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Early Start with John Berman and Zoraida Sambolin

Trump On The Defensive; Trump Denies Pretending To Be Own PR Man; Trump Ramps Up Fundraising; ISIS Attacks Baghdad Gas Plant; Punches Thrown, Eight Total Ejections. Aired 5-5:30a ET

Aired May 16, 2016 - 05:00   ET

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

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[05:01:22] CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning. Welcome to EARLY START this Monday morning. I'm Christine Romans.

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: I'm John Berman. It is Monday, May 16th. It is 5 a.m. in the east. Up first, Donald Trump on defense facing reports about his past and also some new attacks from President Obama.

Donald Trump is denying that he created a fake identity and posed as his own PR man decades ago. He is also lashing out against the "New York Times" report about his past behavior with women.

There are reports that Donald Trump calls it a hit piece. Meanwhile, President Obama did take some pretty direct shots at Donald Trump in a commencement address at Rutgers University on Sunday.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: In politics and in life, ignorance is not a virtue. It is not cool to not know what you're talking about. That's not keeping it real or telling it like it is. That's not challenging political correctness. That's just not knowing what you're talking about and yet we become confused about this.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BERMAN: Democrats hope that is a President Obama they see a lot more on the stump in the coming months. Some conservatives are still trying to recruit an independent challenger to Donald Trump, a third party challenger, though, not having any success finding someone to come forward.

Apparently, there were conversations with Mark Cuban, the owner of the Dallas Mavericks. He says he was approached and while he thinks it might even fun to tangle with Trump, Cuban says it is too late to jump in now. More from CNN's Kristen Holmes.

KRISTIN HOLMES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: John and Christine, Donald Trump wrapped up a week (inaudible) on the defensive here at his alma mater the University of Pennsylvania where he watched his youngest daughter, Tiffany, graduate. The presumptive GOP nominee's efforts to unite his party were clouded after audio released in the "Washington Post" questioned whether or not the billionaire had posed as his own spokesperson in 1991 in order to talk to reporters about his love life.

Trump denies allegations that it is his voice on the tapes. The Trump campaign is also under fire over the refusal to release his tax returns. He says he will not release the returns until an audit is complete.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PAUL MANAFORT, TRUMP'S CONVENTION MANAGER: He has said he will release his tax returns. Never changed his position. What he has said is he is under audit now and once the audit is completed, he will release the taxes.

JAKE TAPPER, CNN HOST, "THE LEAD": Why not release the ones from before? First of all, the IRS says you can release them to the public if they are under audit. Why not release 2014, 2013, 2012 and put this issue to rest?

MANAFORT: Well, as I understand it, the audit is going on for the last eight years' worth of tax returns. Anything beyond eight years is not going to be reflective of anything other than interest on the part of the media.

TAPPER: You are saying that the audit is for eight years' worth of returns?

MANAFORT: That's what I'm led to believe, yes.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: More and more Republicans are gathering behind Trump, not all are convinced. Some conservatives still looking for an independent to go up against Trump in November. Ryan and Trump aides will sit down together as the campaign continues its effort to unite the party -- John and Christine.

ROMANS: All right, Kristin, thank you for that. Let's talk about all of this with CNN Politics reporter, Eugene Scott. He joins us live bright and early this Monday morning from Washington. Nice to see you again.

I want you to weigh in here, Eugene, on this ongoing controversy about whether Donald Trump is his own PR man. We know Donald Trump has a relationship with the media unlike anybody else. He is a celebrity and a businessman I'm not sure which order.

He has reached out over the years to reporters. He's argued with reporters. He writes notes to reporters. Did he call a reporter and actually pretend to be someone else to pump himself up?

Let's listen to a little bit of the sound that the "Washington Post" released. It sounds like Donald Trump pretending to be someone else. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

"JOHN MILLER" (voice-over): A lot of the people that you write about really are -- they call. They just call. Actresses, people you write about, call to stay if you can go out with them. I have been put in here to handle because I have never seen so many people get calls from the press.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMANS: It sounds an awful lot like a Donald Trump, but he says it is not him. Paul Manafort, one of his top aides, says he believes that it is not him. Listen to what Sue Carswell, the person at the end of that phone call said this weekend.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SUE CARSWELL, REPORTER: All right, two people had the tape. I have the tape and Trump has the tape. I don't have the tape.

MICHAEL SMERCONISH, CNN HOST, "SMERCONISH": How do you think it got into play?

CARSWELL: Well, it did not get to the "Washington Post" through me?

SMERCONISH: So?

CARSWELL: Trump.

[05:05:06]SMERCONISH: You think Trump dropped this tape?

CARSWELL: Yes.

SMERCONISH: Why would he do that?

CARSWELL: Look what's going on this week? Taxes, Paul Ryan, the butler, the butler did it. Now Trump seems to pull "People" magazine type stories into the array.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMANS: The whole thing is bizarre. She talks about the butler. She's talking about a former Donald Trump butler who on his Facebook page had some kind of an outrageous racist rant. What do you make of all of this, Eugene?

EUGENE SCOTT, CNN POLITICS REPORTER: Well, it definitely seems like an effort by someone to distract voters from some of the more serious concerns that erase -- that found themselves in the media last week.

But whether or not it's going to have a significant impact is to be determined. This doesn't seemed like something that would discourage the people who are supporting him from supporting him.

In the grand scheme of issues, this just isn't the most significant especially compared to the other three that the reporter mentioned.

BERMAN: It is the thing you can imagine it is going on in the bizarre New York tabloid culture. There are a lot of voters around the country right now and maybe voters paying attention to the primary process for whom the New York tabloid culture is a little strange and he is flat out denying it also may come back to haunt him as well.

Look, Reince Priebus, the chairman of the RNC, he was on the Sunday shows. He was having to answer for a lot of the things about Donald Trump. Yes, this John Miller thing and also the report in the "New York Times" about women and how Donald Trump treats women over the years.

And Reince Priebus said, you know, Donald Trump is going to have to answer to all this. But this is what Reince Priebus says about the possibility of someone else jumping in the race to mount a third party candidacy. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REINCE PRIEBUS, RNC CHAIRMAN: I think they can try to hijack another party and get on the ballot. Look, it is a suicide mission for a country because what it means is that you are throwing down not just eight years of the White House, but potentially 100 years on the Supreme Court and wrecking this country for many generations.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BERMAN: Obviously Reince Priebus has a vested interest in not having someone else jump into the race. I really think it was more interesting than anything, though, to see how Reince Priebus now has to take on the mantle of defending Donald Trump.

You know, every time he goes on a Sunday show now, he will have to answer for Donald Trump. It was interesting seeing how he reacted this weekend.

SCOTT: Yes, indeed. The voters have spoken. I think introducing a third party candidate could be deeply problematic especially if that candidate is more from the establishment wing of the party.

This election cycle has produced perhaps the greatest diversity of establishment candidates that we have seen in recent elections. Voters have not been interested.

So who could be introduced that the voters who are not supporting Trump would find more attractive and that would encourage people who actually are already supporting Trump to switch their support. I just don't think that it would be effective and I think that is what the chairman was hinting at.

ROMANS: The "New York Times" piece about Donald Trump's past behavior with women. Donald Trump blasting it. You know, saying there are all these reporters out there trying to do hit pieces on him and calling it weak essentially. But I mean, one of the quotes from that was a Miss USA contestant, for example, and this was in the "New York Times" piece. "He kissed me directly on the lips, I thought oh, my God, gross. He was married to Marla Maples at that time. I think there were a few other girls that he kissed on the mouth. I was like, Wow, that's inappropriate."

Donald Trump saying why did the "New York Times" refuse to use any of the names given to them that I was proud to help with their careers? Dishonest. Does this spat with the "New York Times" help or hurt him? I suspect it means nothing to his core supporters.

SCOTT: I can imagine that it does. His core supporters have issues with the mainstream media, the "New York Times" especially and he hasn't had a lot of push back from many of the women supporters despite repeat reports regarding his interaction with women in the past.

Generally speaking, he will have a hard time gaining support with women. But he has far more support with women than I think a lot of people are acknowledging. There are just some people who will not stop their support for Donald Trump. No matter what happens.

BERMAN: It does show the John Miller story, the "New York Times" story shows the kind of pieces that we are likely to see for some time. This is what happens when you get to be the nominee on either party. We will see it on both sides. All right, thanks, Eugene. Appreciate it.

ROMANS: All right, 9 minutes past the hour. Donald Trump is ramping up fundraising ahead of the general election. Now Trump couldn't self-fund his campaign even if he wanted to because he doesn't have the cash flow to do it.

That is according to an analysis from the "Wall Street Journal." Trump says he will need $1 billion to fund his bid for the White House. That is more than the $775 million that President Obama spent on his re-election campaign in 2012.

More than double what Mitt Romney spent during the election. Trump will be in New Jersey this week raising money for the state's Republican Party and for supporter and Governor Chris Christie.

[05:10:04]He has also hired a Goldman Sachs veteran as his new finance chief. He spent a day in Las Vegas last week courting big donors. So far, Trump has loaned himself more than $36 million.

He's raised $12 million from individual donors and spent nearly all of those totals. Remember a key part of Trump's allure was always that he was rich enough to fund it himself.

He did not have to go and ask for handouts like everyone else did. You have to pay people back in politics. Now he has to go out and find some donors.

BERMAN: Those are the primaries. General election is every expensive. All right, fire in the skies over Baghdad. ISIS militants storming a gas plant in just the latest attack. That's next.

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ROMANS: ISIS is claiming responsibility for assault on a gas plant in Baghdad. A total of ten people, seven police officers and three guards were killed when two suicide car bombs barreled through.

[05:15:03]CNN's Jomana Karadsheh is tracking this for us. She is live from Amman, Jordan. Jomana, we've heard so much from U.S. officials about the territory ISIS has lost, but still its tactics very deadly as it tries to show or make people think it is still relevant.

JOMANA KARADSHEH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely, Christine. This attack specifically happening at 5:00 a.m. local time on Sunday. As you mentioned, two suicide car bombers and at least six militants also involved in the attack in Taji in the northern outskirts of Baghdad.

ISIS attacking this gas plant and the militants clashing with security forces there for several hours before being pushed back. Now the governor of Baghdad very critical of authorities saying that the guard force there was inadequately armed to face such an attack.

And he is also saying that the quick reaction force took more than two hours to get there. The real concern here, as you mentioned, is this is the latest in a series of attacks, this uptick in violence that we have seen over the past couple of weeks.

These high profile attacks being carried out by ISIS coming at a time where the country is going through a serious political crisis concern here that ISIS is trying to exploit this to try and reignite that sectarian war in the country.

The U.S. and Iraqi forces are still saying that this is ISIS acting out of weakness. Brett McGirk, President Obama's special envoy for the global coalition against ISIS speaking here in Amman and addressed this uptick in violence. Here is what he had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BRETT MCGURK, SPECIAL PRESIDENTIAL ENVOY FOR THE GLOBAL COALITION TO COUNTER ISIS: Now, the caliphate, as they call it, this perverse caliphate is shrinking. So they are very much on the defensive. They have not retaken any territory really since their operations in Ramadi going all the way back to May.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KARADSHEH: U.S. officials are saying that ISIS has lost 45 percent of the territory once controlled in Iraq, 20 percent of the territory once controlled in Syria. But Christine, as we have seen over the past couple of weeks, that group still possesses that ability to carry out these deadly high profile attacks almost on a daily basis.

ROMANS: All right, Jomana Karadsheh for us in Amman. Thank you for that, Jomana.

BERMAN: George Zimmerman now trying to sell the gun he used to kill Trayvon Martin for a third time. The owner of the auction site tells CNN that the listing is expected to go live at 9 a.m. Tuesday with a starting price of $100,000 in a buy it now price of $500,000. Zimmerman's previous attempt was hijacked by fake accounts posting insanely high bids sending $65 million at one point on Friday.

ROMANS: All right, 17 minutes past the hour. Flash flood emergency in effect right now in Corpus Christi, Texas. The National Weather Service reporting numerous water rescues ongoing in the area. Flooding posing a big threat to the gulf coast states with an increased risk of severe storms today.

Let's get the very latest on this dangerous weather from meteorologist, Pedram Javaheri.

PEDRAM JAVAHERI, AMS METEOROLOGIST: John and Christine, we have a lot of wet weather ahead of us the next of couple of days and really the main area is right around northern portions of Texas for at least this afternoon when it comes to severe weather.

Then we get the heavy rainfall that really extends over much of the lone star state. It has been tremendously wet over this region in the past few weeks and months.

But notice the severe weather threat in Western Oklahoma. The highest threat is winds and hail. How about the five-day rainfall forecast. Look at this. It looks like Christmas week here.

Rainfall amounts that could easily get 4 to 6 inches across some of these areas up to 6 inches potentially around Southern Louisiana by Friday. Of course, the severe weather threat is still there.

Come Tuesday, shifting to the south including San Antonio, but mainly for winds and hail. It stays in place there. Notice the cold temperatures. How about 11 million people in Cincinnati and Columbus and Pittsburgh and Cleveland. Temperatures in the 30s and 40s this morning.

These are in line with April temperatures. Not mid-May, but it does warm up. It warms up pretty nicely across the area. Washington up to 70 degrees. Atlanta, in the mid 80 as well. In Dallas, temperatures in the 70s by late week -- guys.

BERMAN: All right, Pedram, thanks so much.

ROMANS: Nice Central Park jogging weather.

BERMAN: I'll be there in one hour from now.

All right, Dwyane Wade was hoping to score off against his old friend, Lebron James in the Eastern Conference finals. The problem? The Heat had to play the Toronto Raptors in game seven of their series. Coy Wire for this morning's "Bleacher Report" that's next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[05:23:53]

BERMAN: I got to say one of the most horrifying baseball brawls I've seen in the long time. Bad blood between two Major League teams stemming from the playoffs last year.

ROMANS: Coy Wire has more with this morning's "Bleacher Report." Hey, Coy.

COY WIRE, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Christine and John. This all likely stems from last October when Blue Jay's slugger, Jose Baltista hit a home run against the Rangers in the play offs. Some Rangers took offense to Baltista's rub it in your face bat flip during his celebration.

That set the table for yesterday's shenanigans. He takes a tip to the ribs. He thinks that the end of it, but not so fast. Later in the inning, Baltista on the run and tries to break up the double play at second with a hard slide.

And Ranger's (inaudible) takes offense pushes Baltista and then goes Connor McGregor (ph) on his face. Right cross to the jaw. Both benches clear. Cue up bad blood. Eight ejections. Once the dust settled, the two teams won't play each other again this season unless it's in the playoffs.

A suspicious device forced Manchester United's soccer match to be canceled. But the device turned out to be a harmless training device left behind in a bathroom by a private security firm.

[05:25:09]This occurred in Old Trappers Stadium in England yesterday just hours before the key match. Manchester United, we are talking about a marquee team in the world's most popular league. The players were warming up and had to leave the field. Fans had to evacuate the stadium as bomb-sniffing dogs were deployed and a bomb-disposal team conducted a controlled explosion to neutralize any potential threat.

Raptors hosting the Heat, game seven of that playoff series. Look at this team, Toronto doing all they can to spoiled Dwayne Wade and Lebron James reunion in the next round. Kyle Loury, he played the party troopers leading the way for Toronto in this one. He had 35 points including five three-pointers. Raptors advance to the conference finals for the first time in franchise history.

They are going to take on Cleveland with game one tipping off tomorrow. Game one of the Western Conference finals is tonight on TNT. Steph Curry and the Warriors will defend their NBA title. They are going to host Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant and the OKC Thunder -- Guys.

BERMAN: Coy Wire, you are an athlete. Can I ask you, every time I watch Steph Curry play now, I'm watching his knee and I'm thinking, how can it be healthy enough with the cuts back and forth? Can he hit through these playoffs and be OK? WIRE: I've had a sprain NCL before, John, and he had a grade I and it feels like a trick knee. It is really impressive what he is doing. Clearly it did not slow him back. The first game back, he dropped 40 points. Incredible what he is able to do right now.

BERMAN: All right, Coy, thanks so much. We'll be watching.

All right, details emerging from Donald Trump's past and how he handles his business and treats women. Will all these new looming questions and scrutiny for the presumptive Republican nominee, will it hurt him in the general election? That's next.

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