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Early Start with John Berman and Zoraida Sambolin

GOP Candidates Mock Trump; Huckabee And Santorum Attend Trump's Event; Teacher Arrested In California Jail Escape; "Affluenza Teen" Back In U.S. Custody; Possibly 1.5 Million Infected With Zika Virus. Aired 5:30-6a ET

Aired January 29, 2016 - 05:30   ET

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

[05:30:00] BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN ANCHOR: -- while the frontrunner holds his own competing event. So who made his best case to Iowa voters just days before the caucuses? We have live team coverage breaking it all down. Welcome back to EARLY START. I'm Boris Sanchez.

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN ANCHOR: Nice to see you this Friday morning. I'm Christine Romans. It is 30 minutes past the hour. Everyone overnight, Republicans running for president, going after each other with gusto on the debate stage in Des Moines with just three days to go now until the Iowa caucuses. Conspicuous by his absence, the frontrunner, Donald Trump, he was holding his own competing event, a benefit for veterans, just a few miles away. But even without Trump, the sparks were flying. Seven Republican candidates spearing Democrats, spearing each other, and at times, even the moderators.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHRIS WALLACE, DEBATE MODERATOR, FOX NEWS: 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: I know you like to argue about the rules, but we're going to conduct the debate.

SEN. RAND PAUL (R-KY), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: What is particularly insulting, though, is that he is the king of saying oh, you're for amnesty. Everybody's for amnesty except 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 is built on and Rand touched upon it. That he's the most conservative guy and everyone else is a RINO.

And then in the committee, you said, I want to bring people out of the shadows. Now, you want to trump Trump on immigration. 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 kind of 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 extended period of time.

RUBIO: You used to support a path to citizenship.

BUSH: So did you. 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 there. She has the latest for us this morning.

SARA MURRAY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Boris and Christine. Donald Trump's decision to skip the last Republican debate before Iowa left the moderators with a little more room to drill into some of his Republican rivals. In particular, questioning Senator Marco Rubio about his shifting positions on immigration.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MEGYN KELLEY, DEBATE MODERATOR, FOX NEWS: 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.

KELLEY: But you went on from there. You said more than that.

RUBIO: I said I do not support blanket legalization.

KELLEY: You said, earn path to citizenship is basically code for amnesty.

RUBIO: It was. It absolutely has been. And at the time and the context of that was in 2009 and 2010.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

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.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PAUL: I think the disdain and arrogance that Trump showed by not coming may well turn off Iowa voters. I think they still want to hear from people. They say a hird 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 they don't want the government collecting all their phone records.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MURRAY: Now whether Donald Trump's absence actually hurts him here in Iowa is an open question. A number of his risky moves that could have back fired 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.

SANCHEZ: Sara Murray in Iowa for us. Helping us sort through the winners and losers in this debate, we turn to CNN politics reporter, Jeremy Diamond. He's live in our Washington bureau and here with us in New York, senior media correspondent, Brian Stelter, the host of "RELIABLE SOURCES". Good morning to you both. Whether or not Donald Trump was there at the event, he still is the headline. I want to show what some of the candidates said about Trump in his absence.

(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 was a little teddy bear to me. We always had such a loving relationship here in these debates and in between and the tweets. I kind of miss him. I wish he was here.

RUBIO: Let's begin by being clear what this campaign is about. It's not about Donald Trump. He's 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)

[05:34:48] SANCHEZ: So, the candidates still putting Trump center stage even though he wasn't physically center stage. How does this play out come Monday on the Iowa caucuses? Brian, what do you think?

BRIAN STELTER, CNN SENIOR MEDIA CORRESPONDENT: You look at the Twitter data for last night, Donald Trump was still the biggest share of conversation even though he wasn't there. Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio eventually were down the list. But Trump had more than twice the share. If that's any sign of what people care about and who they like the most, then he's got a great chance at the Iowa caucuses. I think Trump is playing a different game than these other candidates. He's played a national game and so far, it is working for him. Fox even had a podium ready just in case he wanted to come at the last minute. But he followed through on this extraordinary act of defiance against the GOP, against the Republican National Committee, and against Fox News by not going to the debate. And I think, as crazy as it is to say this, but I think it worked for him. As with everything so far, he's able to rewrite the rules.

ROMANS: Do you buy it that Fox is trying to get him to come on up until the last minute?

STELTER: Yes, I think they were trying to woo him, maybe persuade him, change his mind and come to the debate. The debate would have been more interesting, frankly, if Trump had been there. Yes, the other candidates had more time to talk, but even in absentia, Trump was the big story. I think Fox tried to pivot away from him when it was clear that he wasn't going to be showing up. They tried to make it about the other candidates, but Trump essentially always finds a way to make it about himself.

ROMANS: Jeremy, let me ask you who you think won, then, of the seven who were up there. Was it Ted Cruz? Because Ted Cruz was literally center stage and Ted Cruz was really trying to be forceful and command that group.

STELTER: Can I dodge and say Donald Trump? I mean, there was no clear winner, I don't think, last night, as far as the candidates on stage. Ted Cruz certainly had the opportunity to be center stage, to be the alternative to Donald Trump as the frontrunner and he took the most fire from other candidates, which really does help elevate him in the race as far as how credible he is as the potential nominee. And he handled himself well on some issues like immigration. So if I had to say someone, maybe it would be Ted Cruz, but I think, again, Donald Trump cast a long shadow over last night's debate even though he wasn't there on stage.

SANCHEZ: Now, you mentioned that Cruz felt he was certainly a target from some of the other candidates. I want to play you an exchange that he had where he told the moderators that he was being targeted. Here's what he said.

(BEGIN 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. Let me just say this.

WALLACE: It is a debate, sir.

CRUZ: Well no, a debate actually is a policy issue, but I will say this. Gosh, if you guys ask one more mean question, I may have to leave the stage.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANCHEZ: Cruz getting some laughter there. Not the only moment where he made the crowd laugh and he drew applause. He's trying to turn on the charm, isn't he, Brian? Trying to shed that (ph) light that he's unliked?

STELTER: For sure. Also, his wife recently speaking here on CNN. There's been an effort to show his more personal side. Rubio also had a great line, most tweeted, actually, line of the night, we showed earlier, was the one about Sanders, saying Sanders would be a good president -- of Sweden. So a couple of really good, snarky, interesting lines on the debate stage. By the way, Sweden actually has a prime minister, not a president. But, that's just a small --

ROMANS: It has a king, too, right?

STELTER: That's right. For the record, that's just a small detail. But I don't know if any of these candidates were able to move their position in the rankings, in the polls. Maybe we'll see data between now and Monday before the caucuses. But because, Trump made this calculation, that he wanted to sit on his lead. Not take any risks. Going to debate would have been a risk. He may have succeed by avoiding the debate stage, avoiding the tough questions that Megyn Kelley and Chris Wallace and Bret Baier were asking. And there were two reasons, of course, why he didn't show up. One was, he was ticked off at Fox, but there was that deeper reason about avoiding the tough questions and avoiding the risk and it may well have paid off for him.

ROMANS: Sure. You know, it's interesting, because he does best when it is him on the stage when people are his supporting characters on the stage and when he controls the conversation. It's no question. We've seen these crowds, Jeremy, at these events for him, and even last night, this interesting optic of Rick Santorum and Mike Huckabee, two men who have been previously winners in the Iowa caucuses, standing up there with Donald Trump. Look at this exchange or this comment by Rick Santorum.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RICK SANTORUM (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Not to be offensive, but I'll stand a little bit over here so I'm not photographed with the Trump sign. I'm supporting another candidate for president. That doesn't mean we can't work together when it comes to helping veterans and that's what Mike and I are here doing.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMANS: So Donald Trump, sort of always the stage manager, executive producer, dealmaker, brandmaker, television counter programmer. And that was evidenced last night.

JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN POLITICS REPORTER: Yes, absolutely. I mean, listen. Look at that image right there. Mike Huckabee, then Rick Santorum, and then maybe Donald Trump as the 2016 winner of the Iowa caucuses? Who knows? We'll find out in a few days. But certainly, Donald Trump is an optics genius. He knows how to put these things together. And that's exactly what he did last night. And not only that, but it helps kind of blunt the criticism that he may have received of skipping the last debate before the Iowa caucuses, giving some voters perhaps the impression he was trying to avoid tough questions or maybe giving offense to Iowans.

[05:40:07] No. Here he is with the past two winners of the Iowa caucuses. He's raising $6 million for veterans groups. And he's showing that these are his priorities, that he's sticking up for himself and that's what he said he'll do for the country.

STELTER: He almost seemed a little surprised that he pulled this off, that he was able to have this competing event. Let's keep in mind, there is a debate one week from yesterday, less than a week from now. If Trump skips that one, that would be a big change. Because that would really prove that he is just afraid to be on the stage with Ted Cruz and others. But I don't think he will. I think he knows better than that. He'll be at the debate next week. This may turn out to be a fluke.

ROMANS: Jeremy, how important is it -- OK, we know the Iowa caucus is important, no question. But those two men that were on the stage with him, they won the Iowa caucus, each of them, and they did not go on to secure their party's nomination. You look at Jeb Bush here, polling at just 4 percent, but he has not put -- I mean, he has been much more widespread in other states as well. He's got hopes on other states, not necessarily Iowa. I mean, could there be a revolution in these polls after you get through with Iowa and New Hampshire?

DIAMOND: Absolutely. I think the sense right now is not that Donald Trump absolutely needs to win Iowa to do well, but it's that if he does win Iowa, that is a major bar he has reached. That will show that not only can he turn out voters to the polls, but that he can turn out voters to caucuses which is a whole different ball game and like Ted Cruz himself said, last week in comments that were released, that were leaked to the press, he said if Donald Trump wins Iowa, he could be quote, unstoppable. And so I think that's really the sense here, is that if Donald Trump kills it in Iowa, who knows how far he can go? Maybe take it all the way to --

STELTER: I don't know about you guys but I am so ready for some actual votes to be cast.

SANCHEZ: Could not agree more.

STELTER: This campaign has been so confusing, so up and down, so perplexing, we actually need to hear from the voters, now.

ROMANS: It's only been up and up for Donald Trump. There's been no down for him. But you know, a lot of people have been saying, will those Donald Trump voters actually caucus? Caucusing, it takes hours. You go in there, you have to plead your case. You trade back and forth. You're arguing with your neighbors, in many cases. That's a lot different than just casting a vote. So will those Donald Trump supporters have the fortitude to do that? So far, they've been standing out in the cold in long, long lines, so maybe they do. Guys, thanks so much. So nice to see you. Only three days to go. Thanks, guys.

SANCHEZ: A new arrest in the jail break of three dangerous inmates, but did a female employee help them escape? We'll find out next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[05:46:43] SANCHEZ: There is still no sign of three inmates one week after they broke out of a jail in Orange County, California. Now, a woman who taught classes at the jail is under arrest. Nooshafarin Ravaghi, suspected of helping the prisoners mount their daring escape, and we're learning, she was involved with one of the fugitives, Hossein Nayeri. We get more from CNN's Paul Vercammen.

Paul Vercammen, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Boris, Christine, the woman arrested, Ravaghi, began working here at the jail as an English as a second language teacher 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.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LIEUTENANT JEFF HALLOCK, SPOKESMAN, ORANGE COUNTY SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENT: At this point, there is no confirmation that she brought tools in the jail. She's denying having brought the tools, but what we know is that she provided google maps, those types of things, to prepare for the escape.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

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 its single owner when he simply did not return it. And officials believe that all three of the fugitives may somehow be living in that van. Christine, Boris --

ROMANS: All right, Paul Vercammen, thank you. The standoff at an Oregon national wildlife refuge isn't over yet. The FBI says negotiators are talking to four people still holed up inside. It comes as federal officials released video of the confrontation, right there, with protest leader Ammon Bundy, that led to the fatal shooting of one of his 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 United States, in the custody of Texas juvenile authorities. He's expected to appear in court later this morning. Couch returned Thursday from Mexico where he fled after violating probation in a DUI crash that killed four people.

ROMANS: Vice president, Joe Biden, defending the administration's stepped up deportation of undocumented families. That has sparked anger among congressional Democrats. He says they are being carried out as humanely and possible and that they are the result of a broken immigration system.

SANCHEZ: All right. Let's look at what's coming up on "NEW DAY". Alisyn Camerota joins us now. Alisyn, good morning.

ALISYN CAMEROTA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, guys. How are you?

ROMANS: Tired.

SANCHEZ: Doing all right. A little bit tired.

CAMEROTA: Well, yes, I understand that because there was a big event last night and we're going to talk about that. Did you watch the debate? If not, don't worry. We did so you didn't have to. Donald Trump was a no show but he was there in spirit. So which candidate grabbed the spotlight? We'll break it down and have two Republican candidates with us, Mike Huckabee and Ben Carson. We'll also talk to Trump's campaign about his rival event with veterans down the street. So how much money did he actually raise and how did the vets feel about all of this? Will Trump's big gamble payoff? We have a lot of questions and we'll get them answered this morning, guys.

ROMANS: All right. Keep pouring the coffee. You look fresher than me. Talk to you soon, thanks.

SANCHEZ: A threat of alarming proportion. Health officials warning the Zika virus could soon infect millions. New developments next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[05:53:59] SANCHEZ: New warnings this morning about the Zika virus. Officials at the World Health Organization say the mosquito borne illness is now spreading explosively in the Americas. Most of the 3 million to 4 million cases per year are reported in the tropics with Brazil being the biggest hot spot. Its president, just moments ago, calling for the country to unite against this threat. 32 cases have been confirmed in 12 U.S. states and the District of Columbia. Those are among people who have traveled to countries where the virus is more widespread. Infection with the virus can only cause mild symptoms, but the real concern here is for pregnant women and their babies who may be born with the condition called microcephaly. It causes serious brain damage. CNN's Shasta Darlington is at a clinic in Brazil that helps women who fear their newborns have already been infected.

[05:54:49] SHASTA DARLINGTON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: While the rest of the 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 the Oswaldo Cruz hospital. Here, they've turned this area into a kind of triage center where they're receiving babies with microcephaly every day. Behind these doors, doctors are treating them, 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 the physical therapy that babies with microcephaly need. Also, the counseling, the psychological counseling for families. And of course, because there's no vaccine, there's no cure, Brazil is also trying to combat the mosquito that transmits this virus, Aedes aegypti. The problem is that according to health officials, 1.5 million people may have already been infected. So what we're seeing is a lot of very panicked expectant 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, Brazil.

SANCHEZ: Shasta, thank you. To the Middle East, now. 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 a lasting blow to ISIS, the Pentagon says additional forces are needed to work with Iraqi, Kurdish, and Syrian opposition fighters on the ground in those two countries.

ROMANS: All right. Let's get an EARLY START on your money this Friday. A global stock market rally right now after the Bank of Japan shocks the world with negative interest rates. Huge gains in Asia overnight, stocks in Europe jumping as well. Sub zero interest rates. Essentially, encouraging banks to lend money out into the economy rather than stashing it with the central bank. It's a fitting end to the wild week. Check out the gains and losses for the Dow over the past five trading days. All of these are swings of more than 1 percent except for yesterday. Oil is the main driver. It's also been moving swiftly in both directions. This caps off the Dow's worst monthly performance since may 2010.

An important gauge of the U.S. economy due this morning at 8:30 am Eastern. The first reading on GDP for the fourth quarter. A forecast calls for a rise of less than 1 percent. One real world benefit of the recent volatility in the stock market -- mortgage rates are moving lower. The average 30-year fixed rate mortgage, 3.79 percent nationwide. 15-year fixed rate loans now are just 3.07. That is a popular financing tool. That's very low. Four straight weeks now of lower rates. The Federal Reserve hiked its target rate last December, but mortgage rates are tied to bonds and as investors have been fleeing into those safer investments, it pushes those rates lower. So, ironically, the Federal Reserve raising interest rates, the target interest rate, but the market very concerned about global instability and is pushing rates down.

SANCHEZ: Still good for potential new homeowners.

ROMANS: Sure is. And refinance.

SANCHEZ: Not a bad idea. Republicans running for president facing off in the COP debate, but their biggest competitor was on a stage across town. Was Donald Trump able to beat his Republican rivals even from that far away? "NEW DAY" starts right now.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Isn't that better than this debate that's going on?

CRUZ: Everyone on this stage is stupid, fat, and ugly.

BUSHL I kind of miss Donald Trump. He was a little teddy bear to me.

TRUMP: Look at all the cameras. This is like the academy awards.

SANTORUM: I'm supporting another candidate for president. That doesn't mean we can't work together when it comes to helping on you veterans.

PAUL: Everybody's friends except for Ted Cruz, but it's a falseness.

RUBIO: You changed your position on immigration because you used to support a path to citizenship.

BUSH: So did you.

RUBIO: Well, but you changed --

BUSH: So did you, Marco.

TRUMP: Will I get more votes? Will I get less votes? Nobody knows. Who the hell knows?

CARLY FIORINA (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Hillary Clinton cannot be the president of these United States.

CHRISTIE: Let me tell you who's not qualified to be president of the United States. Hillary Rodham Clinton. She is not qualified to be president of the United States.

TRUMP: It's for our vets and you're going to like it because we raised on over $5 million in one day.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHRIS CUOMO, CNN HOST: Good morning, welcome to your NEW DAY. It is Friday, January 29, 6:00 in the East. A very different debate. That's the word about the final Republican have-at-'em before the Iowa caucuses. More substance with Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio fighting for the spotlight. Jeb Bush also stepping up but there was something missing.

CAMEROTA: Or someone. Trump's absence looming large in the debate as he put on his own show just three miles down the street. So who were the big winners and losers in last night's face off and how will it impact the caucus-goers in Iowa? Let's begin our comprehensive coverage with John Berman. He's live in Des Moines for us with all of the highlights and lowlights. Hi, John.

[05:59:45] JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, Alisyn. Be careful what you wish for. Everyone in this Republican race has been waiting and praying for a moment when Donald Trump would exit. Well, they got it, last nigh, to an extent. He was not on that stage but the atmosphere he created by not being there, one of peril.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: For a debate stage absent of Donald Trump, it was hardly a debate absent of Donald Trump.