Return to Transcripts main page

Early Start with John Berman and Zoraida Sambolin

Target on Trump's Back for Tonight's CNN GOP Debate; Cruz Must Win Texas on Super Tuesday; Obama Will Nominate Supreme Court Justice; Apple CEO Speaks Out on Privacy Fight; Steph Curry Leads Warriors to Win in Miami. Aired 5-5:30a ET

Aired February 25, 2016 - 05:00   ET

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

(MUSIC PLAYING)

[05:00:06] CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN ANCHOR: In just hours, Republicans running for president take the CNN debate stage. Only five competitors remaining. Frontrunner Donald Trump, boy, he has a big target on his back tonight.

Good morning and welcome to EARLY START. I'm Christine Romans in New York.

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm John Berman live in Houston, Texas. This is the site of the CNN Republican debate. It is Thursday, February 25th, 5:00 a.m. in the east. And I'm standing at the University of Houston. A beautiful campus, a quiet campus at 4:00 a.m. local time. But just hours from now, it will be noisy.

The five remaining presidential candidates, they face-off in the CNN debate. This is such a pivotal moment in this campaign, because all four candidates not named Donald Trump know that this could be their last chance, could be their only chance left, to knock Donald Trump off his perch, to slow his momentum. Three wins in a row.

Now in national polls, Donald Trump running ahead of Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio with John Kasich and Ben Carson behind in single digits. But it's really not the national polls that matter right now; it is the state contests. And again Trump has won three in a row, won Nevada big. And he's pulling ahead in a lot of these states that vote on Tuesday. Next Tuesday, Super Tuesday, so many delegates available there. 0

And all of the other candidates, they swear they can win this thing. They swear they can beat Trump. They just need to get him one-on-one.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. TED CRUZ (R-TX), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Donald is formidable. People are ticked off. They're furious with Washington. They're furious with politicians in both parties that have been lying to them. And I think Donald's support is a manifestation of that. But what the polling data also shows is that head-to-head, Donald against me, we beat Donald handily. We beat him by 16 points, 56 to 40.

SEN. MARCO RUBIO (R-FL), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Our tactics are not

going to dramatically change. I think the biggest change in this campaign is going to be when the people not named Donald Trump -- the choices begin to narrow and we start to give the Republican voters a clearer choice of who they want to get behind.

BEN CARSON (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: With fewer candidates, I think maybe there's a possibility -- I'm not sure it's going to happen -- but there's a possibility that people may actually start getting interested in the real solutions to the problems.

GOV. JOHN KASICH (R-OH), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: By the way, for those that wonder about Donald Trump, if I go head-to-head with him in Ohio, I beat him by 18 points.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BERMAN: That's everyone now running against Donald Trump. Right now, Donald Trump isn't just dealing with them though; he's also dealing with Mitt Romney. More on that in just a moment. Because right now, Donald Trump also looking behind the primaries a bit. Some talk about the general election now.

CNN's Phil Mattingly was with Donald Trump in Virginia.

PHIL MATTINGLY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, John and Christine. Donald Trump taking a bit of a victory lap after his sweeping victory in the Nevada caucuses and maybe looking forward a bit with attacks on Hillary Clinton.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Boy oh boy, she's become like a marshmallow. She's become -- everything he does -- oh, it's wonderful. Whatever he wants to do. It's wonderful. The president -- man, I tell you, it couldn't be -- her life could not so easy, but what she's done is so wrong and it's so unfair. And it looks like she'll be the nominee and it looks like nothing will happen, but it will be something that will be discussed, I promise you. It will be discussed often, often, often.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MATTINGLY: Now, Donald Trump will be traveling across the deep south in the days ahead, a nod to that Super Tuesday SEC primary where 25 percent of available delegates will be up for grabs. Now, if you talk to GOP operatives across the different campaigns there's a very real concern now that Donald Trump has momentum that can't be halted.

Still, it's early. Not only is the SEC primary coming up, also winner- take-all events coming up on March 15th. You're talking about states like Ohio and Florida, places where Gov. John Kasich of Ohio or Florida Sen. Marco Rubio still think they have a shot to strike. So there is time left, but guys, there is an urgency coming about the campaign right now. One thing to keep an eye on is the CNN debate in Houston occurs tonight. Full frontal attacks on Donald Trump -- look towards Ted Cruz, look towards Marco Rubio. The two battling it out for second place trying to make a statement tonight. Very wary donors and very wary supporters wanting that move to happen quickly. Tonight may be the night -- John and Christine.

BERMAN: Tonight is a big night. Our thanks to Phil Mattingly for that.

This morning, a lot of talk about Donald Trump versus Mitt Romney after the Republican nominee called on the current frontrunner to be the Republican nominee, called on Donald Trump to release his taxes. This morning Trump has what seems to be a new stance on the issue. The billionaire businessman now leaving open the possibility he will not release his taxes. He told Anderson Cooper he'll make a determination over the next couple months. This came in response to speculation from Mitt Romney that Donald Trump might have something to hide.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MITT ROMNEY (R), FORMER PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Frankly, I think we have good reason to believe that there's a bombshell in Donald Trump's taxes.

[05:05:04] NEIL CAVUTO, HOST, FOX BUSINESS NETWORK: What do you mean?

ROMNEY: Well, I think there's something there. Either he's not anywhere near as wealthy as he says he is, or he hasn't been paying the kind of taxes we would expect him to pay, or perhaps he hasn't been giving money to the vets or to the disabled like he's been telling us he's been doing. And, I think that's the -- the reason that I think there's a bombshell in there is because every time he's asked about his taxes he dodges and delays and says, well, we're working on it.

TRUMP: My returns are extremely complex and I'll make a determination at the right time. I'm in no rush to do it and nobody's been bringing it up except for Mitt Romney. And the reason he brings it up is that he lost in the last election, and lost very badly, so I don't know why he's bringing it up. But, tax returns are very complicated. I have many, many companies.

I have, you know, tremendously -- I have a very complex system of taxes and frankly I get audited every single year. So, you know, my -- unlike everybody else who never gets audited, I get audited every single year, which I think is unfair. But I got through large audits and that's the way it is. But, we'll make a determination over the next couple of months. It's very complicated.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BERMAN: Donald Trump versus Mitt Romney. All of it prologue to tonight's debate here in Houston, because today all roads do lead here, to the University of Houston, the site of the CNN Republican presidential debate.

Let's bring in CNN Politics managing editor for content, Steven Sloan. He joins me now. Good morning, Steven. Great to have you here where it is not Texas warm. It is Texas cold.

STEVEN SLOAN, CNN POLITICS, MANAGING EDITOR FOR CONTENT: It's a little chilly.

BERMAN: And you're not appropriately dressed. We'll move past that.

The big things you are watching for tonight?

SLOAN: Cruz and Rubio, how do they try to take on Donald Trump? This is a pivotal moment in the campaign, as you said earlier, and it's all going to come down to whether anybody else on the stage can dent the armor of Donald Trump, who's come out of these early nominating states just with so much momentum at his back. And now he's going Into super Tuesday as the undisputed frontrunner for theh GOP.

BERMAN: Ted Cruz has tried. I mean, it's not like Ted Cruz didn't talk about Donald Trump in South Carolina. He did, a lot. And he lost to donald Trump there.

SLOAN: He lost to Donald Trump; he also -- I mean, he came in third. He's not even -- that's the trouble for Ted Cruz right now, is that he's not even kind of coming in a close second to Donald Trump. And that is really raising questions about whether he is going to be somebody who ccan emerge as the alternative to Donald Trump.

BERMAN: And what about Marco Rubio? Because he's been so hesitant to go after Donald Trump, to engage him really in any way. It's almost as if he is ignoring the Trump candidacy. Can he do that much longer?

SLOAN: I think he's going to try. He looks around and sees people who've tried to take on Donald Trump, his friend from Florida, Jeb Bush, who tried -- who was perhaps the most vocal on previous debate stages in taking on Donald Trump. And he's no longer in the race. And I don't think Marco Rubio wants to be in his shoes.

BERMAN: So what about the idea you're hearing from a lot of Cruz supporters, Bob Vander Plaats and Steve Deace in Iowa say, you know, Ted Cruz, stop. Stop talking about Marco Rubio. Don't go after Marco Rubio; focus all your attention to Trump. Can he all of a sudden just ignore Marco Rubio? Can he say, you know, I'm not going to pay attention to the things I've said about Marco Rubio and amnesty? Those are words that Ted Cruz uses.

SLOAN: Well, I mean, I think that ultimately you can't just ignore Marco Rubio to get to Trump. At this point, you're going to have to resolve this fight between Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio. And so focusing on Trump is great, but if you don't resolve the question of who is going to emerge as the alternative, Cruz versus Rubio, then you can't get there.

BERMAN: All right, we are sitting in Houston, in Texas, at the University of Houston here. Texas is a Super Tuesday state. You know, next week, next Tuesday, so I guess five days from now, is the single biggest day in the primary season. More delegates at stake than any other day in the primary season. SLOAN: This is going to be ground zero in many ways on Super Tuesday.

And it's crucial for Ted Cruz. He has to win this state. It's obviously the state he represents in the Senate. And, you know, he is favored to win here but Trump and Rubio are certainly going to try to give him a challenge and squeeze him out of the race. If he loses this state, that would be devastating.

BERMAN: He has Greg Abbott, the governor; he has Rick Perry, the former governor on his side. He has a lot of campaign events over the next several days in his home state. It just goes to show how important it is for him now. I think that if he'd plotted this out months ago, he would like to be campaigning in other states going forward.

SLOAN: Oh, I'm sure. He has spent months plotting the southern strategy for Super Tuesday, places like Georgia, Alabama, Oklahoma. I'm sure he would rather be campaigning there, really shoring up those states, than spending time in his state. But he has to win here.

BERMAN: So when they'n the stage tonight, do you think the candidates in a way talk beyond that stage? Take John Kasich for instance, who, you known, is still very much in this race. He has a second place finish in the second, in New Hampshire. Says he is staying in it. How does he approach the stage tonight? Can he continue to try to be above the fray and focus on his state primary, which is March 15th, or does he need to engage?

[05:10:04] SLOAN: I think this is a strategy that seems to be working for him. He's getting the attention by being kind of the person who stays above it and kind of in a different -- taking such a different approach than Cruz and Rubio and Trump. And I think he's going to try to continue that to see if he can get to those later states. Obviously Michigan is a big state that he wants to win.

BERMAN: Closing thought here, what's your gut? The last time we saw the Republicans on stage together in a debate, you know, you heard demolition derby. Do you think it goes that way tonight?

SLOAN: I think we're going to see some fireworks tonight. I think we have a lot of pent up energy in the GOP. And everybody is looking to Super Tuesday. And it's going to be all on stage tonight.

BERMAN: All on stage. All right here at the University of Houston. Steven Sloan, thank you so much.

That debate is here. Wolf Blitzer will moderate. Five candidates on the stage. Will there be five candidates tomorrow? The CNN Republican presidential debate 8:30 p.m. here only here on CNN.

You know, debate watching parties all over campus planned, Christine. You can see the signs all about here. The excitement is building. And they know, they know that they lucked into a very big deal in this nominating season.

ROMANS: Oh, absolutely. And you just look at the field. Ted Cruz, the only other candidate to win a state. And we're talking about these other candidates have to win their home states to stay alive. When in a political process has winning your home state been the thing that you -- the only thing you have that can keep you going?

BERMAN: You have to go back generations. I mean, it used to be a thing, right? States used to put up their favorite son candidates and nominate their governor to send them to the convention. But that's not something -- that hasn't happened in 50 years. And now all of a sudden it's possible that that'is the only way to block Donald Trump. You know, Margaret Hoover says it's not about beating Donald Trump now; it's just about blocking him for some of these candidates and hoping you have a chance to fight it out at the convention.

ROMANS: Donald Trump has disrupted the playbook, no question, making it so important and so interesting every single moment of the next week or so. John Berman in Houston for us. Thank you, John. Go get a cup of coffee because I got some other news to fill you in on next.

New information this morning that President Obama's pick to fill the Supreme Court vacancy could be someone the Republicans will have a tough time refusing. That's next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[05:16:24] ROMANS: President Obama wants to make it clear, despite stonewalling by Senate Republicans, he will put up a candidate for the vacancy on the Supreme Court. The president is said to be consulting with legal experts and members of both political parties before announcing a nominee in the weeks ahead. And CNN has learned one of those being vetted right now is a Republican, Nevada governor Brian Sandoval. Senate Democrat leader Harry Reid, also from Nevada, he knows the governor well.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. HARRY REID (D-NV), MINORITY LEADER: I don't pick the justices, but I know if he were picked I would support the man. He's a good person, he has a great record, and he has been a tremendously good governor.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMANS: GOP leaders in the Senate have said they will not consider any election-year nominee to replace Justice Antonin Scalia on the Supreme Court.

Apple CEO Tim Cook speaking out on the company's privacy fight with the FBI. Cook telling ABC News Apple has helped investigators, but Apple stopped short of creating a so-called back door with the potential to unlock any iPhone, not just the one that belonged to one of the San Bernardino shooters. Cook calls it a matter of public safety.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TIM COOK, CEO, APPLE: This case is not about one phone. This case is about the future. What is at stake here is can the government compel Apple to write software that we believe would make hundreds of millions of customers vulnerable around the world, including the U.S.

DAVID MUIR, ABC NEWS: And you'd have to write that system in order to unlock that phone?

COOK: Yes. The only way we know would be to write a piece of software that we view as sort of the software equivalent of cancer. We think it's bad news to write. We would never write it. We have never written it. And that is what is at stake here.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMANS: Apple is working to make future iPhone models impossible to break into. According to new reports this morning, this would force the government to find its workaround to get information from phones even when it has court orders like in the San Bernardino terrorism case. The reports say it would also help protect customers from hackers.

The recent privacy fight is not helping Apple's stock; stock down 10 percent this year alone. Down a stunning 30 percent from its high last year. iPhone sales are slowing and may even decline this quarter, something that is unprecedented. Also the Apple Watch was not the hot stocking stuffer analysts thought it would be last holiday season. Apple shipped 4.1 million of the devices in the last three months of 2015. That's according to an estimate from IDC. Forecasts were for 5 million. Still good enough for 15 percent of the global wearable market, but Apple doesn't publicly disclose watch sales and declined to comment on that report.

All right, the Warriors taking on the Heat in Miami. Big game moments. Andy Scholes has details in this morning's bleacher report. That's next.

[05:15:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ROMANS: All right. Conor McGregor and Nate Diaz held a news conference ahead of their big fight at UFC 196. This was an audio tech's nightmare. Andy Scholes has more in this morning's bleacher report. Hey Andy.

ANDY SCHOLES, CNN SPROTS: Hey, good morning, Christine. You know, these pre-fight news conferences, the fighters are always trying to ramp up interest for their pay-per-view. Well, missing accomplished for this one. McGregor and Diaz were throwing f-bombs at each other left and right. It was arguably the most entertaining news conference ever.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He like a little (INAUDIBLE) from the hood. But at the same time, he coaches jujitsu on a Sunday morning and goes on Fight Night with the Eldlerly (ph). He makes (INAUDIBLE) with the right hand and animal (INAUDIBLE) with the left hand. So you are a credit to the community. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (EXPLETIVE) you, (EXPLETIVE) you. Well, I don't

give a (EXPLETIVE).

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCHOLES: Now Diaz went on to say everyone in UFC is on steroids. Now, McGregor took offence to that, denied that he's ever used steroids. UFC president Dana White also denied any of his fighters are on steroids. McGregor-Diaz will get in the octagon March 5th in Las Vegas.

All right, Steph Curry was at it again last night in Miami. Curry tying the NBA record, making a three-pointer in his 127th consecutive regular season game. He had 42 points in this one. His running mate Klay Thompson red hot in the fourth quarter, scoring 15 straight points.

[05:25:05] He finished with 33. The Warriors beat the Heat, 118-112, and are now 51-5 on the season.

All right, the NFL combine is under way in Indianapolis. A surprise early entrant into this year's draft is running back Peyton Barber. He decided to forego his final two years of eligibility at Auburn and go pro, and one of the reasons for his decision was the fact that his mother is currently homeless.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PEYTON BARBER, NFL DRAFT EARLY ENTRANT: There are some things that I'm going through with my family. Right now, she's staying with my sister. It's her and her three kids staying in an apartment back home.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCHOLES: Now, Barber is projected to be a middle round pick in April's draft.

All right, earlier this week, it was reported that Tiger Woods was struggling in his recovery from back surgery. Well, to debunk those reports, Tiger posted this video of him practicing in a golf simulator yesterday, saying hey, he's progressing nicely. Now Rory McIlroy having some fun with that video, tweeting at Tiger, "Hey, while you're on your feet, why don't you do a few calf raises, would you?" Poking some fun, Christine, at Tiger's skinny legs. I guess that's a lesson to us all: even if you are Tiger Woods, you can't skip leg day.

(LAUGHTER)

ROMANS: Never skip leg day. All right, thanks so much, Andy. Nice to see you.

Could tonight cement Donald Trump's frontrunner status in the race for president? Five candidates, five of them, taking the CNN debate stage in just hours. Wow, that's a big target on his back. We'll tell you their new attack strategies next. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)