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Early Start with John Berman and Zoraida Sambolin

Obama Authorizes Recon Flights Over Syria; Stocks at Record Highs; Michael Brown Investigation: New Recording

Aired August 26, 2014 - 04:00   ET

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

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: The hunt for ISIS. U.S. drones set to fly over Syria, searching for the Islamic militants. Are airstrikes now imminent? This as ISIS gains more ground in Iraq.

And this morning, just how close are investigators to identifying the terrorist who killed American journalist, James Foley?

We have live team coverage from London and Baghdad, ahead.

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN ANCHOR: A new video recording surfaces in the Michael Brown death investigation. Attorneys claiming the sound of gunshots offer new insight into the police shooting of the unarmed teenager. This as the community mourns the tragedy, amidst a call for change. The latest overnight, ahead.

God morning. Welcome to EARLY START. I'm Christine Romans.

BERMAN: I'm John Berman. Great to see you this Tuesday. It is August 26, 4:00 a.m. in the East.

Up first this morning, the U.S. is weighing new military action against ISIS targets in Syria. We're learning that President Obama has now authorized reconnaissance flights over Syria, talking drones and spy planes. U.S. officials say the first could happen at anytime now. This comes as ISIS seized a key airbase in Syria and the Syrian government signals it is ready to accept support from the U.S. and others to fight the Islamic terrorists.

As for a possible ISIS attack here in the United States, the White House says there is no evidence of any current plot, but they are concerned about the potential threat.

CNN's Nick Paton Walsh following all the latest developments live from London.

And, Nick, the latest news, the authorization for these reconnaissance flights over Syria itself.

NICK PATON WALSH, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: One of many ways, John, that this is the prelude to potential airstrikes inside Syria, which no U.S. official really thinks they can fight ISIS without because of the fact that they work in both Syria and Iraq. But it's a very complex task, putting drones in reconnaissance flights in the air. Normally, you'd like to complement with human intelligence on the ground, spies effectively. The U.S. struggling to do that, it's extraordinarily hard to get people to film for you in ISIS territory as journalists. So, that will certainly be a challenge for them. And without it, they are limited to what they had in Pakistan on many occasions, called signature strikes, target suspicious groupings of military aides.

So, that's going to be a complex task for them certainly. The serious government saying yes, we would welcome you, but setting rules for it, effectively saying they have to agree on what would and wouldn't be done. Washington simply isn't going to want to get into the nitty- gritty of a contract of cooperation with the Assad regime, given the tens of thousands of civilians that they have killed. And also the fact that is in many ways behind the radicalism that spawned ISIS in the first place.

But at the end of the day, John, we are seeing dawning recognition in Washington that ISIS presents a threat not only in the Middle East, but potentially to the United States, and the inevitability the military action may now spread to Syria, too -- John.

BERMAN: Almost prevent an almost impossibly complicated scenario here where the United States would have to figure out a way to go after ISIS without helping the Assad regime, which exactly one year ago this week, Nick, the United States was considering bombing.

WALSH: Absolutely. Bear in mind, too, there are many analysts for some reason who actually think the Assad regime has until now done very little to fight ISIS. They are seeing ISIS move against those moderate Syrian rebels who were a problem for the Assad regime. So, in many ways, their enemy's enemy is being their friend.

Yes, since the focus changed to Iraq and to the U.S. attacks on ISIS, there have been attacks by the Syrian air force occasionally against ISIS. Many say really now, Syria sounding the alarms against ISIS are moving way too late, portraying the fact that they were not complicit, but certainly unwilling to tackle them in the earlier stages and, of course, pointing out the Syrian regime's barbarity, its brutality has permitted the prophesy to come true. They also said, the rebellion, they were fighting the terrorist. Well, in many ways now, certainly, the United States increasing number of those fighting against the regime and in northern Syria are actually from prescribed terrorist groups.

BERMAN: Yes, difficult to find a friend in the region.

Nick Paton Walsh for us in London -- great to have you with us this morning, Nick.

ROMANS: ISIS is a threat in Iraq. Airstrikes may have stopped its momentum, but U.S. military officials say defeating ISIS will be a long process requiring more than just airstrikes, including support from Iraq's regional neighbors. Meantime, the U.N. accuses of ISIS of crimes against humanity in Iraq, including the massacre of hundreds of Shia prisoners in Mosul.

CNN's Jomana Karadsheh is live in Baghdad, where -- Jomana, the sectarian violence is on the rise. What's the latest?

JOMANA KARADSHEH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, just this morning, Christine, at least 10 people were killed and 34 others were wounded. Police are telling us it was a parked car bomb that detonated in a predominantly Shia area. This comes a day after multiple attacks struck Shia areas in Baghdad and the southern city of Karbala.

One of those bombings, a suicide attack in eastern Baghdad on a Shia mosque. That was claimed by ISIS later in the day. They say it is in revenge, in retaliation for that brutal attack we saw on the Sunni mosque northeast of Baghdad on Friday. You remember, that's when gunmen stormed a Sunni mosque, opened fire, killing at least 70 worshippers.

Now, following that attack, there really has been a lot of concern about that unleashing, that cycle of revenge, retaliation, the counter attack that we have seen in the past. Sectarian violence in Iraq has been on the rise for the past year. Levels of violence, sectarian in nature that we have not seen since the height of the sectarian war in 2006 and 2007.

And western Officials that I have spoken to over recent months have said that they are really concerned that this country could be one major attack away from all out sectarian war, civil war. Again, ISIS really does exploit this sort of environment, the sectarian tension and division. It's something that ISIS' predecessor, al Qaeda in Iraq exploited and try to push the country even further into sectarian violence -- and officials say that is exactly what ISIS is doing now.

It also exploits the grievances of the Sunni population to try and get their support, get a foothold in Sunni areas and recruit more into its ranks.

ROMANS: Certainly a troubling statement, no question.

Jomana Karadsheh -- thank you, Jomana.

ISIS is the richest terrorist organization in the world. It's using the currency of the Middle East, oil, to fund its reign of terror. ISIS first took control of the majority of oil fields in Syria now controls seven oil fields in northern Iraq. With the production capacity of about 80,000 barrel a day, ISIS then sells that oil on the black market for $25 to $60 a barrel, a deep discount to $100 a barrel that it trades in the national and the global markets, bringing in an estimated $3 million a day in oil sales. Criminal activity like kidnapping, smuggling and extortion also a huge source of revenue, as well as wealthy donors around the world funding ISIS.

Seven minutes past the hour.

Quick EARLY START on your money this morning. Futures barely moving. But look at this, 2,000, the S&P 500 above 2,000 for the first time ever yesterday, closing at a high 8 percent so far this year.

BERMAN: For that brief moment, it was so exciting.

ROMANS: Two thousand, it's a big deal.

BERMAN: A very big deal.

All right. Freed American hostage Peter Theo Curtis waiting to be reunited with his family. Curtis was released on Sunday after being held captive by Islamic militants for nearly two years. His mother telling ABC that after learning that her son was alive and free, she reached out to the mother of slain American journalist, James Foley.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NANCY CURTIS, MOTHER OF FREED AMERICAN HOSTAGE: The first thing I did before I told my daughter was I sat down and sent an e-mail to Diane Foley. We have been through so much together. I didn't want her to hear it from the media first.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Do you know what you will say to him?

CURTIS: I give him a big hug and I'll probably cry. And he'll probably cry.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BERMAN: Such a mixture of --

ROMANS: And she said she'll confiscate his passport.

BERMAN: That sounds like a good parent there. I can't imagine the mixture of joy and also pain for the family of James Foley she's witnessing right now. Nancy Curtis says the family is so relieve that Theo was healthy and safe, and finally headed home after this unbelievable ordeal.

ROMANS: All right. New revelations this morning from NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden about the agency's secret data base. According to new documents, the NSA built up a Google-like data base that allows nearly two dozen agencies to search through 850 billion records including calls, e-mails and Internet chats. The program called iReach (ph) has data on the foreign communications with foreigners and millions of Americans.

BERMAN: The Veterans Administration says no patients at its Phoenix hospital died because of long waits medical care. An internal investigation by the V.A. looked into the deaths of 40 veterans and found no linked to the scheduling backlogs. V.A. employees allegedly doctored records to hide delays. CNN first reported the problem at the V.A. in Phoenix some months ago. Outrage over the delays led to the resignation of Eric Shinseki.

But it is news that after this investigation, they found the delays led directly to no deaths.

ROMANS: President Obama is said to deliver remarks today at the American Legion's national convention in Charlotte, North Carolina. Ahead of that speech, North Carolina Senator Kay Hagan blasted the president, questioning his commitment to veterans. Hagen, a Democrat, is locked in a tight reelection race. She says the administration hasn't done enough to earn the lasting trust of veterans and implement real and permanent reforms at the V.A.

BERMAN: You know, the president is going to get no love from the Democrats in these states with swing seats. Expect to see more of that in the coming weeks.

Ten minutes after the hour.

Some of the biggest stars in television, not including Christine Romans was on hand, for the primetime Emmy Awards. And it was a very good night for "Breaking Bad." The show got a final send off, taking top honors for outstanding drama series.

Star Brian Cranston had one of the night's really most memorable moments, stealing -- really seizing a kiss. You know, he was on "Seinfeld" with Julia Louis-Dreyfus, you may remember some years ago.

Wow. This is just on and off. We almost used up all our allotted time.

Other winners include "Modern Family", which won outstanding comedy series for a record fifth time. Jim Parsons took home his fourth statue for outstanding actor in a comedy. And Juliana Marguiles won the outstanding actress award in a drama for her role in "The Good Wife".

You know, there were a lot of laughs, a lot of high moments, but also some poignant as well. An emotional Billy Crystal paid tribute to his good friend, the late Robin Williams.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BILLY CRYSTAL, ACTOR: It's very hard to talk about him in the past because he was so present in all of our lives. For almost 40 years, he was the brightest star in the comedy galaxy. Robin Williams, what a concept.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BERMAN: What a concept. Loved hearing Billy Crystal. Obviously, they were friends for such a long, long time, did "Comic Relief" together. Nice to see that last night.

ROMANS: All right. Eleven minutes past the hour.

Breaking overnight, an audio recording that captured the sound of police shooting and killing unarmed black teenager, Michael Brown. The possible new evidence surfacing as the community mourns. You are going to hear it all for yourself, right after the break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BERMAN: Breaking overnight, new audio has emerged, allegedly, of the moment that Michael Brown was shot. It was apparently recorded inadvertently during a video chat. We want you to listen to the audio and hear from the attorney for the

Ferguson resident who captured the sound of the shots. Listen to this.

(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You are pretty.

(GUNFIRE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You are so fine, just going over some of your videos.

(GUNFIRE)

(END AUDIO CLIP)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LOPA BLUMENTHAL, ATTORNEY: He was in the apartment. He was talking to a friend on a video chat. He heard loud noises.

And at the moment, at the time, he didn't even realize the import of what he was hearing until afterwards. And it just happened to have captured 12 seconds of what transpired outside of his building.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BERMAN: It's remarkable audio.

The FBI is now investigating and has already interviewed the client. This comes on the same day that thousands packed a funeral home for a final farewell and called it a home going for Michael Brown, the unarmed teenager who, of course, was fatally shot by police in his hometown of Ferguson just over two weeks ago now. It was an emotional service, one that included calls for peace, calls for justice.

CNN's Nick Valencia says now things are quiet in Ferguson.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NICK VALENCIA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It has been another day of peace and quiet here in the streets of Ferguson in the overnight hours. We really saw a dwindling of the police force as well as the demonstrators that were showing their solidarity for Mike Brown. It seems as though people on the streets of Ferguson have really heeded the message of their elders, as well as the message of Mike Brown, Sr., who on Sunday, at a peace fest, urged and encouraged people in Ferguson, to keep the peace, to be respectful on the day his son was laid to rest.

Here in Ferguson, in the early morning hours, that's exactly what we see. This is the lot, the approved assembly area for Ferguson demonstrators, if you look around here, it's largely empty. There is a small contingent of folks still here who spent the night here overnight. About a dozen people tell me they will continue their demonstrations, even when the cameras leave.

There also still is a large contingent of support for Officer Darren Wilson, just not here in Ferguson. More so in St. Louis, about 30 minutes away from here.

We know that his supporters have raised $400,000 for his defense. That money is going toward his livelihood. Darren Wilson supporters say that he's been given an unfair chance in the media, mischaracterized. They fear he will, one, never be able to be a police officer and, two, never live in St. Louis again.

Here behind me, it's been clear to me and told to me this group is for Mike Brown. And while it may be peaceful right now in these hours, they say that the demonstrations will continue today, even if the cameras aren't here to catch it. They want the story out there, they want to focus on Mike Brown, as well as the youth here who they say suffer at the hands of the police.

In Ferguson, Missouri, Nick Valencia, CNN.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ROMANS: All right. Thanks for that, Nick.

Texas Governor Rick Perry is still defiant. Lawyers filing a 60-page motion to dismiss abusive power charges against him. They claimed his indictment defies common sense and violates both the state and U.S. Constitution. The charges stem from Perry's veto of state funding for the office of D.A. who refused to resign following a drunk driving conviction.

BERMAN: California turning to technology to fight smartphone theft. Governor Jerry Brown signed a law Monday requiring kill switches on new smartphones. The new law requires cell phones made after July 1st of 2015 and sold in California had anti-theft security feature that would make stolen devices inoperable remotely. You could turn them off.

The new law makes it standard on all phones. But owners will be able to opt out, if they want.

ROMANS: All right. Eighteen minutes past the hour.

Crisis in Ukraine. Its government on its way out as its president accuses Russia of sending soldiers into the country to fight with the separatists. We are live with the very latest, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ROMANS: This morning, it appears Ukraine's government will be rapidly changing with President Petro Poroshenko dissolving parliament and calling for early elections in October, as the military's battle with the pro-Russian insurgency rages in eastern Ukraine.

Meantime, Ukraine's leader and the Russian President Vladimir Putin could be face-to-face today on the sidelines of a trade summit both are attending.

CNN's Diana Magnay live in Sloviansk, Ukraine.

And this meeting between these two heads, boy, I'd like to be a fly on the wall for that.

DIANA MAGNAY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I wouldn't hold out too much hope that anything will come from this meeting. Even Angela Merkel, the German chancellor, Christine, who knows these two leaders, better really than most other world leaders, she's spoken to them so often, said that the only chance of any kind of peace being reached here is if the Russian/Ukrainian border is sealed, if Russia makes sure no more fighters and no more weapons cross from Russia into Ukrainian territory.

Now, Russia denies and always has done, that it is sending Russian troops and that any weapons are crossing over the border. It says that the two check points in rebel hands have monitors from the OSCE, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, that they are there, they can see what's coming through. That this is a very, very long order.

And even in the last 24 hours, Christine, there have been reports from the Ukrainian anti-terror operation of two incursions of armored military convoys both in the north of the conflict area and down in the south, prompting the accusation from Ukraine that Russia is actually trying to open a second front down in the south. There has been artillery shelling from across the border into Ukraine and also last night, Ukraine says that it has captured 10 Russian paratroopers in the conflict zone, and they have provided testimony.

There is now video where they say they were not told they were going to be crossing into Ukraine. They thought they were on military exercises. But early in the morning, they were gathered together and put in a military convoy and only their officers knew that they would actually be crossing the border to help the rebels in their fight. And as you can see behind me, this conflict really has brought devastation in the towns and villages as the Ukrainian army and pro- Russian rebels have fought it out.

Ukraine has been pushing the rebels back into quite small pockets around the rebel strongholds of Donetsk and Luhansk. But from our contacts on the ground in both cities from journalist colleagues also, those who are there and can monitor the situation are finding it very, very dangerous and very difficult now to get out -- Christine.

ROMANS: Diana Magnay live for us in Sloviansk, Ukraine, this morning -- thank you, Diana.

BERMAN: Twenty-five minutes after the hour right now.

The U.S. moving in on ISIS. A new attack strategy may be launched to take down the terror organization, but as these Islamic militants gain ground in Syria, it's too little too late. Live team coverage ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)