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Early Start with John Berman and Zoraida Sambolin

Trump Sticks To Winning Playbook; Clinton, Sanders Battle For Minority Votes; Clinton Implies Sanders Is "Single Issue"; Search For Kalamazoo Shootings Motive; Denny Hamlin Wins Daytona 500 By Inches. Aired 5-5:30a ET

Aired February 22, 2016 - 05:00   ET

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

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: All non-Donald Trump candidates are going to have to pick and choose where they compete.

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN ANCHOR: That is what it comes down to?

[05:00:00] BERMAN: Yes. That's exactly right. EARLY START continues right now.

(HEADLINES)

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

BERMAN: I'm John Berman. It is Monday, February 22nd. It is 5:00 a.m. in the east. This morning, Donald Trump is headed to Nevada one day ahead of the next battleground with the Republican presidential nominating circus.

Donald Trump wearing a South Carolina smile. His victory there has members of the Republican establishment, donors, pundits, candidates, and media grasping for a way to stop him.

Based on a rally late last night, it seems that Trump is sticking to the strategy that brought him success so far, have attacks on his rivals even those like Jeb Bush, who have dropped out of the race. CNN's Jeremy Diamond has the latest from Georgia.

JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN POLITICS REPORTER: Good morning, John and Christine, fresh off his primary victory in South Carolina, Donald Trump rolled into Atlanta on Sunday with the momentum at his back and the crowd here responded in kind roaring in approval as Donald Trump hit his key notes.

Talking about trade and border security as he typically does. But Donald Trump didn't really bring in his current rivals, Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz, who came in second and third place in South Carolina. He did, however, bring in one of his former rivals.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I will give you story. One of the candidates, I won't say who yet, but you could find out, one of the candidates, the head of the major and owner of a major pharmaceutical company is in charge of his campaign. You know that, right?

In charge of his campaign, raises hundreds of millions. They've raised a fortune. They have a fantastic like a lot of money, pharmaceutical. So a friend of mine comes up to me, a doctor.

He said Donald, I don't understand it. The United States is the biggest purchaser of drugs in the world. They don't negotiate price. They are not allowed and I said what are you talking about they are not allowed to?

So I said that can't be, but let me check. As soon as I checked it, I realized why he's right.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DIAMOND: That of course is one of the lines Donald Trump has consistently used when he talks about Jeb Bush and the influence of special interests.

However, Jeb Bush now out of the race dropping out on Saturday night after a poor showing in South Carolina. It looks like Donald Trump who has consistently used Jeb Bush as his foil on the campaign trail may be missing him a little bit. John and Christine, back to you.

BERMAN: All right, Jeremy Diamond, thank you so much. Look at this, a pivotal political event this Thursday. The Republican race has really shifted into a new gear. There are five remaining candidates.

They will face-off in a debate Thursday night in Houston. Wolf Blitzer will moderate the CNN presidential Republican debate at 8:30 p.m. only on CNN Thursday night.

ROMANS: All right, to the Democrats this morning, Hillary Clinton trying consolidate her return to frontrunner status. She enjoyed a close but comfortable five-point win in Nevada over Bernie Sanders.

Clinton rejecting the claim from the Sanders camp that Sanders won big among Nevada Latinos. She is arguing precinct data is more reliable than the exit polls.

Sanders deciding that the battle for minority votes now continue as the Democratic campaigns moves to South Carolina with its primary set for Saturday.

Clinton and Sanders both spoke to BET about what they would do for African-Americans, both admitted the Democratic Party has not done enough.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BERNIE SANDERS (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: The white community, including myself, have not been as sensitive as we should be to what goes on in black communities in terms of policing issues. I plead guilty to the fact that I think I have not been as sensitive to that issue. It is an issue we have to be sensitive to. HILLARY CLINTON (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I am well aware that some of the decisions that were made during the eight years of my husband's presidency that we have to learn lessons from and I'm very clear about that.

Yes, I supported my husband's policies. My opponent, Senator Sanders, voted for them. I did not have a position where I could express myself independently. He did.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMANS: Clinton and Sanders will come face-to-face with the voters of South Carolina for the final time this Tuesday night right here on CNN. Democratic town hall from Columbia, South Carolina, 8 p.m. Tuesday night. Chris Cuomo moderates. It is only on CNN. Huge week.

[05:05:10]BERMAN: Let's kick off this week with the discussion about where things stand right now. Joining us right now, "Daily Beast" editor-at-large, Goldie Taylor. Goldie, it is 5:05 in the east. Do you know where your Republican candidates are right now?

GOLDIE TAYLOR, EDITOR-AT-LARGE, "DAILY BEAST": I don't know where they are, but I know where they are going to be. They are on their way to Nevada except John Kasich who said that he is not going to go west. He will stay east and going to go to stay and do things he can do well. He is skipping Nevada.

ROMANS: Because when you look at those Nevada numbers, I mean, it shows Donald Trump -- the poll number showed Donald Trump with a commanding lead. All along, a commanding lead for Donald Trump is certainly (inaudible) the commanding lead when voters go to the polls.

TAYLOR: If you are talking about a straight primary where people go in and to cast a ballot, and Donald Trump having a commanding lead is a significant thing. If you are talking about a caucus where it takes organizing and getting people together and stay all night.

Then maybe those numbers begin to tighten as we saw in Iowa. That will hold true in a place like Nevada in this coming day. I think Donald Trump will expand his lead going down the map.

If you look through March, he has the same kind of fortune as Hillary Clinton appears to have, a very favorable map to his kind of voter. So I think that you could see this race closing up as we head into March and April.

BERMAN: Goldie, this morning, I smell panic among many in the Republican Party. Donald Trump won big in South Carolina. He would win big in Nevada. He could win even bigger next week on March 1st. Some of these candidates just can't compete. So what do you expect to see? How do you expect to see the empire strike back here?

TAYLOR: I think that you can expect that they will circle themselves around Marco Rubio as they did in South Carolina. You saw Governor Nikki Haley all, Senator Tim Scott, Congressman Trey Gowdy, all surrounding and embracing Marco Rubio. He still came in a very, very distant second. That will be tried again as these states go on. I don't think that this Republican Party believes that they can withstand a Trump candidacy. But a Trump candidacy they may very well have.

BERMAN: Ted Cruz trying to paint that third place finish very narrowly a third place finish in South Carolina. It was close. A basically tie for second. Let's see what he said on ABC's "This Weekend."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SENATOR TED CRUZ (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: People across this country are recognizing OK, if we want to beat Trump, Cruz is the only one who can do it. He is the only one who has done it.

Part of the reason is, George, you cannot beat Trump coming from the left. You cannot beat Trump with a candidate who supports amnesty. It doesn't work. If you come at the left to Trump, you will lose --

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMANS: You think Republicans start to coalesce around Rubio, though?

TAYLOR: I think Republicans start to coalesce around Rubio, but Ted Cruz is making the case. He is making the case that I'm the true Evangelical in this case. I am true conservative in this race. That a vote for me means a vote for Republican values. Unlike that guy with the New York values, Donald Trump. Hint-hint.

BERMAN: When it comes to New York values, just beat him in South Carolina.

TAYLOR: Absolutely.

BERMAN: Let's shift to the Democrats now because Hillary Clinton, five points. Close, but convincing in Nevada. You get the sense that the people in Brooklyn who run Hillary Clinton's campaign are breathing a sigh of relief. They think they have turned the corner.

TAYLOR: I think that Hillary Clinton's campaign truly has turned the corner if you look at the entrance and exit polls. She won the black vote by a 3 to 1 or better margin. She won Hispanics slightly depending on whose analysis you listen to.

But at the end of the day, Hillary Clinton, four or five points is a close race. In politics, that is a win. You will see it duplicate in South Carolina and Georgia and Tennessee.

You know as we head to Virginia and other states around Super Tuesday. I think Hillary Clinton is going to continue to do better.

ROMANS: Did she learn anything from the Sanders message that is resonating among his supporters? Wall Street is sort rigged? Does she change her tone or her rhetoric do you think going forward? TAYLOR: I think we have seen as much change in the tone as we will see. I think we have seen as much change in the tone as we are going to see. I think that we've seen Hillary Clinton float to the left on some issues including health care.

How much further she floats to the left depends on how much more support Bernie Sanders is able to command in these coming states and it doesn't look like a lot of that is going to happen.

BERMAN: You know, it is interesting. Hillary Clinton is dealing not just with Bernie Sanders. She is dealing with the image of herself. The issue of is she honest or trustworthy? She spoke about that with Jake Tapper on "STATE OF THE UNION" yesterday. Let's listen to that.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CLINTON: I think there is an underlying question that maybe is really in the back of people's minds and that is, you know, is she in it for us or is she in it for herself? That is a question people are trying to sort through.

And I'm going to demonstrate that I've always been the same person fighting for the same values and fighting to make a real difference in people's lives.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[05:10:08]BERMAN: She's identified the problem.

TAYLOR: She really has.

BERMAN: The question is, is the cure for the problem will it work?

TAYLOR: You know, Hillary Clinton is always a formidable public figure, but as a candidate, you know, she's gotten a bit better over the years. But you know, we will see in these coming months if she will be able to answer that question and make the case. I've always said that Hillary Clinton's biggest opponent happens to be Hillary Clinton.

ROMANS: All right, Goldie, we'll talk to you in a few minutes. Thank you for dropping by this morning. A lot going on today, very busy ten days coming up in politics.

BERMAN: Every day now there will be something. You just know every day.

ROMANS: It is not actually any 24-hour period anymore. It is like one long campaign at this point.

BERMAN: It's a 24-minute period.

All right, a stunning killing spree in Michigan. What an awful story this is. Six people dead. Police say the killer, an Uber driver, picked up and dropped off passengers in between his attacks. The details next. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[05:15:00]

ROMANS: In just a few hours, the alleged shooter in the Kalamazoo killing spree will be formally charged at a court arraignment. The 45-year-old Jason Dalton is suspected the murdering six people at three separate locations Saturday night.

Allegedly in between picking up fares as an Uber driver. Authorities say the shootings appear to be random and investigators at this point are at a loss for a motive. We get more from CNN's Nick Valencia.

NICK VALENCIA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: John and Christine, it is sickening when you consider the details. Investigators saying that this suspect, a 45-year-old man, from Kalamazoo, was casually carrying out the shooting spree and in between each shooting, still picking up passengers working as an Uber driver.

He was eventually taken into custody at about 12:30. Investigators seized a semiautomatic handgun from him. In the search of his residence, discovered even more weapons. They are working on figuring out if any of those weapons were used in the commission of any of these crimes.

Now investigators are really scratching their heads. What is unsettling particularly to them is that this suspect was for all intents and purposes, according to the police chief, an average Joe with no criminal history or record or ability to carry out something like this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JEFF GETTING, KALAMAZOO COUNTY PROSECUTING ATTORNEY: He was aware of what was going on. He was able to carry on his normal routine. These were very deliberate killings. This wasn't hurried in any way or shape. They are on video. We watched the video with law enforcement. They were intentional and deliberate. I don't want to say casually done. Coldly done is what I want to say.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VALENCIA: Six people left dead as a result of that shooting rampage. Two people are also wounded. Still in the hospital. Recovering from wounds. A mother of three children was the first to be shot. She is still recovering in the hospital as a 14-year-old girl.

Investigators are really worried and concerned about her outcome. She was in surgery early Sunday morning, but still is in very, very critical condition.

As far as the suspect, he is expected to face murder charges and will make his first court appearance sometime Monday afternoon -- John, Christine.

BERMAN: All right, Nick, thanks so much. At a hearing in Connecticut today, a judge is expected to decide if a lawsuit brought by families of victims in the Sandy Hook massacre can go forward.

The suit seeks damages from companies who manufacture and sell the AR- 15 rifle. That is the weapon used in the 2012 attack that killed 20 first graders and six adults at the Sandy Hook Elementary School. This case hinges on whether the companies are shielded by a federal law that protects the gun industry from legal claims.

ROMANS: Apple now has until Friday to present its appeal of a judge's order that would compel the tech giant to help investigators gain access to encrypted data on an iPhone used by Syed Rizwan Farook in the San Bernardino shooting.

FBI Director James Comey trying to downplay the dispute. He says, "No precedent would be set if Apple goes along." In a statement, Comey said the FBI is not out to, quote, "break anyone's encryption," but he added, "Decisions involving protection from terrorists should not be left in the hands of, quote, "corporations that sell stuff for a living."

BERMAN: A federal judge has rejected a last ditch legal attempt to stop the deposition this morning by Bill Cosby's wife, Camille. Lawyers for Cosby had been trying to shield Camille from being deposed by attorneys for eight women who sued the comedian for defamation. He claimed Cosby allowed his defense team to paint them as liars after they came forward with acquisitions of sexual assault.

ROMANS: All right, 18 minutes past the hour. Let's get an EARLY START on your money. Stocks had the best week in three months. It's looking like a positive start to the new trading week.

Dow futures are higher. Oil also helping the gains. Crude prices up this morning. Stock markets in Europe and Asia both having a pretty good day. It all hinges on oil. Right now oil prices down about 3 percent.

A look at last week, big gains over those four trading days. It was really two days that did this, two big rallies, a breather Thursday and Friday. It was below average trading volume on those last couple of days of the week.

Look at the year, though, brutal start to the year. The Dow down 5.9 percent, but still it was down more than 10 percent before last week.

The Nasdaq is down 10 percent. The S&P 500 is losing 6.1 percent for the year. Anytime early in the year, you are down. Stocks last week. You are up for the year.

BERMAN: Good times. All right, the closest finish ever at the Daytona 500. The margin of victory is nothing. That much. Coy Wire with more in this morning's "Bleacher Report."

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[05:23:49]

BERMAN: The Daytona 500, a 500-mile race, it came down to four inches at the finish line.

ROMANS: Down to the wire and Coy Wire has more with this morning's "The Bleacher Report."

COY WIRE, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: I see what you did there. I like it, Christine. Good morning to you and John.

NASCAR and NASCAR fans couldn't have asked for a better ending to the marquee race. We are talking about the closest finish in the Daytona 500 history.

What a day for Denny Hamlin. Top of the screen. Hamlin makes his move veering inside Matt Kenseth. Avoid a near disaster then it was all Hamlin and Martin Truex Jr. neck and neck barreling towards that checkered line. Too close to tell in real time.

So look at the photo finish. Hamlin by 1/100th of a second as John mentioned about four inches. Locks up the closest finish in race's history sealing his first ever Daytona 500 win. Here is Denny Hamlin.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DENNY HAMLIN, WON RACE 0.010 SECONDS: I didn't know we had won. I knew it was close. I saw the pylon change and blink at the last second. I just heard on the radio people were all crazy excited. I assumed me won when that happened. If not, I was going to be pissed.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[05:25:05]WIRE: He's happy to say it. You will love it. His mom, Marylou, tweeted a picture of a letter Denny wrote in third grade. It says, "My wish is to win the Daytona 500. If I won the Daytona 500, I would like it to come true on February 17, 1998. My car would be red, white, blue and gold.

If I could win the Daytona 500, I could win $1 million. The reason for all this is because I love racing." Racing loves you, Mr. Hamlin.

Anthony Davis scored a career high 59 points in the Pelicans game against the Pistons yesterday. That's the highest scoring total in the entire NBA this season edging out the Kings' Marcus Cousin who had 56 earlier in the season.

He joins Shaquille O'Neal as the only player in the last 40 seasons with at least 55 points and 20 rebounds. New Orleans wins 111-106 over Detroit.

How about that finish? Everyone will talk about Denny Hamlin's finish. Not to overshadow the entire race, though. He led for 95 laps of that 200-lap race.

BERMAN: Strong.

ROMANS: My dad always says your kids tell you what they're good at and what they want to do. You should encourage them. His mom encouraged him with his love of racing, you know, at third grade to be able to say what do you want to do and achieve it now.

BERMAN: Took him 18 years longer than he planned, though.

WIRE: He was way off, guys.

BERMAN: I'm just saying. It's not all sunflowers and unicorns this morning. All right, Coy Wire, thanks so much. Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton --

ROMANS: Sunflowers and unicorns for them.

BERMAN: Exactly. Big weekends for those two. They are both hoping for big weeks now. Where they are headed this morning to try to consolidate their leads in this race.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)