that Facebook users shared through this agreement with mail.ru is now available to the Russian intelligence services. All of it. And that is incredibly troubling.
GRIFFIN: The Facebook data privacy breach that gave companies the ability to harvest, use and target your personal Facebook information and your friends, included a Russian Internet firm with links to Vladimir Putin and the Kremlin. That means that if you were on Facebook before 2015, your name, gender, birth date, location, photos and page likes were all available to the company's that ran the apps. Mail.ru is controlled by USM holdings, a company founded by Russian
billionaire Alisher Usmanov that the U.S. Treasury Department lists as having ties to the Kremlin. Mail.ru had the ability to use Facebook to harvest U.S. data 32 apps and games, but the company has denied doing that.
In a statement to CNN, the Russian company said only about 5 percent of its users are in the U.S. and that we have not collected data on any Facebook users via Facebook apps other than for the purposes of in-game mechanics.
Facebook told CNN it's still investigating what mail.ru did with its Facebook apps and said in a statement: Mail.ru, one of the top five largest Internet companies in the world, has built apps for the Facebook platform and for other major platforms, including iOS and Android for years.
[19:45:02] We've found no indication of misuse with mail.ru.
CARPENTER: It doesn't matter what the original intent was from the company, which may well be benign. But once that data is in their possession, it's then under the purview of the Russian intelligence services.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GRIFFIN: Erin, in another blow to Facebook, the British government has just announced it is fining Facebook more than $650,000 for violating its data privacy laws. This is in connection with that Cambridge Analytica breach. In a report released really just minutes ago, the U.K.'s information commissioner's office said Facebook failed to safeguard people's information or even tell them how their data was being harvested -- Erin.
BURNETT: All right. Pretty incredible, grandfathered in and no one knew. Drew Griffin, thank you so very much. That's first on CNN report.
And next, an officer under investigation, witnessed a woman being harassed in an incredibly hateful way because she was wearing a Puerto Rican T-shirt.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Get away from me.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You should be wearing the United States of America flag, not Puerto Rico.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Officer, Officer, I feel highly uncomfortable. Can you please grab him?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: Plus, the inspirational story, all 12 boys and their coach have been rescued from that cave, we are on the ground with new details tonight on their recovery.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BURNETT: New tonight, this disturbing video of a man repeatedly harassing a woman. This happened at a park in Chicago, and the reason was -- well, she was wearing a t-shirt that said Puerto Rico on it.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You're not going to change us, you know that?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm not trying to change anyone. I'm just trying to come here for a birthday party.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The world is not going to change the United States of America, period.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: OK, OK.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You should not be wearing that in the United States of America.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: OK.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Are you a citizen?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, I am a citizen.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Are you a United States citizen?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Can you please get away me?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Then you should not be wearing.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Can you please get away from me?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You should be wearing the United States of America flag, not Puerto Rico.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Officer, officer, I feel highly uncomfortable. Can you please grab him?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Are you a citizen? Are you an American citizen?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Please, officer.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm an American citizen, I would like to know. If she's an American citizen, why is she wearing that (EXPLETIVE DELETED)?
(INAUDIBLE)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: As you can see, the police are not even -- he's not even grabbing him, like he's -- this guy is just walking up to me. He basically got in my face, damn near almost touched me. This is what I'm wearing, guys. This is what I'm wearing. (END VIDEO CLIP)
[19:50:02] BURNETT: All right. As you can see there, the police officer stands by and doesn't do anything. The man in the video has now been identified as Timothy Trybus. Police say he is facing assault and disorderly conduct charges.
OUTFRONT now, the governor of Puerto Rico, Ricardo Rossello.
Governor, thanks very much for your time tonight. I appreciate it.
You know, when you first saw that video, what went through your head?
RICARDO ROSSELLO, GOVERNOR, PUERTO RICO: I was -- I was shocked, appalled and disgusted. And, Erin, you know, I want to talk as the governor of Puerto Rico, not only the ones on the island, but all of the Puerto Ricans in the United States and address this attack of (AUDIO GAP).
This is not an immigration issue. It's an issue of education. It's an issue of civil rights, and it's an issue of basic human dignity.
Puerto Ricans have been part of the United States. We've been fighting wars with other fellow Americans. We're proud U.S. citizens. People need to understand that.
Secondly, it's a civil rights issue because the people, the U.S. citizens that live in Puerto Rico don't have the same rights as those that live in the United States. And this has opened that discussion.
Lastly, it doesn't matter that it's Puerto Rican, if it's Mexican, Canada, anybody.
BURNETT: Yes.
ROSSELLO: It's just a matter of basic human dignity. How you can treat another human being that way is just not acceptable.
BURNETT: And, Governor, I mean, you know, we have all seen the video, the police officer standing by, right? I mean, the woman in a very calm way asked for help. He ignores her, second, third time. And when finally someone stepped in to help her, it was actually not even the police officer.
Let me play that excerpt.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If you're an American citizen, you should not be wearing that shirt in America.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Can you please get away from me? Can you please get away from me? Can you please get away from me?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Let me tell you something, buddy, Puerto Rico is an American state. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It is an American state.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, they are. They vote for our president.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You get away.
UNDENTIFIED MALE: Hey, hey. Hey, calm down. Get away.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNETT: Governor, why do you think the police officer didn't help the woman?
ROSSELLO: I don't know. That is -- to me, it's just unacceptable behavior.
You know, as I was watching that video, I was wondering if it was going to escalate even further. I mean, anything could have happened there. And the officer clearly did not intervene to de-escalate the situation.
There is an investigation ongoing. I spoke to the president of Cook County, Preckwinkle, to ask her how the investigation is going a demand that this gets full resolution. To me, it's just not acceptable behavior. The police officer clearly did not comply with his duties, and we have to wait until the person that actually intervened was the lady's brother.
So, we have to wait only until that moment to see that there was actually someone.
BURNETT: Right. I mean -- so, Governor, you know, we've seen incidents like this. They're not isolated, right? There was a 91- year-old Mexican man. He was visiting family in California. He was beaten with a brick, told, quote to go back to Mexico.
2We've all seen the video of the New York City lawyer demeaning Spanish speaking restaurant employees. Do you think the president of the United States needs to speak out about this incident that we're just seeing and to say something, to say that this is not acceptable?
ROSSELLO: I mean, I think we all need to speak out about this. This is -- this is not the America that we believe in. Our shield says "out of many, one." And this is clearly a demonstration against that.
We need to have this conversation about basic decency and human dignity, and how we treat others. It doesn't matter if they're other American citizens, if they're not citizens, if they're immigrants, people need to treat other people decently. And what we're seeing with this occasion is that that is not occurring.
Everybody needs to speak out. It is in everybody's best interests for us to have that open America.
BURNETT: Governor Rossello, I appreciate your time. Thank you so much. ROSSELLO: Thank you.
BURNETT: And next, the amazing story of the day. Those 12 boys are rescued. They're out of the cave, and their coach is too. But their road to recovery is just beginning, and we're going to tell you exactly why and where.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BURNETT: New tonight, all 12 boys and their coach are resting in the hospital after the soccer team was rescued from that cave in Thailand. The team is expected to see families soon. It's an incredible and inspirational day.
For now, though, they are in quarantine due to concern about their weakened immune systems.
Arwa Damon is there and OUTFRONT with the latest.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ARWA DAMON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It was the moment so many were anxiously waiting for, so many fearing might never come. The last of the trapped boys and their coach were out, safe, alive. The father of 14-year-old Akarat Wongsukchan was overcome with emotion as he tried to articulate the sheer depth of his relief and gratitude. All he wants to do is embrace his son.
I want to hug him. I want to hug him and I want to tell him that I'm happy.
After 18 days of fear and uncertainty, all 12 boys and their coach are now back above ground in an isolation unit in the hospital, and relatively healthy. The cave systems here are complex, winding labyrinths, jagged, uneven and unpredictable.
We accessed a similar cave nearby.
(on camera): It's a sheer drop back down in here, and you really get a sense of appreciation of just how elaborate and challenging these cave systems are. When we were talking to one of the divers, he was saying that the narrowest part they have to go through in this rescue mission is about 80 centimeters, so two and a half feet wide. That's approximately the size of this opening. And they have to try to navigate that while underwater.
It gets kind of intense when you get back here, it's really narrow.
This is stagnant water. It's not moving through. And it probably is nowhere near as murky as what it is that the divers and the boys are going to have to go through. But if we dunk into the water with a light and try to replicate the visibility or lack thereof, we were told it was about a foot.
(voice-over): It's our pride. It's a mission possible by the Team Thailand who made it happen, the Thai mission commander stated. I want this to be the country's model in dealing with disasters.
It was nothing, many told us, short of a miracle. For those involved in the rescue, their toughest mission to date.
The boys and their coach will still have to recover physically and psychologically. But they will do that with the support not only of their families, but from people both here and across the globe.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
DAMON: And, Erin, you know, so many people who hadn't even met these boys before were coming up to us and saying how for the first time they are going to be able to sleep well tonight. That is how deeply this story impacted everybody, Erin.
BURNETT: And thank you, Arwa.
Thanks to all of you also for joining us. We'll see you tomorrow.
"AC360" starts right now.
