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Early Start with John Berman and Zoraida Sambolin
Obama Meets with GOP Congressional Leaders; The War on ISIS: Iran to the Rescue?; Who is Suspected Kidnapper Delvin Barnes?.; Tension Tear Jerusalem
Aired November 07, 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: Happening in just hours: President Obama meets with the new leaders of Congress after days of posturing and threats. Can the president and Republicans who will now be in charge find any middle ground? What we know about this morning's meeting. That's ahead.
CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN ANCHOR: Could there soon be new help in the war on ISIS from the most unlikely of places? President Obama reaching out to Iran to fight ISIS terrorists. What we are learning this morning about this potential new partnership.
BERMAN: History of violence inside the troubling past of the man accused of kidnapping a Philadelphia nurse. New details this morning.
Good morning, everyone. Welcome to EARLY START. I'm John Berman.
ROMANS: I'm Christine Romans. It is Friday, November 7th. It is 4:00 a.m. in the East.
Happening today: the first face-to-face meeting with the president and the man soon-to-be the majority leader in the Senate, Mitch McConnell along with the rest of the House leadership and judging from the tone of remarks made over the last couple of days by both the president and congressional Republicans, there is a possibility of face-to-face confrontation.
CNN White House correspondent Michelle Kosinski has more.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MICHELLE KOSINSKI, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Hey, John and Christine. Yes, maybe we could all use a bourbon summit, as it's being called for, after hearing this back-and-forth over the last few days, these warning shots. This is also presented in this new spirit of cooperation.
Listen to Speaker of the House John Boehner talking about the possibility that the president could take executive action on immigration.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) REP. JOHN BOEHNER (R-OH), SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE: I believe that if the president continues to act on his own, he is going to poison the well. When you play with matches, you take the risk of burning yourself. And he's going to burn himself if he continues to get down this path. The American people made it clear Election Day. They want to get things done and they don't want the president acting on a unilateral basis.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KOSINSKI: We did hear the White House say repeatedly that the president is open to doing things differently, that if he sees areas to make some changes, without getting into specifics, that he will make changes in order to get things done. And they say that progress starts now, with this big meeting today at the White House, 16 congressional leaders. The White House says it's a beginning point, to look at what everybody wants to get done and find those areas of common ground.
Some obvious starting points would be things like ISIS, immigration, Ebola. So, if the optimistic view that's being put out there, this is a rededication. So, let's really work together now. The reasonable question is, why wasn't this done a long time ago? And the White House acknowledged that, yes, even on the part of the president, more could have been done.
We asked the question, you know, one of the criticisms you hear the president from both Democrats and Republicans, is that he doesn't reach out enough, doesn't engage enough. And they said sure, that that is true to some extent. But they put the onus on Republicans, saying that in the past, Republicans saw a political gain in trying to oppose everything the president wanted to do, and that now, just maybe, they could see benefit in finding that common ground -- John and Christine.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BERMAN: Our thanks to Michelle Kosinski.
Some other big news out of the White House this morning. We are learning that President Obama secretly wrote the supreme leader of Iran last month with the eye toward possible cooperation in the war against ISIS. Now, this is not the first time the president has written Ayatollah Khamenei. In fact, it's the fourth time since he became president.
"The Wall Street Journal" reports that any cooperation with the U.S. and Iran in fighting against ISIS would depend on reaching some kind of a deal on the future of Iran's nuclear program.
The administration refuses to confirm the letter exists and denies there is any coordination with Iran or any link to a nuclear deal.
Congressional Republicans unhappy with reports of this dialogue.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) JEN PSAKI, STATE DEPARTMENT SPOKESWOMAN: Obviously, we understand that they have concerns about the threat of ISIL, which they expressed as well. But I would not look at it as a path to a different type of coordination.
BOEHNER: I don't trust the Iranians. I don't think we need to bring them into this. And I would hope that the negotiations that are under way are serious negotiations. But I have my doubts.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BERMAN: On Sunday, Secretary of State John Kerry begins new negotiations with Iran's foreign minister on that possible nuclear agreement. The White House puts chances of reaching a deal right now at about 50/50.
ROMANS: An American airstrike in Syria has apparently scored a big win in the battle against terror. A U.S. official says a major attack on the Khorasan group is believed to have killed its most skilled bomb maker David Drugeon. Intelligence officials say the 24-year-old French national was developing non-metallic bombs that could be sneaked through airport security.
The Pentagon says the airstrikes hit five Khorasan targets. A Syrian human rights group says civilians were also killed, as were anti-Assad fighters for Jabhat al-Nusra and Ahrar al-Sham. Two groups have not made terror attacks against Western targets a priority so far.
BERMAN: A stunning revelation this morning, that hundreds of American service members reported that they were exposed to chemical weapons in Iraq. But the Pentagon offered no treatment or really any follow-up, after "The New York Times" revealed 17 such cases last month were reported. A really interesting report.
Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel ordered a review of forms submitted by troops as they left combat. This turned up 629 more service members who reported they had been exposed, exposed by the way to 1980s-era degraded chemical weapons. The Pentagon says it will now expand outreach to veterans, including a toll free number.
ROMANS: A former Navy SEAL stepping forward as the man who shot Osama bin Laden. Robert O'Neill had been a SEAL for 15 years at the time of 2011 bin Laden raid. But he tells "The Washington Post" he thought that mission would be his last.
Now, O'Neill is the target of criticism. Some in the military community wonder how he can claim to have fired the kill shot when at least two others in bin Laden's room fired their weapons. And some fault O'Neill for taking attention. For another former SEAL says O'Neill has taken a serious risk by acknowledging his role.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JONATHAN GILLIAM, FORMER NAVY SEAL: He sacrificed a lot in doing this. Whether he is the real shooter or not, he's put a bull's eye on his back that is bigger in a lot of ways than the bull's eye that Osama bin Laden had on his.
ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: Yes, you are talking about an actual bull's eye from jihadists.
GILLIAM: From jihadists, you know? So, his family, himself, he is on the speaking lecture circuit. Anybody that goes to see this guy now is a target when they're in a room with him.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROMANS: O'Neill says he was willing to publicly acknowledge his part in killing bin Laden only after being outed by a military blog earlier this week.
All right. Time for an early start on your money this morning. Stocks futures pointing higher. The Dow and S&P 500, record highs yesterday. The big word on Wall Street today, four little letters, j- o-b-s. The government releases its October jobs report at 8:30 a.m. Eastern Time.
Also new details this morning about the Home Depot security breach. The retailer now says 53 million customer e-mail addresses were taken during that hack. That's in addition to the 56 million credit and debit card numbers that had previously disclosed. Hackers got into the system by stealing a third party username and password, eventually reaching Home Depot's self check out systems where it took your information.
The card readers that were hit have been removed. Home Depot beefing up its security on payment data. If you shopped at Home Depot this year, you got to keep a close eye on your bank accounts, folks. Look out for suspicious emails. If someone e-mails you saying we think you were a target of the hack, please give us your Social Security, and your account number and we can verify it, that means someone is trying to steal your information. Don't do it.
All right. Inside the past of the accused Philadelphia abductor. What he's told police about the kidnapping and disturbing criminal history police revealing.
Plus, a terrifying attack caught on camera inside a hospital. This is deeply troubling. We'll have the story behind it, next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BERMAN: The latest now on the suspect who allegedly snatched a woman right off the street in Philadelphia. The victim Carlesha Freeland- Gaither was rescued Wednesday night by police in Maryland. She was found inside Delvin Barnes's car. Police say they have a confession from the 37-year-old suspect and this is not the first time he has done something like this.
Listen to his closest friend say he is stunned by the charges.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) RONALD DAVIS, SUSPECT'S FRIEND: We used to chill. Hang out. He is a good guy. He is always looking to help somebody, always looking to bend over backwards. He'll give his shirt off his back if he could. I don't believe it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BERMAN: So, who is this suspect Delvin Barnes? And what do we know about his past?
Jean Casarez takes a closer look.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JEAN CASAREZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Federal charges have now been brought against Delvin Barnes in the abduction and kidnapping of Carlesha Freeland-Gaither, and transporting her across state lines into Maryland. This was brought in the eastern district of Pennsylvania.
While this is all happening, Barnes waived his extradition to come right back here to Virginia where he lived to face local charges of attempted capital murder.
And in a strange irony and twist of fate, this local case may have helped save the life of Carlesha.
It was about a month police say that a young 16-year-old girl, local girl, was walking along the streets and they say that Barnes kidnapped her, hit her with a shovel and put her in the trunk of a car, transporting her to a home. She was then, police say, assaulted.
Out in the backyard, he made her take her clothes off, he began to allegedly dig a grave saying, I'm going to kill you, at the same time dousing her with bleach and then gasoline, sitting her on fire.
She escaped. She survived. She was taken to a local hospital and she was given a forensic rape examination.
That perpetrator DNA was matched to Delvin Barnes. But at that time, police say, which was about a week ago, he fled the state. It's that DNA that led them to Delvin Barnes in Philadelphia via the surveillance camera. When local police saw that surveillance video, they recognized him, they also saw a decal on his car which led to a local car agency here and lo and behold, a GPS tracker was put on Barnes car because he was a credit risk.
Immediately, local police called ATF and said we have located the car and that's when they rescued Carlesha. Carlesha at this moment is with her family. She is safe. She is trying to understand and comprehend what has happened to her. But her family is grateful, and they tell me she is our hero -- Christine, John.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ROMANS: (INAUDIBLE) story. All right. Take a look at shocking new video of a rampaging patient attacking nurses inside a suburban Minneapolis area hospital. You can see 68-year-old Charles Logan chasing down nurses with a metal bar he ripped from the side of the hospital bed. Eight of the nurses suffered injuries. One of them recovering this morning from a collapsed lung.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The hallway shot and in the hallway shot, you can see those same people are coming out the door. Two of them fell down in the hallway. And they were repeatedly struck by the man with the pole.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROMANS: Logan fled the hospital and died a few blocks away after police used a taser on him to subdue him.
Authorities did not know why he attacked those nurses.
BERMAN: That is terrifying.
The prime suspect in the abduction of University of Virginia student Hannah Graham is now being linked to a 2005 sexual assault case. Court records show DNA evidence collected from the victim's fingernails nine years ago came back positive last month as a match for Jesse Matthew.
Matthew has been charged in the 2005 case with attempted capital murder and abduction with attempt to defile. And he is scheduled to appear in court next Friday.
ROMANS: Prosecutors in New Zealand have dropped the most serious charges against AC/DC drummer Phil Rudd. Rudd was accused of trying to hire a hit man to kill two people. But his lawyer says those charges have been dismissed because of lack of evidence.
The 60-year-old rocker still faces other charges, including threatening to kill and drug possession.
BERMAN: Former NFL star Ray Rice awaiting a judge's decision after finishing up two days of testimony in his appeal hearing. Rice is hoping to overturn the indefinite suspension handed down by the NFL after video footage surfaced of him punching his then fiancee in an elevator. Rice claims he was subjected to double jeopardy when the league suspended him indefinitely after originally banning him for just two games.
Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson is on the verge of resolving his legal issues. Peterson struck a deal in his child abuse case, pleading no contest to reduce charge of misdemeanor reckless assault for injuring his four-year-old son while spanking him with a tree branch back in May. Peterson will not play for the Vikings until the NFL's review of his case is complete. ROMANS: Texas Governor Rick Perry making his first court appearance on abuse of power charges. During the two-hour hearing Thursday, Perry's lawyers criticized the case against him, calling it a comedy of errors. The judge did not hand down a ruling in the case. Perry is accused of pressuring a prosecutor to resign by threatening to veto money for her anti-corruption division.
BERMAN: A federal appeals court ruling Thursday may force the Supreme Court to take up same-sex marriage. The 2-1 ruling holds up the bans in Ohio, Michigan, Tennessee and Kentucky. Now, this ruling in conflict with every other federal appeals court decision across the country. It makes it really much more likely that the Supreme Court will step in to settle this matter.
ROMANS: There had been so many conflicting rulings from the federal appeals courts.
BERMAN: Well, this is -- this is the one that puts it in direct conflict. That's what the Supreme Court they've been waiting for.
ROMANS: Right. All right. Seventeen minutes past the hour.
Let's get an early start on your forecast with Jennifer Gray this morning.
JENNIFER GRAY, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Good morning to you, guys.
We will see cooler air start to filter in especially across the eastern half of the country, as we go through the next couple of days. A little bit of snow left in portion of northern Maine for today. But we are going to see sunny skies return to the Southeast, and you can see snow around the Great Lakes area. Yes, a series of cold fronts will impact the country for today and on through the middle part of next week.
So, get ready -- 54 degrees in D.C., 52 in New York, 47 in Chicago, 61 in Kansas City. As we go through tomorrow, that front pushing through. A little bit of rain expected for portions of the Great Lakes. Mostly cloudy skies return to the Northeast, sunny across the country's mid section. Cold air is coming in behind it.
We are going to see high temperatures fall across the East. High temperatures tomorrow are 49 in New York, 44 in Chicago, 39, your high temperature in Minneapolis, and those chilly temperatures will stay on through the weekend -- guys.
ROMANS: I'll take 51 tomorrow in New York.
BERMAN: Yes, that's all right.
ROMANS: Yes, that's good.
BERMAN: A Dallas nurse now cured of Ebola opens up about what it was like to have that deadly virus. She will also reveal the mystery that still baffles her. That's coming up next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BERMAN: So, as of 1:00 a.m. Eastern Time, Texas is officially Ebola- free. The first Ebola fatality in the United States and the first infections on U.S. soil, you remember, they happened in Dallas. But now, it has been 21 days since anyone in Texas has come down with the deadly virus or in contact with anyone who is infected.
Thomas Eric Duncan, of course, died of Ebola. Officials tracked dozens of people who came in contact with him. But only two nurses who treated Duncan ended up coming down with Ebola themselves. Both Amber Vinson and Nina Pham are now getting on with their lives.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: Do you know when you contracted or how you contracted Ebola?
AMBER VINSON, NURSE WHO SURVIVED EBOLA: I have no idea. I go through it almost daily in my mind, like, what happened? What went wrong? Because I was covered completely every time. I followed the CDC protocol for donning and doffing every time. I never strayed. It is a mystery to me.
When I was going through my very rough couple of days, you have to force yourself to get up and forcing yourself takes a lot out of you, too. It's a struggle. You're fighting for your life.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BERMAN: Obviously, that was Don Lemon with the interview with Amber Vinson. She looks terrific.
ROMANS: Yes, I hope she gets all of her strength back. I mean, I think she and Nina Pham are such advocates for nursing in this country. They went into a potentially deadly situation --
BERMAN: Oh, yes.
ROMANS: -- and just did it because it is their job. I just think they both handled themselves beautifully.
BERMAN: Yes, they're heroes. They're heroes. As is the only person being treated for Ebola in the United States, Dr. Craig Spencer. He is in isolation at Bellevue Hospital in New York. Health officials say the only way to keep the virus out of the country, they have been saying this all along, is to help stop the epidemic in West Africa where Ebola has killed nearly 5,000 people.
ROMANS: All right. Fierce tensions tearing the city of Jerusalem this morning. Palestinian youth throwing rocks and fireworks at Israeli riot police who fired back with tear gas. One Palestinian turning himself in to Israeli authorities Thursday. They say he's admitted of smashing his vehicle into a crowd of Israelis the day before.
Breaking it down for us this morning, CNN's Erin McLaughlin in Jerusalem.
Erin, bring us up-to-speed with the latest developments.
ERIN MCLAUGHLIN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Christine, hospital officials have confirmed to CNN that a second victim has died from the attack on the Jerusalem tram station early in the week. Israeli media is reporting that the victim was an Israeli teenager and student.
Now, as for the situation out here outside the Damascus gate entrance to the old city, there is heightened security. As you can see behind me, police have set up barricades in preparation for Friday prayers.
Now, earlier in the week, on Wednesday, there were intense clashes at the holy site known to Muslim as the Noble Sanctuary, and to Jews as the Temple Mount. Israeli forces were clashing with Palestinian youth.
I was actually outside the entrance, one of the entrances to the site. Israeli forces were clearing the area using stun grenades and rubber bullets.
Hours later, a 38-year-old Palestinian man drove a van into the tram station, striking a group of people, killing two Israeli citizens and injuring about a dozen more. Now his wife, the wife of the perpetrator, told me that she believes the attack was motivated by the clashes that were taking place at the Al Aqsa Mosque earlier in the day, and the situation surrounding this holy site has been incredibly tense.
There are increasing suspensions from members, senior members of the Muslim community, that something to happen to the status quo of the site.
Now, currently, Jews are allowed to visit the site, but they are not allowed to pray there. And that is something that the Muslim community is very concerned could change given the increasing pace of the visits to the sites from the members of the Israeli far right, as well as restrictions placed on the sites.
As for those restrictions, today, Israeli police are allowing men over the age of 35 into the site to pray as well as all women. The Israeli government for its part has repeatedly said that the status quo of the site will remain the same -- Christine.
ROMANS: All right. Erin McLaughlin, thank you so much for that, live this morning in Jerusalem, with the situation which has been rough there over the past few days.
In just a few hours, President Obama meets with Republican leaders of Congress for the first time since Tuesday's, shall we say, bruising midterm elections for Democrats. Can the two sides find middle ground? We're going to break it all down, next.
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