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Early Start with John Berman and Zoraida Sambolin

Obama to Address the Nation Tonight; Kerry Arrives in Baghdad; More Ebola Victims in U.S.?; E.U. Delays Tougher Russian Sanctions

Aired September 10, 2014 - 04:00   ET

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

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN ANCHOR: President Obama ready to take on ISIS. Tonight, he's set to reveal his plan to fight the terrorists in Syria and in Iraq. This as Secretary of State John Kerry arrives Baghdad, just minutes ago. The administration's strategy expected to include diplomacy, aid and force. But is it too little too late as ISIS fighters continue to gain ground?

Live team coverage begins now.

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

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: Good to see you this morning. I'm John Berman. It is Wednesday, September 10th. It is 4:00 a.m. in the East, I'm John Berman.

It is a crucial day in the battle against ISIS. All eyes on President Obama, he's getting set to address the nation tonight on his strategy to eliminate ISIS.

And this morning, we're getting some insight into just what the president will say. An administration official tells CNN the president will focus on three angles: framing the threat posed by ISIS, discussing actions already taken against ISIS, and announcing a new series of proposals to ultimately destroy the group.

We're also being told the president feels he already has authority to take action. So, he will not need to ask Congress to vote on most of his plans ahead of the midterm election. Many congressmen pleased they will not have to take a vote on this matter.

The president meet with top congressional leaders Tuesday ahead of the address but House Speaker John Boehner says there are still questions that remain to be answered.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. JOHN BOEHNER (R-OH), SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE: Until we know what the strategy is, we don't know what's going to be involved. And so, it's critically important that we take these in some organized steps. And the first step is, what's the plan?

JOSH EARNEST, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: He'll talk about the risk that the United States faces. And he'll talk about the strategy that he's put together to confront those risks, to mitigate them, and ultimately to degrade and destroy ISIL.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BERMAN: Now, the president's address comes at a truly pivotal point in the fight against ISIS. The terror group engaged in multiple conflicts on the ground in Iraq, not to mention Syria, as it tries to take more territory. Let's get a sense of just where ISIS is this morning.

Our Anna Coren in Irbil, in northern Iraq, with the latest.

Good morning, Anna.

ANNA COREN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, John. As you say, fighting on many fronts here in Iraq. Obviously, Haditha dam has been the focus for the past several days, many U.S. airstrikes taking place around that area. Mosul dam is still very active, the surrounding areas there. And then, the Mosul plains, which is where we were late last week, it's only an hour's drive from here in Irbil, fighting is very active there.

But, you know, John, people here in Kurdistan, they are looking for guidance and certainly for commitment from President Obama. Not boots on the ground, but definitely an intensification of those U.S. airstrikes that have been so critical to the operation here, in so far as pushing back ISIS.

They're looking for arms. They're looking for training. They're looking for resources. They're looking for intelligence.

They also stressed, John, as we've been discussing for weeks, that the fight needs to be taken to Syria. It just can't be limited to Iraq, even though ISIS now controls one-third of this country, which is quite staggering when you say those words out loud.

But as we've heard time and time again from many senior officials within the U.S. administration, we're also hearing it from Kurdistan and also from Baghdad, that they need to take that fight into Syria to hit that safe haven and also the economic infrastructure that is set out there. You know, the oil revenues that really are funding the ISIS campaign.

But obviously, this is going to be a long operation. This is not something that's going to be achieved in the coming weeks or months, John. This is something that will take years to fight. But obviously, people here are looking for that commitment from the United States moving forward so that they can, not just fight ISIS, but destroy them -- John.

BERMAN: And, Anna, one of the things the president is considering or likely to announce today is the possibility of continuing airstrikes into Syria. There have been more than 100 strikes in Iraq, not far from where you are. You said they have been critical from where you're sitting, these airstrikes, have they seemed effective against ISIS? COREN: Yes, most definitely. We've heard from central command,

there's more than 150 U.S. airstrikes that have taken place over the past month. Very critical -- critical to Mosul dam, to Haditha, what we've seen over the past several days, just taking out those enemy positions.

You know, ISIS has been allowed to operate extremely freely, travel in hordes, in large convoys and take out these towns, these villages, and these major cities.

So, the U.S. airstrikes has changed the way that ISIS has been operating, obviously limiting the way that they can get around. But I think the other key point to all of this, John, and I don't know if you will discuss this further as far as the political solution is the Sunnis. You know, there needs to be an uprising the Sunni population that have allowed ISIS into the cities and towns that are here in Iraq. Speaking to Sunni leaders over the past several days, John, they are saying that the government, the new government in Baghdad, has to give them more power.

They needed to be included. They feel marginalized, persecuted for many, many years. And they say they are not going to fight ISIS unless the new Iraqi government gives them what they want.

BERMAN: The military component --

COREN: So, this is another conflicts problem.

BERMAN: Indeed. The military component just one part of it, as you so rightly point out.

Anna Coren for us in Irbil -- thanks so much.

ROMANS: Meantime, Secretary of State John Kerry is in Baghdad, just arrived this morning as part of swing through the Middle East to build diplomatic support in the ISIS fight. Now, the hope is the new, more inclusive government in Baghdad will help bolster efforts to defeat ISIS. Kerry will also attend talks in Saudi Arabia, with foreign ministers from Iraq, Egypt, Jordan, and the six Gulf Arab states.

We're also hearing U.S. and Iran discussed the ISIS threat last week, now despite repeated insistence they're not working together.

Jomana Karadsheh has more now from Baghdad.

And, you know, the secretary of state going there on the heels of this new ostensibly more inclusive government, is this government going to able to do what the previous one couldn't in terms of fighting ISIS?

JOMANA KARADSHEH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That is the big challenge, Christine, that remains. While this visit by Secretary Kerry is really an endorsement of the Iraqi government, this newly formed government, he will be meeting here with the president who is a Kurd, with the Sunni speaker of parliament, the foreign minister and the Shia prime minister. In a series of tweets, we've heard from Secretary Kerry as he landed

in Baghdad, saying that it's his second time here in three months. That Iraq is a critical partner against ISIS. And he's also saying this inclusive government is a big step. Of course, we have heard the administration describe this as a major milestone, that they have come together and formed this government.

While it is a major step, Christine, the real issues here, these are the same faces, the same politicians we have seen in Iraq over the last decade. And they have deep-rooted mistrust. They have serious political ethnic and sectarian divides. And they bring this to the table with them. They bring this into the government.

So, while, yes, they've achieved this, they've formed a government, the real critical part right now is what comes next. Are they going to be able to put these differences aside and work together? This united front, a critical component in the fight against ISIS. It's not only the military campaign, not only the U.S. support when it comes to the campaign, it's going to have to be political. It's going to have to bring in the Sunnis and the Kurds who have really felt marginalized by the Shia-led government over the past few years.

So, this is a big step. And here, the U.S. has a big part to play while they're supporting them militarily. Also, this diplomatic engagement is really important do try to push them together to try and help them to do this. This is something that the Iraqi officials have complained about, saying that the Obama administration has not really been engaged enough when it comes to the political process in Iraq.

So, this is going to be very important. This is a good sign for Iraqi officials here seeing this re-engagement by the United States militarily with these airstrikes and also on the diplomatic and political level. Very important to try and bring back the Sunnis into the fold, really make them feel like they're a part of decision making here, that there is true power-sharing, and that will spread on the ground where you can recruit these Sunnis again -- the Sunni tribe who have been key in the past, in fighting ISIS' predecessor, al Qaeda in Iraq. It's only their grievances, Christine, that really allowed ISIS to gain ground in Iraq.

ROMANS: So interesting. Jomana Karadsheh, thank you so much for that in Baghdad. And again, the Secretary of State John Kerry just arrived -- his second trip now in Baghdad, second time in about three months. He just got there.

Be sure to join us at 9:00 tonight for the president's speech. We're going to bring that to you live, followed by, of course, full analysis here on CNN.

BERMAN: Nine minutes after the hour.

There may be a lot more Ebola victims being evacuated to the United States than we are being told about. The vice president of the Phoenix Air Group, an air ambulance company under contract with the State Department, confirms his pilots have transported, quote, "a lot" of other people who have been exposed to the deadly virus. How many exactly, he's not saying.

One of the four Americans infected by Ebola that we have been told about has arrived at Emory University Hospital in Atlanta for treatment. His identity is not being released.

Meanwhile in West Africa, the outbreak continues, the death toll near 2,300. With more than confirmed or suspected cases. The World Health Organization predicts that number could stop 20,000.

I want to show you this map of Africa published by researchers at Oxford. It shows 15 nations that experts predict are now at risk for Ebola outbreaks. Big area.

ROMANS: Wow.

Ten minutes past the hour. Time for an EARLY START on your money this morning.

European stocks are lower. Asian shares ended the day lower as well. And U.S. futures are also down here. Right now, stocks had a rough day yesterday. The Dow lost about 100 points.

Even Apple shares fell after one of its most ambitious launches in history. The company unveiled the iPhone 6 and the iPhone 6-Plus. They are bigger, John, faster. They have curved edges and a lot more pixels.

Apple also unveiled its first wearable device, the Apple watch. The smart watch pairs with the iPhone to display notifications, messages, weather and directions. It features several health and fitness apps. That's going to be key -- the health and fitness part of this. The watch is due early next year. It starts at 350 bucks.

And, finally, an ambitious way to replace your wallet, Apple Pay -- a new mobile payment platform that allows users to pay with a tap of their iPhones.

And if they do this right, John, if they do this Apple Pay right, there are a lot of people who say we just saw the death of the credit card.

BERMAN: No, it's interesting. I mean, the services are out there on other platforms. But Apple tends to do things sometimes better and can revolutionize the system. So --

ROMANS: You know, young people -- millennials, 63 percent of millennials don't have any credit card at all. So, when you think about that, they've already got the phone in their pocket. That's going to be the future.

BERMAN: I've read about these young people -- even met some of them occasionally.

All right. Twelve minutes after the hour.

Did the NFL drop the ball in the Ray Rice case? Criticized for not acting tougher, not acting sooner? Commissioner Roger Goodell on the record now playing defense as Rice's wife breaks her silence on his new punishment. That's next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BERMAN: The wife of Ray Rice now speaking not his defense. Janay Rice took to Instagram after his husband was cut by the Ravens and suspended by the NFL after video surfaced of Rice punching his then fiancee earlier this year.

Janay Rice now says, "I woke up this morning feeling like I had a horrible nightmare, feeling like I'm mourning the death of my closest friend. But have to accept the fact that reality is a nightmare in itself.

No one knows the pain that the media and the unwanted opinions from the public has caused my family. To make us relive a moment in our lives that we regret every day is a horrible thing. To take something away from the man I love that he has works his ass off for all his life just to gain ratings is horrific.

This is our life. Why don't you all get? If your intentions were to hurt us, embarrass us, make us feel alone, take all happiness away, you've succeeded on so many levels. Just know that we will continue to grow and show the world what real love is. Ravensnation, we love you."

In the meantime, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell is defending the league's response or slow response, or partial response. He maintains the league never saw the video of the punch before this week. Goodell says he may reinstate Rice eventually. But for now, his actions merit time off the field.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What changed? I mean, on the first tape, she was lying unconscious on the ground, being dragged out. Did you really need to see a videotape of Ray Rice punching her in the face to make this decision?

ROGER GOODELL, NFL COMMISSIONER: No, we certainly didn't. And I will tell what you we saw in the first videotape was troubling to us in and of itself. But what we saw yesterday was extremely clear, it was extremely graphic and it was sickening. And that's why we took the action that we took yesterday.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BERMAN: The discipline against Ray Rice already hurting his wallet. Nike is terminating its contract with Rice. He is being removed from the Madden NFL '15 video game as well.

ROMANS: A sad end to a disturbing story out of South Carolina. The bodies of five kids have been recovered in Alabama after authorities were led to the site by the kids' father identified as Tim Jones Jr. Law enforcement officials believe the kids between the ages of 1 and 8 were killed in South Carolina, but it's unclear how long ago.

BERMAN: Protesters disrupting a city council meeting in Ferguson, Missouri, the first with the fatal shooting of unarmed teenager Michael Brown. With their hands in the air demonstrators shouted "shut it down" and later voiced their doubts about the city's planned reforms. This comes ahead of a planned protest this afternoon into shutting down a section of Interstate 70.

Organizers are demanding that the government appoint a special prosecutor to review the shooting by Ferguson police officer Darren Wilson. A Missouri family court, a judge there has denied the release of any of Michael Brown's juvenile records.

ROMANS: This has been sought by some reporters.

There are new details this morning about the death of Joan Rivers. Officials telling "The New York Times" ten emergency responders tried resuscitating Rivers after she went to cardiac and respiratory arrest at a New York medical clinic. When they arrived, she'd already been took up to a defibrillator and had a breathing tube inserted as the staff gave her CPR.

It's still unclear why Rivers stopped breathing. She died a week later. Her death is being investigated by the state's health department and the city's medical examiner.

BERMAN: Primary season across the country, finishing overnight. Big news out of the Northeast.

ROMANS: Yes.

BERMAN: With a victory for former Massachusetts Senator Scott Brown. But Brown's win did not come for Massachusetts. No, no, no, he has moved. He now won the Republican nomination for Senate in New Hampshire. He bet a field of nine other Republicans in that primary. He will now face incumbent Democrat Jeanne Shaheen in November in the big race.

Meanwhile, here in New York, Governor Andrew Cuomo won the Democratic primary. His opponent, Zephyr Teachout, a law professor and first time political candidate, she did pretty well, with about 35 percent of the vote. Some liberals are calling that a rebuke to the governor.

And north of Boston, Congressman John Tierney becomes the first sitting Massachusetts Democrat in more than two decades to lose a primary. He was beaten by Seth Moulton, an ex-Marine with three Harvard degrees.

ROMANS: Whoa!

BERMAN: In other words, they show off.

ROMANS: Smart.

BERMAN: But Tierney thing is a big, big news. Tierney's had a bunch of scandals out there. This actually clears the path for Democrats to hold the seat. Had Tierney won the primary, Republicans may have picked that seat in Massachusetts.

ROMANS: I thought you were excited it's football season. It's primary season. That's why you're so excited.

BERMAN: It's primary season in the great state of Massachusetts.

ROMANS: Oh my. Here we go.

Twenty minutes past the hour.

Crisis in Ukraine, intense fighting, despite a fragile ceasefire. This morning, Russia facing new consequences for its involvement, up next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ROMANS: The cease-fire in Ukraine at the top of the agenda in Brussels this morning as the European Union diplomats begin meetings on the timing of tougher sanctions against Russia. The E.U. approved those sanctions Monday but holding off on enforcing them for at least a few days to see if the cease-fire in Ukraine holds.

CNN's Reza Sayah joins us on the phone from Eastern Ukraine.

So, Reza, that's the question. Is the cease-fire holding or is there fighting?

REZA SAYAH, CNN CORRESPONDENT (via telephone): Yes, Christine. When you declare a cease-fire, that's supposed to mean no more fighting, but that hasn't been the case here. We should point out, the last 48 hours have been relatively calm, we continue to see sporadic shelling and firing, but it hasn't been as bad as the other first days of the cease-fire.

However, it's still happening and the question is, who's doing it and why. It's very difficult to answer those questions, but one factor could be the dynamics of this conflict. The two sides fighting are made of a variety of militias, some of these militias include radical and extremist elements, who may not abide by the chain of command by of their central authorities.

Now, they may not want a cease-fire to last. They may have other motives and aims. Thy way want to sabotage the cease-fire, or want to create the impression that the other side is violating the ceasefire.

No one has been able to verify that's what's happening, but it could be one explanation why we keep seeing the cease-fire violated. So, in the coming hours, in the coming days, we'll watch closely the conflict zone to see if the sporadic fighting and the shelling continues, or if we some peace and calm that lasts.

We'll also be watching closely moves by the European Union. They are seemingly prepared to take on and impose more sanctions. Washington is considering more unilateral sanctions, too. Some question if it's a good idea in a middle of a fragile ceasefire, to add more pressure, because it could escalate the conflict. Remember Moscow says if the E.U. imposes sanctions, they will take

economic measures too against Europe. So, we'll watch closely in the coming days of what impact those sanctions have if indeed there is force that's been implemented.

ROMANS: All right. Reza Sayah for us this morning -- thank you so much for that, Reza.

BERMAN: Happening right now, Secretary of State John Kerry just arrived in Baghdad. This, as the president plans to reveal his plan on how to fight ISIS -- a big prime time speech tonight. What will his strategy look like? Will it be enough? Live team coverage ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)