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Early Start with John Berman and Zoraida Sambolin

New Immigration Plan Takes Shape; Recorded Voice Claims To Be ISIS Leader; Nebraska Hospital Prepares for Ebola Patient; Dodgers Clayton Kershaw Wins NL MVP

Aired November 14, 2014 - 05:00   ET

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

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN ANCHOR: EARLY START continues right now.

New this morning, President Obama set to announce a major, major overhaul of the American immigration system. Millions here illegally may soon be allowed to stay in the U.S. We're live with what the president may be about to propose.

A chilling new message believed to be from the leader of ISIS where he now wants his terror group to attack. We're live breaking down the very latest.

And breaking overnight: Ebola is coming back to the U.S. A Nebraska hospital is preparing for a new infected patient. What we're learning this morning, ahead.

Good morning. Welcome to EARLY START. I'm Christine Romans. It is Friday, November 14th. Nice to see you. Five a.m. in the East. John Berman has the morning off.

The White House this morning gearing up for a showdown with Republicans over immigration. An administration official tells CNN a range of options is being prepared for President Obama. Those options include possibly giving legal status to the parents of green cards and U.S. citizens. Congressional Republicans are furious, demanding that the White House slow down and negotiate.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. MITCH MCCONNELL (R-KY), SENATE MAJORITY LEADER-ELECT: We'd like for the president to recognize the reality that he has the government that he has, not the one that he wishes he had.

REP. JOHN BOEHNER (R-OH), SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE: We're going to fight the president tooth and nail if he continues down this path.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMANS: An executive order on immigration could be announced as soon as next week once the president returns from his eight-day trip to Asia.

With the president on the trip to Asia in Myanmar this morning is our Jim Acosta.

Good morning, Jim. What are the options on the table for the president?

JIM ACOSTA, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Christine.

Well, it's important to point out, Christine, that the president is in here in Myanmar. He had a news conference earlier today with the opposition leader in this country, Aung San Suu Kyi.

And during this conference, the president vowed once again he is going to take executive action and provide deportation relief, according to administration officials and sources that have been talking to CNN. According to the sources, the president who has already provided deportation relief to children, undocumented children in this country, is going to take the next step and extend that deferment of deportation to the parents of those undocumented children, and then, going beyond that is considering looking at providing deportation relief to the parents of children who are documented and who are legal citizens in this country.

And so, the goal here for the White House is to avoid splitting up families, avoiding deporting some members of a family, but leaving others behind in the United States. And the president at that conference earlier today blamed Republicans, that it was up to Republicans to pass legislation in Congress. He said they didn't. So, he's going to act on his own.

Here's what he had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I indicated to Speaker Boehner several months ago if, in fact, Congress failed to act, I would use the lawful authority that I possess to try to make the system work better. That's going to happen. That's going to happen before the end of the year.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ACOSTA: Now, senior White House official told me earlier today, Christine, that the president has not received the final recommendations from the administration on this executive action, and that some of those details might change. But at the same time, this official said it's not really a mystery inside the White House as to what the president is going to do from a general standpoint. This official said it's not like the Academy Awards where the envelope comes out and you open it and everybody is surprised.

But the president has a long flight home from this part of the world to chew on this. He's going to be in Australia for a G-20 summit down there where he may run into Vladimir Putin, the Russian president. So, he still has a lot on his plate before he makes his final decision, Christine.

ROMANS: I'd say a lot on his plate. Now, the president has made a promise several times he was going to do something like this. It is what got him elected in 2008 and got him reelected. At the same time, there's politics in play, the 2016 around the corner. If there was some kind of, a very tight race between Democrats and Republicans, Democrats want to solidify their Latino voter base.

ACOSTA: That's right.

And, you know, we heard from Latino groups over the years. They've gotten more and more annoyed and frustrated with this president because he hasn't taken this executive action and the president says, well, you know, he's been waiting for Congress to act, a bipartisan bill got of the Senate. It's been stymied in the House. House Speaker John Boehner basically said he's not going to take it up in the House. The White House says if it were brought to the floor, you have enough Republicans and Democrats to pass it. And so, in that environment, the president saying he's going to go ahead and act.

But no question about it. Democrats are very worried about keeping Latinos firmly in the Democratic camp. If they don't, that could spell real trouble in 2016. I covered the Mitt Romney campaign in 2012. And, Christine, you remember all too well, Latinos did not vote for Mitt Romney, and it was a big, big part of his loss two years ago.

And so, Democrats are thinking, you know what, let's not play with fire. Let's go ahead and act. And that's why, I think in part, why you're going to see the president do this and as some people have been saying, go big before the end of the year on this issue.

ROMANS: Go big on immigration before the end of the year. That will cause big problems for Republicans who want negotiation, not executive action.

Thanks so much, Jim Acosta.

ACOSTA: It will.

ROMANS: Have a safe trip home.

ACOSTA: That's right.

ROMANS: A Secret Service official this morning trying to explain the series of blunders that allowed fence jumper Omar Gonzalez to get all the way into the White House in September. A report released Thursday describing confusion, training breakdowns and communication failures.

CNN's Joe Johns at the White House with more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOE JOHNS, CNN SENIOR WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT: It's a disturbing new report for the Secret Service. The story of what happened here on September 19th when Omar Gonzalez comes over the fence and proceeds to go all the way into the East Room of the White House.

Among other things, the report says a canine technician was stationed inside a van with his dog parked on the White House driveway when Gonzalez jumped the north fence. The canine officer was on a call on his personal cell phone, on speaker, without his earpiece and he had left his second tactical radio in his locker.

But there were other problems when Gonzalez got to the north portico, he had to go through bushes. Authorities did not think anybody could go through the bushes, but Gonzalez did. He proceeded to go through the doors of the portico and on into the building, pushing back a female Secret Service officer who tried to tackle him, but he was too big.

Authorities say there were at least three encounters between Gonzalez and law enforcement officers this year -- July 19, July 21st and August 25th. He had numerous guns and ammunition and at least four hatchets.

This investigation is continuing. Authorities say no one has been disciplined and no one has been fired because that can't happen until all of the investigations have been completed.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ROMANS: All right. Joe Johns for us this morning.

U.S. leaders are trying their best to convince skeptical lawmakers the president's strategy in the war against ISIS can work.

Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel telling the House Armed Services Committee on Thursday that months of coalition air strikes have stalled and in some places reversed ISIS advances.

Joint Chiefs Martin Dempsey refusing to rule out asking President Obama to send ground troops in Iraq.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEN. MARTIN DEMPSEY, JOINT CHIEFS CHAIRMAN: I'm not predicting at this point that I recommend that those forces in Mosul and along the border would need to be accompanied by U.S. forces. But we're certainly considering it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMANS: The speaker on a new audio posted by ISIS claims he is ISIS leader Abu Bakr al Baghdadi. This just days after Iraqi officials claim he was injured in an airstrike.

With the latest on the fight against ISIS, we are joined by senior correspondent Arwa Damon.

Arwa, bring us up to speed.

ARWA DAMON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning.

Well, that audio tape that you are referring to there, it's about 17 minutes in length. We cannot independently verify its authenticity, but it was released via the official media page of ISIS. In it, al Baghdadi, and this is just under a week after he was reportedly injured, does make a number of statements that do help or indicators as to when this audio may have been recorded. Among them, a direct reference to the 1,500 troops President Obama is sending into Iraq, though he had this stark warning to the United States, that the blood of its soldiers would once again be flowing, and that effectively they could invariably find themselves in a combat role.

He also was highlighting the seeming expansion of ISIS, talking about the numerous other smaller, it must be said groups, pledging allegiance to it in countries such as Yemen, Libya, Algeria and Saudi Arabia to name a few. In Saudi Arabia, a direct message, they are calling on extremists to carry out attacks against the Saudi royal family.

He also had this call for all of his followers urging them to create a volcano of jihad as he was putting it. Unclear, no clear indication whatsoever if al Baghdadi was, in fact, injured or not. But either way, this is ISIS continuing to try to cement itself, especially when it comes to first of all its followers putting out there the image their leader is alive and well, but also continuously trying to intimidate the West, saying that the Americans, the coalition, despite their best efforts, well, they have been unable to really damage ISIS to the extent they would in fact like to.

All indications are, Christine, that this is going to be a very difficult entity to try to defeat to say the very least.

ROMANS: Yes, exactly.

All right. Arwa Damon, thanks for that report, Arwa.

U.S. warplanes just finished a third round of air strikes against the Khorasan al Qaeda cell in Syria. U.S. officials tell CNN the target included at least one top Khorasan operative. A law enforcement official tells CNN the strikes have taken a toll on the terror group. U.S. authorities are concerned about the bombs that can get past airport security.

A multibillion dollar price tag due to be announced this morning for emergency fixes to America's stock of nuclear weapons. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel ordered two Pentagon studies in the wake of a cheating scandal among nuclear launch officers. Those studies found the U.S. nuclear arsenal has decayed badly since the end of the Cold War.

No big surprises as top post on Capitol Hill are decided. Senate Republicans unanimously named Senator Mitch McConnell as Senate majority leader. Senator Harry Reid was chosen to be minority leader. John Boehner will stay as speaker after a party voice vote. He'll be formally voted in as speaker on the floor in January.

House Democrats will hold leadership elections next week. House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi is seeking re-election unopposed. And Democrats have created a seat at the leadership table for Senator Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts as part of their plan to renew the party's economic message. Happening today: the Republican-led House of Representatives will vote to approve the Keystone XL oil pipeline. This has been a six-year battle over the controversial proposal to funnel oil from Canada to the Gulf Coast. The bill still faces hurdles to final passage. The White House has hinted the president might veto the bill if it is passed before a regulatory review of the pipeline is completed.

Time for an early start on your money this morning.

U.S. stock futures are higher. Could be another record day if that holds. Yesterday, the Dow added 40. That means it was the 25th record high close of the year.

Stocks are encouraged by solid earnings from Walmart. Energy stocks still getting hammered. Exxon, Chevron and others loss about 1 percent yesterday on falling oil prices.

Right now, crude oil is about $74 a barrel. That's the lowest in four years, down more than 30 percent from the peak in the summer. Trouble for the energy companies but good news for you, the gas prices are falling along with oil. The current average for a gallon of regular is $2.92. Prices are expected to keep falling in the next several weeks.

All right. Breaking overnight, another Ebola patient may soon be on his way to the United States. A Nebraska hospital opening up about the infected patient and treatment they are ready to offer.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BERMAN: A new Ebola patient due to arrive in the United States. The Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha preparing to receive a surgeon born in Sierra Leone who was treating Ebola patients there. This unidentified patient is also a permanent U.S. resident. Officials expect him to get to Omaha sometime this week, but they say it depends on whether he is healthy enough to make the trip.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DR. MARK RUPP, NEBRASKA MEDICAL CENTER: They're evaluating this patient, trying to make sure that they are stable enough for transfer. And if that's the case, then they probably will be coming to us. We're hoping that this patient is stable enough, healthy enough where they can get them to us, and then, hopefully we can do what we have been doing with the last two patients and care for them appropriately.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BERMAN: Doctors say the patient will have access to a new experimental Ebola treatment. The Omaha hospital is one of four in the U.S. designated to treat Ebola patients.

Lawyers with the family of Michael Brown appealing for peace in Ferguson once a grand jury decides the fate of Officer Darren Wilson. The family made it clear they do not condone any active rioting, looting or violence, anything like that that has marred the Missouri town since a white police officer shot and killed their son. Earlier this week, the governor said he would have the National Guard on standby as a precaution.

Signs of division on the Supreme Court on same sex marriage. Justice Clarence Thomas providing an indication of what may have been happening behind the scenes last month when the court refused to hear appeals from five states. Thomas in a statement said he doesn't know why they rejected appeals from states sought to preserve their bans of gay marriage. It seems some as a challenge to fellow justices to take up the issue.

An FDA panel deciding to lift the ban on blood donations from gay and bisexual men. The advisory committee heard testimony Thursday from advocates who say the lifetime ban is discriminatory and advances in technology have made the policy obsolete. A Red Cross study estimates says lifting the ban could contribute to saving the lives of nearly 2 million people.

All right. Millions of people across the country dealing with snow and frigid temperatures. Take a look at Buffalo, New York. It is the first snowfall of the season in the region. You can see people out there shoveling away. Denver hit with a double whammy, record-setting cold and heavy snowfall.

We are told one point the temperatures in Denver dipped to minus 14 degrees. Although the flakes came down hard, the area got less than an inch overall. Some folks in the nearby areas, though, weren't so lucky. They had to deal with up to 14 inches of snow.

So, who's gong to get hit next?

Indra Petersons has the early start on your forecast.

Good morning, Indra.

INDRA PETERSONS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Good morning.

It sounded so pretty, the first snowfall of the season. Your next sentence, shoveling the snow, like ew, that just may have killed it there, right?

We are talking about the temperatures right now. It's already worth mentioning how cold it is expected to be in the South, and you can see easily that this morning, look at these temperatures. New Orleans in the 30s.

If you are in the Pacific Northwest, you are talking about the threat for some freezing this morning, so some icing conditions. And meanwhile, the Northeast, we just showed you, many people are going to be seeing their first inch of snowfall out there today. You can see where the line in the storm is right now. Boston likely to get an inch or so.

Looks like right now, for New York City, maybe the potential for a flurry, but those chances are gone. The system making its way out and it just did come in as rain. But there are two chances, guys, that there's two domes of high

pressure that will be building in. So, with that, the cold air, it is lingering. It is staying here for sometime. Look at these weekend temperatures, many of you in the 40s in the northeast. You will stay that way.

To Rapid City, look at the teens. Denver, the temperatures are going down again. Back into the 20s as your highs.

So, what's going on today, yes, outwards New England, a couple of flurries out there. Lake-effect snow is still the story. But the newest story is out to the Rockies. This is the next system. This is the reinforcing shot of cold air. Look what happens. It brings snow in to the Midwest by Saturday. By Sunday, making its way to the Upper Midwest and heading to the Northeast, the second chance of snow to the Northeast. It's pretty good totals out this weekend. A white weekend.

ROMANS: A white weekend. That will make the kids happy, but not their parents.

BERMAN: Not the ones shoveling.

ROMANS: Thanks, Indra.

All right. He's going to need a bigger trophy case. The Dodgers' Clayton Kershaw adds MVP to his baseball resume, accomplishing something that hasn't been done for almost 50 years. Andy Scholes, he's got the details for us in the "Bleacher Report". That's next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BERMAN: For the first time in more than 40 years, a pitcher won an MVP award in baseball.

Andy Scholes has more this morning in the "Bleacher Report".

Hey, Andy.

ANDY SCHOLES, BLEACHER REPORT: Hey, good morning, Christine.

Yes, the Dodgers' Clayton Kershaw bringing him the National League MVP award, and he's the first pitcher to win an MVP since Bob Gibson in 1968 in the National League.

Now, the amazing part of Kershaw winning the award is that he only played 27 on the Dodger's 162 games. Kershaw, he won 21 of those games while finishing with an ERA under two. His trophy case now has three Cy Youngs and an MVP all before turning 27 years old.

And in the American League, the Angels Mike Trout finally broke through, winning his first MVP. He finished second in the past two seasons. At 23 years old, Trout is the fifth youngest winner of the award and youngest to win in unanimous vote.

Dolphins and Bills battling it out last night in the AFC East showdown. Not the most exciting Thursday night match up we've seen this year. Buffalo was leading 9-3 in the third. That's when Ryan Tannehill gets the touchdown to take the lead for the Dolphins. And, hey, Miami went on to score the final, 19 points of the game. They beat the Bills, 22-9.

To the NBA we go, Grizzlies and Kings, only 0.3 seconds left on the clock. Memphis was down by one. Check this one -- Vince Carter is going to lob it to the back, and Courtney Lee catches it and scoops in at the buzzer. It would count. Kings are shocked as Grizzlies get the one-point win.

Now, new NBA commissioner Adam Silver had his way, fans would be able to wager on games like the Grizzlies and Kings. Right now, betting on the NBA is only allowed in Las Vegas. But in an op-ed piece posted to the "New York Times" Web site, Silver said the United States government should allow sports gambling everywhere.

He said, quote, "The laws on sports betting should be changed. Congress should adopt a federal framework that allows states to authorize betting on professional sports, subject to strict regulatory requirements and technical safeguards.

You know, Christine, Silver went on to say most states have lotteries, over half of them have legal casinos. Gambling is increasingly becoming a popular and acceptable form of entertainment in the United States. It's already available everywhere in Europe.

So, we should get with the times and have it here in the United States.

ROMANS: All right. Well, that's certainly controversial.

All right. Thanks so much, Andy Scholes.

President Obama soon to unveil big changes to the United States immigration system. Millions of people right here now illegally may soon be allowed to stay with work permits. We are working down on the details overnight, next.

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