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Early Start with John Berman and Zoraida Sambolin
Trump Sits Out, Overshadows GOP Debate; Teacher Arrested in California Jail Escape; WHO: Zika Virus Now "Spreading Explosively". Aired 4-4:30a ET
Aired January 29, 2016 - 04:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[04:00:27] BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN ANCHOR: Republicans running for president facing off on the debate stage, but the frontrunner not there. Donald Trump at his own competing event just a few miles away. So who made the best case to undecided voters in Iowa?
Good morning and welcome to EARLY START. I'm Boris Sanchez.
CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN ANCHOR: So nice to see you here this Friday morning. I'm Christine Romans. It is Friday, January 29th. It is 4:00 a.m. in the East.
Overnight, Republicans going after each other with gusto. On the debate stage in Des Moines, just four days, four days before the Iowa caucuses, conspicuous by his absence, Donald Trump, holding an event miles away for veterans. But even without Trump, sparks were flying. Seven Republican candidates spearing each other and at times, even the moderators.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CHRIS WALLACE, FOX NEWS MODERATOR: It's not my question you get a chance to respond to. It's his answer. You don't get 30 seconds to respond to me.
SEN. TED CRUZ (R-TX), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Your question was you have disagreed --
WALLACE: You don't get 30 seconds to respond to me.
(CROSSTALK)
WALLACE: Sir, I know you like to argue about the rules, but we will conduct the debate.
SEN. RAND PAUL (R-KY), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: What is particularly insulting is he is the king of saying oh, you're for amnesty. Everybody's for amnesty except for Ted Cruz. But it's a falseness, and that's an authenticity problem.
SEN. MARCO RUBIO (R-FL), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: This is the lie that Ted's campaign has built on and Rand touched upon it, that he's the most conservative guy and everyone else is -- you know, everyone else is a RINO.
And then in the committee you said, I want to bring people out of the shadows. Now, you wan to trump Trump on immigration. But you can't -- we're not going to beat Hillary Clinton with someone who's willing to say or do anything to win an election.
JEB BUSH (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I'm confused because he was the sponsor of the "gang of eight" bill that did require a bunch of thresholds, but ultimately allowed for citizenship over an extensive period of time.
RUBIO: You used to support a path to citizenship.
BUSH: So did you.
RUBIO: Well, but you change --
BUSH: Yes, so did you, Marco.
GOV. CHRIS CHRISTIE (R-NJ), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I guarantee you one thing: she will never get within ten miles of the White House. The days for the Clintons in public housing are over.
RUBIO: I think Bernie Sanders is a good candidate for president, of Sweden.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROMANS: All right. CNN's Sara Murray was at the debate. She has the latest for us this morning.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SARA MURRAY, CNN POLITICAL REPORTER: Good morning, Christine and Boris.
Donald Trump's decision to skip the last Republican debate before Iowa left the moderators with a little more room to drill in to some of his Republican rivals, in particulars questioning Marco Rubio about his shifting position on immigration.
MEGYN KELLY, FOX NEWS MODERATOR: When you ran for Senate in 2010, you made clear that you opposed legalization and citizenship for illegal immigrants. You promised repeatedly that you would oppose it as a U.S. senator as well. Within two years of getting elected, you were co-sponsoring legislation to create a path to citizenship, in your words, amnesty. Haven't you already proven that you cannot be trusted on this issue?
RUBIO: No, because if you look at the quote and it's very specific, and it says blanket amnesty. I do not support blanket amnesty. I do not support amnesty.
KELLY: You said more than that, sir.
RUBIO: No, I said I do not support blanket legalization.
KELLY: You said earned path to citizenship is basically code for amnesty.
RUBIO: It was.
KELLY: You supported earned path to citizenship.
RUBIO: It absolutely has been. And at the time and the context to that was in 2009 and 2010.
MURRAY: Now, some candidates and their staffers say that Donald Trump's decision to skip this debate yielded a more substantive and at times even more respectful debate. But Rand Paul tells me it was also disdainful of Iowa voters.
PAUL: I think the disdain and arrogance that Trump showed by not coming, may turn off Iowa voters. They say a third of the voters are undecided. So, I think it was good to be here, make the argument. We also think that a lot of the youth vote will come to us, because we think that they don't want the government collecting all their phone records.
MURRAY: Now, whether Donald Trump's absence actually hurts him here in Iowa is an open question. A number of his risky moves put a back fire on almost any other candidate in the race have only sent his numbers higher. So, we'll see if that holds true this time.
Back to you, Boris and Christine.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SANCHEZ: All right. Sara, thank you. Let's sort through the winners and losers in the debate.
To help us with that, we turn to CNN politics reporter, Jeremy Diamond, live in our Washington bureau.
Jeremy, good morning to you.
The big elephant -- the biggest elephant of all not in the room. Donald Trump at a different event just a few miles away. But his presence was certainly felt. We heard a lot of the other candidates go after him.
Let's listen to what they said.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CRUZ: I'm a maniac and everyone on this stage is stupid, fat and ugly. And Ben, you're a terrible surgeon. Now that we've gotten the Donald Trump portion out of the way.
BUSH: I kind of miss, Donald Trump. He's a little Teddy Bear to me. We always had a loving relationship in these debates and in between, and the tweets. I kind of miss him.
[04:05:01] I wish he was here.
RUBIO: Let's begin by being clear what this campaign is about. It's not about Donald Trump. He is an entertaining guy. He's the greatest show on earth.
This campaign is about the greatest country in the world and a president who has systematically destroyed many of the things that made America special.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: So, Jeremy, the big question coming out of this debate: who benefited the most from Trump's absence? Some of the other candidates or maybe even Trump himself?
JIM DIAMOND, CNN POLITICS REPORTER: I mean, definitely Trump himself, right, what a split screen experience we had last night. You know, with Donald Trump holding his own event, raising money for veterans, having even the two former winners of the Iowa caucuses, Rick Santorum and Mike Huckabee, current candidates, standing at his side. You know, so that was unbelievable.
But as far as the other candidates are concerned, certainly, Ted Cruz became the big target on stage last night. You know, he kind of -- you know, he literally took the place of Trump at center stage during this debate. That certainly helps to elevate his status.
And, you know, he was dealing with punches from -- he was fighting with the moderators. He was fighting with other candidates. So, I think that certainly benefited him.
I think he could have done a little bit better as far as really looking like the alternative frontrunner to Donald Trump because he did struggle at times it seems with some responses and didn't seem as well-prepared as he maybe could have been. But, certainly, you know, some of the candidates got room to shine. Rand Paul got more to speak and to kind of push his message forward than maybe he has in the past, because he was a little bit more out of Trump's shadow.
ROMANS: Jeremy, you mentioned that Ted Cruz had a chance to spar with the moderators. I want to play a sound where he and Chris Wallace kind of tussled.
(BEWGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CRUZ: The last four questions have been Rand, please attack Ted. Marco, please attack Ted. Chris, please attack Ted. Jeb, please attack Ted.
(BOOS)
CRUZ: Let me just say this.
WALLACE: It is a debate, sir.
CRUZ: No, a debate is a policy issue. I will say this, gosh, if you guys ask one more mean question, I may have to leave the stage.
(APPLAUSE)]
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROMANS: He got a big round of applause for that.
I thought that the moderators were pretty tough. At one point, even playing back a montage of sound of Marco and his -- what looked at a time to be a shifting position on amnesty and pathway to citizenship.
DIAMOND: Yes, him and Ted Cruz also got the video treatment, you know, let's roll the tape, which was really interesting there. But, yes, definitely. I mean, I think the moderators were tough, especially Megyn Kelly. I mean, she had been under scrutiny because of this feud with Donald Trump, and she was really fantastic I think last night as far as, you know, pressing hard questions and really knowing her stuff and testing the candidates and going back to them when they said something that was false, which was really strong.
But, you know, I think that you know, all of the candidates maybe went back and forth with the moderators. It made it more interesting. But I still think something was missing. It was like there was a little bit of a spark missing perhaps in Donald Trump's absence.
ROMANS: Yes, imagine what Donald Trump's montage of --
SANCHEZ: Previous statements, yes.
ROMANS: Roll the tape on Donald Trump, that could take a while.
SANCHEZ: Now, we heard Cruz get some applause there. He made a few jokes. A lot of laughter.
How big of a priority is it for him to shed this image that he is unlikable? Is it a priority for him?
DIAMOND: I mean, certainly, he needs to make sure that he is not defined by Donald Trump in the way that Jeb Bush has been defined by Donald Trump. You know, Trump lately has taken on calling Ted Cruz strident. He's even said that he's more strident and he's worse than Obama, you know? So, if that's not an attack in a GOP primary, I don't know what is.
But, certainly, I think, yes, Ted Cruz was working last night to pull off a few jokes. He did that by mocking Donald Trump and quickly discarding him. But I think Ted Cruz's priority last night was really more focus on kind of looking like the frontrunner, showing his command of the issues and really talking to Iowans and trying to win them over just a few days from the caucuses as he is in a tight race with Donald Trump, one that according to the latest polls, you know, his lead appears -- sorry, the tightness with Donald Trump, the margin appears to be widening there, to Ted Cruz's disadvantage.
So, I think last night, he was really focused on Iowans, on appearing like the frontrunner and really looking like the quote true conservative in the race which has been the core of his message.
ROMANS: Interesting, the Marco Rubio, his plea, I guess or making his case to those Iowa evangelical voters, listen to a little bit sound. We'll talk about it on the other side.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RUBIO: Let me be clear about one thing: there is only one savior and it's not me. It's Jesus Christ who came down to earth and died for our sins. The Bible commands us to let our light shine on the world. For over 200 years, the America's light has been shining on the world, and the world has never been the same again.
Why do Americans contribute millions of dollars to charity? It is not because of the tax write-off. It is because in this nation, we are influenced by Judeo-Christian values.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
[04:10:02] ROMANS: Is that effective do you think?
DIAMOND: I mean, he might as well say, "I love Iowa, I love Iowa", you know? That's basically what he's doing there, you know? Evangelicals are a huge part of the Republican, you know, primary voters in Iowa. And, you know, he was making a play for them.
I mean, I don't think that Marco Rubio thinks he can win the Iowa caucuses, necessarily. It looks like it is between Trump and Cruz. A strong third place finish could go far with momentum and as far as it is concerned with appearing to be the most viable establishment contender.
You remember Marco Rubio and Jeb Bush and Chris Christie and even John Kasich are still fighting each other to see which one can emerge as the establishment alternative to Donald Trump and Ted Cruz. And Marco Rubio certainly made -- is making the case that if he can do well in Iowa, if he can do well in a state that is conservative like that, he can maybe harness both sides of that and kind of bridge the divide that's been brewing in the Republican Party this cycle .
ROMANS: All right. Jeremy Diamond, so nice to chat with you. We'll talk to you in a few minutes. Thank you, sir.
Late night for everybody, right?
SANCHEZ: Yes.
ROMANS: OK. Eleven minutes past the hour.
Three dangerous inmates who broke out of the California jail on the run this morning. But a woman police say helped them escape has been arrested.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SANCHEZ: There is still no sign of three inmates one week after they broke out of a jail in Orange County, California.
[04:15:03] Now, a woman who taught English as a second language at the jail is under arrest suspected of helping the prisoners mount a daring escape.
We get more now from CNN's Paul Vercammen.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PAUL VERCAMMEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Boris, Christine, the woman arrested, Ravaghi, began working here at the jail teaching English as a second language in July. In a group class setting, she met the suspected kidnapper and torturer Nayeri and they developed some sort of relationship. She helped them escape, according to officials, by providing him with mapping capability.
LT. JEFF HALLOCK, OCSD SPOKESPERSON: At this point, there is no confirmation she brought tools into the jail. She is denying having brought the tools. What we know is that she provided Google Maps, those types of things, to prepare for the escape.
VERCAMMEN: The sheriff's lieutenant also said that the attempted murder suspect Duong stole a white van in Los Angeles on Sunday. Apparently, Duong was taking that van for a test drive unaccompanied by a single owner when he simply did not return it. And officials believe that all three of the fugitives may be somehow living in that van -- Christine, Boris.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ROMANS: What a remarkable story.
All right. Thanks, Paul Vercammen for that.
The standoff in the Oregon national wildlife refuge is not over yet. The FBI says negotiators are talking to four people still hold up inside, hoping to bring the nearly month-long occupation to a safe and swift resolution. It comes as federal officials released video of the confrontation with protest leader Ammon Bundy that led to the shooting of a followers, LaVoy Finicum. The FBI says the video is proof the shooting was justified.
SANCHEZ: Ethan Couch, the so-called affluenza teen, now back in the U.S. and the custody of Texas juvenile authorities. He's expected to appear in court later this morning. Couch returned Tuesday from Mexico where he fled after allegedly violating probation in a DUI crash that killed four people. A hearing on transferring his case from juvenile to adult court is set for next month. His mom, meantime, Tonya Couch, charged with hindering his apprehension. She is currently out on bail.
ROMANS: Michigan's governor facing a controversy in the lead contamination crisis. An activist group says documents show the governor's office started trucking coolers of purified water to state workers in Flint last January. Governor Rick Snyder didn't publicly acknowledge the problem with Flint's drinking water until October. Two Senate Democrats are proposing $600 million in the federal aid to replace contaminated pipes and treat Flint residents who've been harmed by the tainted water supply.
SANCHEZ: As that crisis unfolds, an Ohio lawmaker demanding answers from the state EPA about the water crisis in the town of Sebring. State Representative John Boccieri claims knew back in August about elevated lead levels found in the water and did nothing to protect the public. It wasn't until last week that Sebring residents were told about high levels being found at several testing locations.
Unto the weather now, what a difference a week makes. Last week, we were preparing for this historic snowstorm. Now, the East Coast is pretty warm. The snow set to hit the Rockies, where it was pretty mild last week.
We now get an update from meteorologist Derek Van Dam.
DEREK VAN DAM, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Good morning, Boris and Christine.
Two words for our viewers, January thaw, especially across the plains. Fifty-nine in Kansas City. It will still be chilly along the East Coast, but things will warm up through the end of the weekend. Look at Sunday's forecast for the Big Apple. Yes, the big thaw continues, 47 for New York City.
What a difference a week makes. Record-breaking snowfall on Saturday. Compare that to what we are expecting Saturday afternoon this weekend.
A clipper system could bring a few snow showers to the Upper Great Lakes. A few flakes fly on Friday for New York City. As we focus out West, this is our major snowmaker that's going to develop across southern California, eventually move into the plain states.
This is a potential for a mid week snowstorm across Iowa and Nebraska. Details still emerging from that. There is also the potential from severe thunderstorms for the Gulf States.
Look at the snowfall totals, according to our computer models, impressive, snows across the Colorado Rockies.
Back to you.
ROMANS: All right. Thanks for that, Derek.
Time for an early start of your money -- relief. Futures are getting higher, coming off solid gains yesterday. Look at these numbers. You have European stock markets higher, a rally in Asia overnight. That was sparked by a surprise move, really a dramatic move from the Bank of Japan. Bank of Japan announcing negative interest rates to encourage customer spending there.
Back in the U.S., it's the last trading day of January. Most investors are happy to close the books on the brutal month.
Here's your damage report: the Dow and S&P 500 on track to post the worst monthly drop since May of 2010. Both are down more than 7 percent. The NASDAQ was even worse, losing 10 percent, the worst performance since 2008.
[04:20:01] So, how are real people faring? Only one in 10 investors made money in January. The average loss is 7.6 percent. That's according to our partners over at Open Folio.
But that Bank of Japan move really a shock. Basically, they're going to pay you to borrow money and they're going to charge you to deposit money. They're trying to get money moving in their economy. It's a kind of a stimulus. It's a kind of a fight against deflation.
SANCHEZ: More cost-effective to spend your money.
ROMANS: Interesting, right?
SANCHEZ: Declaring a threat of alarming proportion. Health officials are warning the Zika virus is spreading explosively and could soon infect millions. We have new developments, next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROMANS: New warnings this morning about the Zika virus. Officials at the World Health Organization say the mosquito-borne illness is now exploding in the Americas.
Most of the 3 million to 4 million cases per year reported in the Tropics and Brazil, the biggest hot spot. Its president just moments ago is calling for the country to unite against this threat.
But 32 cases have been confirmed in 12 U.S. states and the District of Columbia among people who traveled to countries where the virus is more widespread.
[04:25:01] Infection with the virus can cause only mild symptoms. Experts' main concern here is for pregnant women and their babies who may be born with a condition called microcephaly, causing serious brain damage.
CNN's Shasta Darlington is at a clinic in Brazil that helps women who fear their newborns have already been affected.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SHASTA DARLINGTON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: While the rest of world is waking up to the Zika crisis and trying to figure out how it's linked to all these birth defects, here in Brazil, this is the reality they're living. We're at Oswaldo Cruz Hospital. Here, they turned this area in a triage center, where they're receiving babies with microcephaly every day.
Behind these doors, doctors are treating them and looking for signs of microcephaly, of brain damage and how deep that damage really goes. Doctors are scrambling to put together the early stimulation programs and physical therapy that babies with microcephaly need.
Also, the counseling, the psychological counseling for families. And, of course, because there is no vaccine, there is no cure. Brazil is also trying to combat the mosquitoes that transmit this virus, Aedes Aegypti. The problem is, that according to health officials, 1.5 million people have been infected. What we are seeing is a lot of panicked, expected mothers.
In many cases, the virus is asymptomatic and many of them fear they won't even know until the day they give birth whether or not they may have been infected.
Shasta Darlington, CNN, Recife, Brazil.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SANCHEZ: All right. Shasta, thank you.
Pentagon officials are saying more U.S. troops need to be sent to Iraq and Syria in the coming months to defeat ISIS. They say troops have gained ground against the terror group, but to deal that lasting crushing blow to ISIS, the Pentagon says additional forces are needed to work with Iraqi, Kurdish and Syrian opposition fighters on the ground in those countries.
ROMANS: All right. Republicans running for president facing off in last night's GOP debate. But their biggest competitor, he was on stage across town. Was Donald able to trump his Republican rivals? Next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
