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Early Start with John Berman and Zoraida Sambolin
GOP Super Tuesday II: Michigan, Mississippi, Hawaii & Idaho; Democrats Vote in Two States Today; Romney Records Robocalls for Rubio; Bonuses on Wall Street Shrink; U.S. Strike Kills 150 Suspected Al-Shabaab Members; Celebrity Privacy on Trial; Nike Suspends Sharapova Deal. Aired 5:30-6a ET
Aired March 08, 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] JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: Let the voting begin. It is Super Tuesday, part two. Superer Tuesday -- Super Tuesdayer. Whatever you call it, it's a big deal today. Make or break for some of these candidates. Who will show up big? Who will go home with a big disappointment?
Welcome back to EARLY START, everyone. I'm John Berman. Thirty-one minutes past the hour. Christine Romans home sick this morning. This morning does begin a crucial day on the campaign calendar. Super Tuesday, as we said, part two -- the sequel. The Age of Ultron. On the Republican side voters go to the polls in four states with 150 delegates up for grabs.
Donald Trump -- he needs a big day. He wants to regain his momentum. His weekend, tepid at best. He actually trailed the delegate count this weekend to Ted Cruz, who had a much a bigger weekend at the polls. In Michigan, right now, the biggest state up for grabs today, Donald Trump is out in front. But, both Ted Cruz and John Kasich have been inching up. Marco Rubio appears to be slipping some, at least there.
CNN's Sara Murray kicks off our team coverage. She is the with the Trump campaign -- has the latest from Mississippi.
SARA MURRAY, CNN POLITICS REPORTER: Donald Trump was rallying a crowd of thousands here in Mississippi last night, just hours before voters in this state and three others head to the polls today. Now, Trump and his campaign have made it clear that Mississippi and Michigan are their top prizes today. These are both very delegate-rich states. But even as Trump was talking to voters here in Mississippi, he had an eye on Florida and was taking swipes at Marco Rubio.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: And then we have little Marco Rubio. I thought when we had, you know -- Chris Christie endorsed me. Good guy -- really good guy. He endorsed me two weeks ago. And when Chris was on the stage -- Chris is the governor of New Jersey, but he was a former prosecutor and a tough cookie. And I thought -- honestly, I thought Marco was going to faint. He was choking like a dog. He was pouring down sweat. And Chris hit him once, and it was fine. He said the Obama thing.
Remember the phrase? And then he did again, and he said it again and again and again and again. And after the fifth time I was getting ready to -- you see that size of that hand? Look at that. I was going to grab him to show him how strong that hand is because he made that sucker up. I was going to say Marco, I won't let you fall. I don't want you to get hurt, Marco.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MURRAY: Now, as soon as we get past these states that are voting here today, the Trump campaign is going to be laser-focused on Florida. That's because that is where they want to knock Marco Rubio out of the race for good. They went up on the air with a new attack ad against him. All of this in the face of Rubio's allies who are spending tens of millions trying to secure the senator's victory in his home state. Back to you guys.
BERMAN: All right, Sara. Thank you so much.
On the Democratic side voters go to the polls in two states today. Michigan, the big prize. Also, Mississippi. Big implication in both races. The Hillary Clinton campaign wants a show of strength in both the Deep South, where she has been running strong, and also in the industrial north. This is the first really big contest in the industrial north.
Polls do show her ahead in Michigan right now. CNN's Jeff Zeleny has more from Clinton's final rally before the voting.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JEFF ZELENY, CNN SENIOR WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT: The Michigan primary is now upon us and what a frenetic final day of campaigning it was. Talk of the auto bailout, talk about trade, talk about guns. But Hillary Clinton is increasingly trying to impress upon Democrats the time is now to start thinking long-term. Thinking toward the fall. At her closing rally in Detroit, listen to what she said to Democrats rallying for her.
HILLARY CLINTON (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Everything I've just said the Republicans disagree with, and so we've got our work cut out for us. That's why it's so important for all of you to turn out as many voters as you can tomorrow because the sooner I could become your nominee, the more I could begin to turn our attention to the Republicans.
[05:35:16] ZELENY: Now, that is the farthest she has gone to saying Democrats, hey, it's time to wrap this up. Of course, she's not calling for Bernie Sanders to drop out. Anything like that would certainly backfire. But if she has a strong night tonight in Michigan -- if she wins the delegates here as well as in Mississippi, they're going to continue to make their case that they believe it's mathematically impossible for him to overtake her.
Now, the Sanders campaign will argue that, look, there's some 70 percent of the delegates still to be picked. Those big states in California, in New York, in New Jersey still to come. But if Bernie Sanders does not win here today in Michigan, that will make his argument that much harder. That's why Bernie Sanders is campaigning so aggressively in the final hours. He is ending his night tonight in Florida, though. That state, among others, votes next Tuesday.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BERMAN: All right, let's break this down much further. A big day at the polls. Joining us now Wall Street Journal White House correspondent, Colleen McCain Nelson. Colleen, thanks for waking up with us this morning. You know, Donald Trump does have a lot at stake today.
COLLEEN MCCAIN NELSON, WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT, THE WALL STREET JOURNAL: That's right. After this past weekend, Ted Cruz was able to blunt Donald Trump's momentum and really kind of establish himself as the leading alternative to Trump. And so, this is a chance for Donald Trump to kind of reassert himself -- show that perhaps this past weekend was just a blip and that, in fact, he's still the prohibitive front-runner.
Polls show him doing well in Michigan. He's been very strong in the south so Mississippi could be a good state for him sohe certainly has a chance to reassert himself and kind of get his footing back. But, if Ted Cruz could pick off a state or maybe even two tonight, that could continue to undercut Trump and really raise questions about whether Donald Trump has reached his ceiling and whether voters are starting to sour on Donald Trump.
BERMAN: And as big as today is, it's really a prolog to next week with winner-take-all states in Florida and Ohio. And there's a bloodbath right now in Florida with a lot of anti-Trump ads up from independent groups -- these "Never Trump" groups, some of them loosely affiliated with Marco Rubio. And then, there's some anti-Rubio ads as well.
The polls right now show an 8-point gap between Donald Trump and Marco Rubio. That's closer than a lot of people think, and I think some of the Rubio campaign are at least heartened that it's not double digits.
We're getting word today -- this morning -- first reported in The New York Times and CNN has confirmed that Mitt Romney has recorded some robocalls for the Rubio campaign. Paid for by the Rubio campaign. They don't advocate Marco Rubio, but these robocalls going out in the states that vote today and Florida next week -- they say, essentially, don't vote for Donald Trump. Any impact there?
NELSON: Well, we saw Mitt Romney come out with his speech last week, obviously, and a lot of people said Mitt Romney's just kind of the wrong messenger in this race. And so, it's not clear that Mitt Romney is really the person who's going to rally voters to the cause and convince people not to vote for Donald Trump.
But, at this point, Marco Rubio and his allies are pulling out all the stops. They might as well just try anything and everything. Florida is kind of his last stand if he can't win his home state. And so, it probably can't hurt just to try everything they can think of to try to undercut Donald Trump. And as you note, Rubio is getting a little closer in the polls. It's probably still very bad news forhim that he's losing in Florida but at least it's single digits. He's gaining a little bit of ground, but for Marco Rubio it's do or die in Florida.
BERMAN: All right. On the Democratic side right now, two states up for grabs today -- Mississippi, which is in the Deep South. These states have gone pretty strongly for Hillary Clinton in the primaries to date. But Michigan is a new type of test -- the industrial Midwest. You know, big cities, urban centers. Also, disaffected workers who theoretically should be Bernie Sanders supporters. One- hundred forty-seven delegates up for stake. Both campaigns going hard in Michigan.
NELSON: Right. And you know the disaffected workers -- this should be Bernie Sanders turf. This is where his message of a rigged economy should resonate and he's really pinpointed Michigan as a state that he thinks he can be competitive in and even win. And so, if he can't win here that really undercuts his argument and also makes his math problem on delegates much tougher. Hillary Clinton has managed to build a very big lead on delegates.
And even though this past weekend looked pretty good on paper for Bernie Sanders, in that he was able to notch some wins in Maine, Nebraska, and Kansas, these are all small states. They didn't really help him catch up in the delegate count. Michigan is a big state and a big prize tonight, so Bernie Sanders needs this to really slow Hillary Clinton's momentum. And if he can't, things start looking pretty grim for Sanders.
BERMAN: Then if we look at the exit polls one of the things we'll be looking for, not just in Mississippi but in Michigan too, is how Bernie Sanders does with African-American voters because that has been an area where he could use some improvement.
NELSON: Right. Hillary Clinton has absolutely trounced Bernie Sanders when it comes to African-American voters. I was in Flint for the CNN debate this weekend and Bernie Sanders talked a little bit about that before the debate. His argument was that he's seeing more of a generational divide than a racial divide.
[05:40:32] He said that he thinks he's doing really well with younger minority voters and just hasn't been able to break through with older minority voters. But, Michigan is an important test for him. He needs to do well with both white voters and black voters here. And if he can only win white voters in these states, he's not going to be able to get the Democratic nomination.
BERMAN: Colleen McCain Nelson, you have a super, Super Tuesday, part two. Thanks so much for being with us.
NELSON: Thank you.
BERMAN: And, of course, stay with CNN for the most comprehensive political coverage on earth. We're going to have results from this superer Tuesday. That's tonight starting at 7:00 p.m. Tomorrow we have a Democratic debate in Miami. That should be fascinating. Thursday, talk about tension.
A Republican debate in Miami. This is the last Republican debate before voters go to the polls in Florida. That key state votes next Tuesday. And if that's not enough, Sunday we have a Democratic town hall from Ohio State University. That's just two days before Ohio votes in its own primary. So, so much going on and it's only right here on CNN.
All right, 41 minutes after the hour. Time now for an early start on your money. Falling oil prices weighing down stock futures. The Dow was down in pre-market trading. Stock markets in Europe also moving lower.
Bonuses on Wall Street -- they're shrinking. The average bonus for a securities industry employee in New York City fell to just over $146,000. Now, that still sounds like a lot, but it is down 9 percent from the previous year. Despite lower corporate profits and global economic headwinds the banking industry, though, is hiring -- 4,500 new positions were added in 2015.
One-hundred fifty terrorists in Somalia hit by U.S. airstrikes. Why does the U.S. say it had to act so quickly? That's next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[05:44:48]
BERMAN: New details are emerging this morning about the U.S. airstrike in Somalia, which is believed to have killed 150 suspected members of the al-Shabaab terror group. U.S. officials say the fighters were possibly on the verge of carrying out an attack on U.S. forces in Africa.
CNN national security correspondent Jim Sciutto has the latest.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JIM SCIUTTO, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: John, this was one of the largest U.S. strikes against terrorists ever. The Pentagon says some 150 fighters from the terror group al-Shabaab killed in the strike. The target was an al-Shabaab training camp and the timing was key here because U.S. intelligence indicated that these fighters were about to carry out an attack on African union forces and U.S. forces in Somalia.
U.S. commanders acting, says the Pentagon, in self-defense, both manned and unmanned aircraft carrying out this strike. Now, at the same time you have al-Shabaab claiming responsibility for another attempted bombing of a passenger jet. That bombed enclosed, hidden in a laptop. You may remember it was just a couple of weeks ago when a laptop bomb exploded on a jet in the air punching a hole in the fuselage. And it is believed carrying that bomber -- sucking that bomber out of that hole. So, two attempted attacks on passengers jets claimed by al-Shabaab, as
well. The ambitions of this group greatly concerning to U.S. counterterror officials, attacking Western targets not only inside the country Somalia, but the concern that they would do the same outside the country as well.
A growing concern, and of course, also a concern here that they're sharing technology with AQAP, Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula. It is that group that has been the principal concern in terms of hiding explosives inside electronic devices such as laptops before, but not it appears that al-Shabaab has that same technology -- something the U.S. is watching very closely.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BERMAN: All right, Jim Sciutto, thanks very much. Let's take a look at what's coming up on "NEW DAY". Alisyn Camerota joins us now. Good morning, Alisyn.
ALISYN CAMEROTA, CNN ANCHOR, "NEW DAY": Hi, John. Great to see you. So, Super Tuesday, part two -- it gets underway in just a little more than an hour from now. Four big states in play for the Republicans, including the delegate-rich Michigan. It's a critical test for Donald Trump. He's looking to retake momentum from Ted Cruz in the face of the coordinated GOP establishment attacks on him. On the flip side, Bernie Sanders hoping to upset Hillary Clinton in two key contests that he needs in order to remain in the race for the long haul.
Also, in other news a near catastrophe in California. A packed commuter train jumping the tracks during rush hour, sending passengers plummeting into a creek, as you can see the aftermath here. How did everyone make it out alive? We'll have that story and so much more when we see you in 12 minutes, John.
BERMAN: All right, Alisyn, thanks so much.
All right, big sponsors suspending deals with tennis star Maria Sharapova after she tested positive for a banned substance, and an early start on your money is next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[05:51:04] BERMAN: All right, big news this morning about two celebrities fighting for their right to privacy. Erin Andrews -- she won $55 million after a man filmed her nude through a peephole in a hotel. And Hulk Hogan hoping to take down Gawker Media for publishing a sex tape that he says he knew nothing about.
I want to bring in CNN's senior media correspondent, host of "RELIABLE SOURCES", Brian Stelter. Brian, the Erin Andrews verdict is $55 million. It's not just big, it's significant.
BRIAN STELTER, CNN SENIOR MEDIA CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely it. It is a case that she brought against this national Marriott hotel. Also, the stalker in this case, who had already been in jail. She came away with $55 million of the $75 million she was seeking. You can see her here in court. At various points she broke down in tears describing how this had affected her and how this video will be online for the rest of her life, and how she knows that. Here's what she said in a comment right after this verdict last night.
She said, "I would like to thank the Nashville court, the court personnel, and the jury for their service. The support I've received from the people of Nashville has been overwhelming. I'd also like to thank my family, friends, and legal team." She said, "I've been honored by all the supports from victims around the world." And John, she said their outreach helped her to stand up and hold this hotel and stalker accountable.
BERMAN: The testimony was remarkable. I think it made a lot of people pause and think about how female -- not just sportscasters -- maybe female celebrities -- the spotlight that they're under and the precautions that they have to take when they travel. But also, just anyone on social media. The pain that can be caused. We talk about bullying as kids, but just what she has had to endure after the fact -- to hear her comments on that was very revealing.
STELTER: Sometimes I think the internet is self-healing. That if a mistake is made that it can be fixed quickly. But, in fact, in cases like this the internet is not self-healing. A video like this stays online forever, despite attempts to scrape it off the Web. And so, to hear her talk about that is a reminder that people who might have been Googling, trying to see pictures of her years ago, are partly responsible for the damage or for the hurt it has caused with her.
[5:56:20]
Sports Illustrated had a great piece the other day about other female sportscasters and how it's affected them by describing, for example, bringing band-aids on the road and then putting them over the peepholes in their hotel rooms. So, this was very much a case that I think made a lot of people think about the impacts of something like this.
BERMAN: And I think she just brought everyone over to her side on this as the trial went on. The testimony was very emotional.
STELTER: It was. She was tearing up at various points, talking about what it was like. Went to tell her father that this video was online. A real sense of privacy being violated in the most basic sense.
BERMAN: All right. Hulk Hogan versus Gawker Media.
STELTER: It's not nearly an agreement on this case. This is a much more polarizing case.
BERMAN: What's going on here?
STELTER: This is about a sex tape from about a decade ago that Hulk Hogan was filmed in. He was with the wife of his best friend. There's a debate about how much that he knew about this at the moment. So, this is a case that he says is about privacy. He says his privacy was violated, so he's suing the Website Gawker for $100 million. Gawker says this is a case about the first amendment, saying that
whether this is about a sex tape or something more significant, this is fundamentally an issue of press freedom. That they were within their rights to broadcast a few seconds of this tape on their Website. And this is a big, big case for Gawker because -- well, they don't have $100 million here. They say this is existential for the future of their company.
Hulk Hogan says he deserves every penny. So, here's part of what he said in court yesterday.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HULK HOGAN: You need to tell me. Did you have anything at all to do with this? And he kept saying no I didn't. I never would do that to you. F you, how dare you. That's what he kept saying. So when they confirmed that Bubba's on the tape and Bubba went up and turned the camera off, and Bubba told Heather this is for our retirement, Heather, it just -- I just started violently shaking. I couldn't stop.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
STELTER: So, Bubba is the best friend of the wife that he was in bed with and this happened many years ago. Hulk Hogan's talked about his sex life in autobiographies and on the Howard Stern show. He hasn't been a private figure with regards to this, but he says it's different when Gawker wrote about it. When Gawker published part of the tape, he says it violated his privacy.
BERMAN: Gawker simulcasting this trial?
STELTER: They are. Yes, they are live streaming the trial because they want this to be framed as a journalistic issue. You know, certainly there have been first amendment fights in the past that have been about topics like this. Remember Hustler magazine and Larry Flynt many years ago.
So, there is a precedent for this where law is established, not based on important investigative journalism, but on topics perhaps more of prurient interest. So, this another case where we're seeing privacy clash against how much the press has a right to report on even topics that might be salacious.
BERMAN: Interesting discussion. All right, Brian Stelter, thanks for coming --
STELTER: Thanks.
BERMAN: -- and shining some light on this morning. Really appreciate it. Let's get an early start now on your money. Stocks set to slump this morning. Dow futures down. Oil heading lower in markets. In Europe and Asia falling as well.
Nike is suspending its major endorsement deal with Russian tennis star Mario Sharapova following her admission that she failed a drug test. A statement from Nike says, "We are saddened and surprised by the news about Maria Sharapova. We have decided to suspend our relationship with Mario while the investigation continues." Her current 8-year deal with Nike is reportedly worth $70 million. Another sponsor, Swiss watchmaker TAG Heuer says it will not renew her contract. And automaker Porsche says it is postponing activities with the superstar.
All right, it is now Super Tuesday -- the sequel even more super. How will it change the 2016 race? "NEW DAY" starts now.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: I swear I'm going to vote for Donald Trump.
SEN. MARCO RUBIO (R-FL), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: A turning point is coming.
TRUMP: Lying Ted Cruz, who really is a liar.
TED CRUZ (R-TX), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: We're getting closer to a two-man race.
RUBIO: If you don't want Donald Trump to be the Republican nominee, you have to vote for Marco Rubio.
TRUMP: Little Marco Rubio -- he couldn't be elected dog catcher.
CLINTON: We've got our work cut out for us.
SEN. BERNIE SANDERS (I-VT), DEMOCRATIC PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: This is a campaign of the people, by the people, and for the people.
CLINTON: The sooner I become your nominee, the more I could begin to turn our attention to the Republicans.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: ACE train number 10 struck a tree. The first car of the train derailed into Alameda creek.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I held onto the rails and right then the train flipped over.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It was scary. It's still scary.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANNOUNCER: This is NEW DAY with Chris Cuomo, Alisyn Camerota, and Michaela Pereira.
CHRIS CUOMO, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning. Welcome to your new day. It is Tuesday, March 8th, 6:00 in the east, and guess what? It is Super Tuesday again, but this one is all its own. This is a big, big deal leading up to the next Super Tuesday and that's not a joke. Here's why. On the Republican side voters are heading to the polls in four different states. There are 150 delegates up for grabs. This is the last good chance of proportional voting for the GOP candidates to make their move. Michigan, Mississippi, Idaho, along with causes in Hawaii.
