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Early Start with John Berman and Zoraida Sambolin

Front-Runners Favored to Win New York Primary; Houston Under Water: Deadly Flooding; Hundreds Injured in Kabul Suicide Attack; Will Supreme Court Back Obama's Immigration Plan?; Warrior Beat Rockets Without Steph Curry. Aired 5-5:30a ET

Aired April 19, 2016 - 05:00   ET

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

[05:00:00] CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN ANCHOR: Big day today, folks. No more waiting. The New York primary is now, or at least very soon, in a few hours. Polls open in just a bit. The frontrunners on both sides are hoping for big wins to return them to those days of yore like four weeks ago when they had all the momentum.

On the Democratic side, Hillary Clinton trying to fend off Bernie Sanders. Both candidates campaigning late into the night.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. BERNIE SANDERS (I-VT), DEMOCRATIC PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: We win when the turnover is high. We lose when the turnout is low.

HILLARY CLINTON (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: So, please, come out and vote tomorrow. I will work hard for you. Thank you all very much.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMANS: CNN's Jeff Zeleny has more from Sanders closing rally in Queens. (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEFF ZELENY, CNN SENIOR WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT: John and Christine, Bernie Sanders wrapping up his final rally after two strong weeks of campaigning across the state. He has gone from borough to borough across the state of New York rallying supporters to his side, trying to make one last victory here in New York a chance for him to erase the big lead that Hillary Clinton has in delegates.

Now, this has been something of an extraordinary two weeks. Both candidates have strong ties to the city and to the state. Of course, Bernie Sanders born and raised in Brooklyn. He has literally attracted tens of thousands of people everywhere he goes. By our count, he has appeared before nearly 100,000 people over the past two weeks.

Now, Hillary Clinton has been campaigning as she is running for mayor here. She has been going store front to store front on the subway. Now, this election today is going to be a pivotal moment in the primary race. Hillary Clinton with the large lead, but Bernie Sanders believes this is a place where he could make up some delegates. If Bernie Sanders were to win here today in the New York primary, it would in fact upend this race.

Hillary Clinton still has a strong lead in delegates, but Sanders has momentum on his side. He won the last eight of nine. This New York primary could not be more critical in terms with the importance of this race going forward. Bernie Sanders has pledged to go to the convention in July. He almost certainly will. But a win here in New York would make that more possible. A Hillary Clinton win would begin to set in reality mathematically, at least, that she cannot be defeated, that she has too big of a lead here.

But all eyes will be on turnout across the boroughs of New York City, across the state as well. Vermont, of course, where Sanders has lived for years is close to Upstate New York. So, the New York primary is important on the long road to the White House -- John and Christine.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ROMANS: All right. Jeff Zeleny, thanks, Jeff.

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: With Muse "Uprising" playing in the background, which everyone knows, of course.

ROMANS: Yes.

BERMAN: All right. I want to bring in CNN politics reporter Tom Lobianco, in a breakdown to New York primary.

Tom, a crucial day for the frontrunners, a crucial day for Donald Trump. The New York delegate rules are as such. If he wins 50 percent statewide, he gets an at large winner take all. And then if he gets 20 percent in each of the 27 districts, he takes all the delegates, three delegates in each of those districts as well.

He knows how crucial this is. You can hear it in his voice at a rally in Buffalo last night. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Tomorrow, we're going to show Ted Cruz who hates New York -- hates New York. When you look at that debate and see the way he talked about us and New York values, here's a man that turned down Sandy money for the state. No New Yorker can vote for Ted Cruz.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BERMAN: So, potentially, a big haul for Donald Trump. It all comes down to the percentages.

TOM LOBIANCO, CNN POLITICS REPORTER: Absolutely. You know, the number is 1,237. If he can reach that before Cleveland, effectively, he will put to rest any sort of -- any challenge to him as the nominee. But that's not clear at this point whether he will get there. You know, 50 percent -- that 50 percent benchmark across the board, if

he can clear that tonight, that would be huge. That would be absolutely huge.

ROMANS: This is why inside the campaign some shifts and change of focus in all the campaigns. Because now, this becomes a delegate hunt. Now, you have gone from the early parts of the campaign where this was about a cult of personality of Donald Trump and this is about actually getting the delegates. Tell us about high profile departure last night in his campaign.

LOBIANCO: Sure. Well, field director Stuart Jolly tendered his resignation. He was a big Corey Lewandowski supporter.

You know, you have a big move away from the first part of the campaign to this new inside ball focus with Paul Manafort, the delegate director, top strategists to be brought on who was in was integral in the 1976 contested Republican convention. He carried Ford over the top. And you also have Rick Wiley, former manager for Scott Walker, who they brought on.

These are inside players and it reflects the reality that this is now an inside game. Winning the nomination means winning delegates. You have to find your way to 1,237.

[05:05:02] And you have to -- if you can't get to 1,237, which is a distinct possibility, you have to protect your delegates you have and win over more. At the end of the day, you have to find a way to 1,237 delegates. That is all reflected here.

BERMAN: The inside game on the chess board of the nation's map, to use at least two, maybe three metaphors right there. If you look beyond New York, we have big primaries next Tuesday in states like Maryland and Pennsylvania and Delaware. And that's where Ted Cruz is now. He's already moved past New York to campaign in those states.

Listen to what he said yesterday.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. TED CRUZ (R-TX), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Now, Maryland votes just over a week from now. Maryland is a battleground. Maryland is going to have an outsized voice as the nation is looking to Maryland to decide, do we nominate Donald Trump and hand the election to Hillary Clinton or do we unite behind the Cruz campaign and beat Hillary Clinton?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BERMAN: So just like Simon & Garfunkel saying, Maryland, you know, the nation turns its weary eyes to you.

If you look at that map right there and you look at those mid-Atlantic states as well, some of the Northeast though, what strikes you is, those will be good states for Trump. Those are tough states for Ted Cruz despite the fact he planted his flag in Maryland yesterday. LOBIANCO: As someone who grew up in Towson, it is tough to hear

Maryland as a battle ground. Here we are.

The last few weeks have been good for Cruz and Sanders. And the next few weeks are where Clinton and Trump could easily take this back. You know, Pennsylvania in particular looks like a good state for Clinton and Trump.

ROMANS: Yes.

LOBIANCO: Tons of delegates there. Almost a moderate, but these are more old fashion maybe with Republicans and Democrats. You got Maryland. It's not a lot of delegates, but a fair amount when you are looking at the margins, we're looking at 38 delegates there. And this all matters. Everything leading up to June 7th, too, when we have an absolute ton of delegates with California being the decider in this. All leading up to the convention. You know, if either one can put it away, they're in good shape. Otherwise, we're having huge convention battles in July.

ROMANS: It all matters. I mean, it all maters. What did you call it? The political reporter employment plan?

BERMAN: The full employment act.

ROMANS: Full employment act for political reporter. All right. That's you, Tom LoBianco. Thank you so much. Nice to see you this morning.

LOBIANCO: Thanks, guys.

BERMAN: All right. Breaking news out of Afghanistan this morning. The Taliban claiming responsibility for a suicide blast that rocked central Kabul during the morning rush. Afghan officials say seven people were killed and more than 300 injured. The officials say a suicide car bomber targeted the country's government security office. Authorities say police killed an additional gunman.

Two more could be on the run. So, this situation could be ongoing. The blast was heard near the U.S. embassy compound, but it not said to be effected.

ROMANS: At least five people have been killed in the record-breaking floods to hit the city of Houston. All of those reported deaths occurred among people who apparently drove into high waters. Officials say at least 1,000 homes were flooded in Harris County alone. Crews performing more than 1,200 high water rescues.

You can see this man frantically trying to swim to a rescue boat. Crews even saving horse stuck in rising waters. You will see some of that video. Really devastating flooding.

So is the worst over for Houston or is more yet to come? Let's bring in meteorologist Pedram Javaheri for the latest.

PEDRAM JAVAHERI, AMS METEOROLOGIST: John and Christine, I think the worst is over for a lot of the areas, unfortunately, there is plenty of rainfall in the forecast. I'll show you how this transpired.

What we call the omega block developed. A pattern that resembles the Greek letter with the system over the center of the country. This pattern tapped into tremendous moisture off the Gulf. This storm will begin to move. Unfortunately, not fast enough to remove the moisture entirely out of your forecast.

If you take a look at what transpired on Monday afternoon across portions of Texas and really early morning hours as well. Up to 17 inches just west of Houston coming down in a matter of a few hours. That alone in the town of Hockley, a western suburb of Houston, would be greater than what Salt City sees in an entire year on average, incredible amount of rainfall when you think about that.

And, of course, the thunderstorms are forecast to regenerate right around Houston by this afternoon. Forecast total take you up to 2 to 4 inches which you see with the yellow and oranges and potentially up to 6 inches in the next 2 to 3 days.

[05:10:00] Cincinnati about 81 degrees. Nashville, 82. Chicago in the low 60s. In New York, we'll shoot for around 70 by this afternoon -- guys.

ROMANS: All right. Pedram, thank you.

Time for an early start on your money. An important milestone for the Dow Jones Industrial Average, crossing 18,000 for the first time since last July. That's right. The highest since last July. Wow.

Where did February go and the fear? The Dow was near 15,000. That is an incredible run-up. Look at that, 16 percent, more than 16 percent.

Three reasons -- three reasons pushing stocks higher since that low point. Number one, the rebound in crude oil prices. Subsiding fears of a U.S. recession and really low interest rates. No interest rate hikes from the Fed Reserve at least until this summer.

The next number to watch, 18,351, to be precise. The Dow's all-time high, its record. That was achieved last May. What's also encouraging is that stocks and oil seem to be drifting apart.

BERMAN: Oh no.

ROMANS: Crude prices fell yesterday while the stock market was pushing higher. What are you calling it? Do it again.

BERMAN: Conscious uncoupling.

ROMANS: Chris Martin is the crude oil market and Gwyneth Paltrow is stock?

BERMAN: You have to pick sides. Everyone has to pick sides. That's just the way it is.

Eleven minutes after the hour. President Obama's plan to shield millions of immigrants from being

deported. That plan could be in jeopardy. The Supreme Court heard the case yesterday. A lot of members voiced their concerns.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[05:15:35] BERMAN: The Supreme Court must now decide whether President Obama's executive actions on immigration are constitutional. The eight justices heard arguments in the landmark case yesterday. Twenty-six states challenging the president's authority to shield millions of undocumented immigrants from deportation.

Let's get more now from CNN justice correspondent Pamela Brown.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PAMELA BROWN, CNN JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: Well, good morning, John and Christine.

This is a case that could have broad implications for the relationship between the president and Congress. It could impact millions of people in the United States. And you could feel how high the stakes were inside that courtroom during the 90 minutes of oral arguments.

The justices seemed divided along ideological lines on the issue of immigration and this question of whether the president has the authority to shield 4.3 million undocumented immigrants from deportation and give them work benefits that come with Social Security and Medicare benefits.

And the conservative justices seemed to side with the states, bringing this lawsuit, that this is executive overreach. In fact, at one point, Justice Kennedy said it seems that the president is coming up with the policy and Congress is executing it. That's just upside down.

The conservative justices also seem concerned with the language in the memorandum, saying that this would give these undocumented immigrants lawful presence, they say. How can that be if they're in the United States in violation of the law?

Now, on the other hand, the administration says that simply this program would give them a tolerated presence in the United States and the liberal justices seemed to side with the administration on this notion that there are 11 million undocumented immigrants in the U.S. and the president is giving discretion under the Constitution to manage immigration issues.

So, if there is a 4-4 split, that is bad news for the Obama administration, because the lower courts ruling would stand and the programs would continue to be blocked.

Another issue could be standing if the justices find that Texas and these other states didn't have standing to bring this lawsuit. That would mean the programs would go into effect. Texas contends that it has to spend millions of dollars subsidizing these driver's licenses. But this is no doubt one of the most highly anticipated cases of the term and we expect to find out what the opinion is later term in June or July -- John and Christine.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ROMANS: All right. Pamela, thank you for that.

Michigan Governor Rick Snyder is urging Flint residents to stop using bottled water and start using filtered tap water. It looks like he plans to put his prodding where his mouth is, literally. The governor visited a Flint home on Monday and says he drank their tap water. He even told reporters he filled up three 1-gallon jugs to go.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GOV. RICK SNYDER (R), MICHIGAN: I'm going to be drinking Flint filtered water home and work for the next 30 days or so.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMANS: Snyder claims his wife is on board with the plan to drink the filtered tap water right along with him.

People in Flint is still really hopping mad about this. They're mad about the bills they have been paying for water that was not safe. This is still a problem in Flint.

BERMAN: All right. Eighteen minutes after the hour.

Playoff time. The Golden State Warriors without Steph Curry. Is that a problem? Game two against the Houston Rockets.

Coy Wire with this morning's bleacher report. That's next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[05:53:20] BERMAN: Oh, no! The Golden State Warriors without star Steph Curry last night. So, what would happen to the defending champs in the playoffs?

ROMANS: Coy Wire has more in this morning's bleacher report. Hey, Coy.

COY WIRE, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Christine and John.

Curry was hoping to play against the Rockets last night in game two with that injured ankle. But when he tested it out in pre-game warm ups, it wasn't quite where he needed to be, so he decided to sit out and give it rest before a long playoff run.

His boys, well, they stepped up and got the job done. Last year's finals MVP Andre Iguodala knocking down threes in the first half. He finished with four money balls overall.

But it was Klay Thompson who really stepped up production wise for Golden State. A game high 34 points. Warriors still win, 115-106 and take a 2-0 series lead.

Crazy game in Oklahoma City, under 30 seconds to play. And Mavericks' Wesley Matthews scrambles for the loose ball, takes it the length of the court and mavericks up by four. Now, Mark Cuban with a big old sigh. It's all right. Hang in there, big fellow.

Then, it was Kevin Durant who couldn't buy a bucket all game, nails the three to put the Thunder within one. Durant actually tied Michael Jordan for the most misses in a post-season game with 26.

Now, time running out. One more chance for the win for the Thunder. Steve Adams gets the put-back to go in. The refs check the video. He did not get it off in time. Mavs win, 85-84, tying the series at 1-1

Two more games tonight on TNT. The Celtics try to even their series with the Hawks. It's 7:00 Easter. And then the Grizzlies and Spurs match up in the night cap at 9:30.

[05:25:02] Best moment of the day, guys, no doubt comes from yesterday's 120th running of the Boston marathon. Adrian Haslett who lost a leg in the 2013 Boston Marathon bombings finished the race on a prosthetic leg. The professional ballroom dancer has some issues mid- race with the prosthetic, but her team who she called the pet crew fixed it and she kept moving forward. An amazing story of perseverance.

Now, after the race, she posted this on Instagram, celebrating with her team by popping the bubbly and saying, "I have no words. Filled to the brim with the utter definition of joy. Run bold. Adrianne Strong."

President Obama tweeted, "Thank you, Adrianne, for being Boston strong. Terror and bombs can't beat us. We carry on. We finish the race."

Guys, there were military members who completed the marathon in full uniform. There were runners who stop and sometimes carry others across the finish line, inspiring displays of perseverance and camaraderie.

BERMAN: It is the world's greatest sporting event and it is great to see it on all its glory as it should be.

Coy Wire, thanks so much for that. That's so inspiring.

WIRE: You're welcome.

ROMANS: It really is. It really is.

All right. Twenty-six minutes after the hour. In just hours, New York voters, they make their choice to the race for president. A critical primary election for Democrats and Republicans. We're going to take you there, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)