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Early Start with John Berman and Zoraida Sambolin

Protesters Rush Stage At Sanders Rally; Trump University 'Playbooks' To Be Unsealed; Sources: #NeverTrump Pundit Bill Kristol Claims Credible Candidate Will Run; Jobs Report Could Signal Rate Hike; Cincinnati Zoo Director Defends Killing Gorilla; Iraqi Forces Fight To Retake Fallujah; Warriors Advance To NBA Finals. Aired 5:30- 6a ET

Aired May 31, 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: And Bernie Sanders -- he just went on with his stump speech. The animal rights group Direct Action Everywhere is now claiming they were behind this stunt. They were denouncing what they call Bernie Sanders' support for animal agriculture.

As for the campaign itself, just one week left until the California primary where Bernie Sanders hopes a strong showing against Hillary Clinton could prove that he is still a viable candidate.

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN ANCHOR: Now, this is not the first time in just this election cycle the candidates have faced security threats. Last Friday, Donald Trump's motorcade sped off after protesters threw things at it, leaving a rally in Fresno, California.

In March, Secret Service agents surrounded Trump when a man jumped a barricade -- tried to rush the stage at a rally in Ohio. And then, in April 2014, someone threw a shoe at Hillary Clinton as she gave a speech in Las Vegas.

BERMAN: All right, a noteworthy change this morning in Hillary Clinton's campaign schedule with polls in California showing the race close. Just a 2-point lead for Hillary Clinton in one poll. She has now decided to make a big multi-stop, 5-day sting (sic) through state starting on Thursday. Did I say sting?

ROMANS: Yes, sting, but that's OK.

BERMAN: I meant a swing -- a campaign swing. She canceled events in New Jersey, going to California instead. Why? Because of this guy, Bernie Sanders. He's been there non-stop, putting pretty much all the remaining resources of his campaign into the state that he calls the whole enchilada.

ROMANS: All right, today is a big day for Donald Trump with two big revelations ahead. A noon eastern, the so-called playbooks for running Trump University will be unsealed. A lawsuit against the university claims it was a scam that defrauded students, some up to $35,000 each. Trump, himself, is already trashing the case and the judge -- Trump

calls him "a hater of Donald Trump who happens to be Mexican." Trump tweeted last night, "I should have easily won the Trump University case on summary judgment but have a judge Gonzalo Curiel who is totally biased against me."

The other disclosure is supposed to come this morning at a news conference where Trump will settle questions about his January fundraiser benefitting veterans. Questions like how much money did they really raise? Was it really the $6 million he promised? How much did Trump give, himself? Was it really the $1 million he promised? And, which groups got the money?

Some of the early reporting from a lot of these different groups was they hadn't seen much money, certainly not $6 million worth.

BERMAN: All right, new details this morning on magazine editor Bill Kristol and his effort to find and fund a third party candidate for president. Sources familiar with the plan being developed by Kristol and other #NeverTrump Republicans tell CNN they've done extensive polling. They've talked to potential candidates and financial backers.

The problem is a third party campaign would be a steep climb at this point. Look at the calendar right there. The deadline on getting on the ballot in Texas has already passed. The deadline for North Carolina is June 9th.

Bill Kristol would only tell CNN that his plan is still in the works. Now, several names have been floated as possible Independent candidates -- Mitt Romney, Nebraska senator Ben Sasse, Illinois congressman Adam Kinzinger. The problem with all three of these guys, they've all said no. No way, no how, they're not doing it.

Joining us this morning to talk down this state of the race for the people who are actually running is CNN senior reporter for media and politics, Dylan Byers. He is live in our Los Angeles bureau. We sent you to California, A, because you actually live there. B, because there's a primary one week from today and a lot of things going on in the California race right now for the Democrats.

Look, Hillary Clinton, she's doing a big 5-state campaign sting, as I like to call it -- a swing as most other people call it. She canceled events in New Jersey. She'll be campaigning there hard. And this, as Bernie Sanders has essentially moved to California, Dylan.

DYLAN BYERS, CNN SENIOR REPORTER FOR MEDIA AND POLITICS: Yes, that's right, and look, you just do the delegate math. Hillary Clinton is going to get the nomination. But the question is, what does it look like if she gets the nomination and she hasn't won the state of California, or look at where the polls are now, if she's only narrowly won the state of California.

This entire Democratic Party -- the story has really been Hillary Clinton's inability to put this thing away and Bernie Sanders' ability to continue being a thorn in her side and to continue advancing a more progressive Democratic socialist version of the Democratic Party platform.

He is looking to that convention at the end of July as a chance to really advance that agenda, and the more delegates he has under his belt, the more of the popular vote that he has under his belt, and certainly if he were to have a state like California, even if he's trailing Hillary Clinton out here at the moment, that would be huge for him and it really cause Hillary Clinton to think even more than she already has about just how much she has to cater to the Bernie Sanders faithful as she pivots toward the general election.

ROMANS: It's so interesting, guys, because he's trying to have a bigger say in a party that he's technically not a part of, you know, and he is succeeding in attacking her to the left. I mean, this is what he said last night. He was at the Golden State Warriors game last night, by the way, and here's what he said.

He said on a tweet, "Last week Golden State was down three games to one. Tonight, they finished off a great comeback in California. I like comebacks." How nervous is Team Clinton here?

[05:35:00] BYERS: Well, I think you can see by this 5-state sting or swing -- or 5-city sting or swing, that's she's clearly taking the matter very seriously. Look, her entire campaign, I think, behind the scenes and even somewhat in terms of her public remarks -- the remarks she's making in speeches and fundraisers -- they're focused on Trump. They're thinking about Donald Trump.

But they're also sending a message to their supporters, which is look, just because we're going to get the nomination doesn't mean you can't show up on June 7th if you live in California. You have to come out, you have to give a strong showing, and you really have to deliver the state for us because, again, it looks very bad and it gives Donald Trump a lot of ammunition if California is neck-and-neck for her.

So look, I think she's taking this matter extremely seriously. I think she would like to believe that she is sort of Steph Curry of politics and that it doesn't go to Bernie Sanders just because he happened to show up for one game with Danny Glover. But look, we've got a little bit of time before June 7th. He could close the gap with her.

And no matter what, it's going to be a story that so many of these Democratic primary contests have been. One of these neck-and-neck stories in which one person gets to come out of it with the narrative, but at the end of the day they come out with roughly equal popular vote and roughly equal delegates.

BERMAN: Let's put up the picture of Bernie Sanders at that Golden State game last night, as I shift subjects here. Won't want to miss it. There's Bernie Sanders there sitting behind the basket with Danny Glover. He was next to Danny Glover, however, you can't see him in this picture right here. Bernie Sanders not wearing the yellow Golden State shirt. Will that prove decisive in the primary one week from today? He looks like he's having fun. Look, I'd go to the game, too, if I could. Let's shift gears to Donald Trump. Big day for Donald Trump. Two

events happening. Number one, a news conference at 11:00 eastern where he's going to release what he says are the real details of that fundraising he did for veterans last winter instead of attending a debate in Iowa. He's going to come clean there, he says.

And also, by order of a judge, Trump University is going to have to release documents about how it did business, today. So shining a light, a little bit, on Donald Trump's inner workings here, Dylan.

BYERS: Yes, I think that's absolutely right, and at the end of the day I don't think either of these things are terribly beneficial to Donald Trump. I certainly think that he will do everything in his power, and he's very savvy at doing so, to spin these things to his favor.

But look, he's already trying to convince his followers not to pay attention to what's going on in this Trump University case, or at least, not to take it seriously. It's sort of that similar dismissal of the source. You either dismiss the media or, in this case, you dismiss the judge. You sort of get your supporters ready to just discount whatever information comes out.

It will be interesting to see what he does in terms of the money that he's raised for vets and how he tries to spin that. I mean, you can only imagine if he said he had raised $6 million and now he's going to come out and say he's raised $12 million or something like that. That would be very much in the Donald Trump playbook.

But look, I think it's going to be a difficult week for him and a challenging week for him. And I think this is what much of the summer might look like for him, given all of this baggage and stuff from his past that's coming out and will continue to come out for the rest of the summer.

ROMANS: Attacking the judge, calling him a hater -- a Donald Trump hater -- and then saying he's a Mexican and the judge born in Indiana is an American citizen. You know, he is a judge. But, that might not have hurt him with his primary electorate, but does it hurt him with a general election electorate?

BYERS: Yes, well certainly. Look, again, if you were a Mexican immigrant to this country and you still supported Donald Trump despite what he said when he announced his bid for the presidency and when he called Mexicans rapists and criminals and talked about building a wall, you certainly don't -- if you supported him after that, you certainly don't support him now.

The idea that you can discount an entire judge because he happens to be a Mexican, let's call a spade a spade here. It's absolutely ridiculous. But these sorts of things do actually play very well with his base, which is a primarily white, working class group of voters who view immigrants and immigration as sort of the scapegoat for their problems, and so I think that plays very well with them.

But the question for Donald Trump here in the general election is how do you that? How do you continue to rile up your base which is only, at the end of the day, a sliver of the general election voting population without alienating the people you need to actually hand you the White House in November?

BERMAN: All right, Dylan Byers in the Golden State, itself. Thanks so much for being with us this morning, pal.

BYERS: Thanks, guys.

ROMANS: All right, from politics to money now. Time for an EARLY START on your money. Will the Federal Reserve raise interest rates this summer? A strong jobs report this Friday might tip the scales for a mid-June bump.

Experts expect the labor market to bounce back in May after slowing in April. That could give Fed chair Janet Yellen the ammunition needed for a rate hike. Stocks ended their best week in months after Yellen said we could expect an interest rate increase sometime this summer.

[05:40:00] The Dow and the S&P 500 are both up now nearly three percent for the year. U.S. markets were closed for Memorial Day. Futures fairly flat this morning in preparation for a week jam-packed with econ news. The first batch comes today, including reports on personal income and consumer spending. We're also going to get some home price data, which should be pretty interesting.

BERMAN: Very interesting for Christine Romans. All right, 20 minutes until the hour right now. Officials at a Cincinnati Zoo say they had no choice but to act. They are defending their call to shoot and kill a gorilla to protect a little boy. We're going to hear directly from the zoo's top official. That's next.

[05:40:40]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[05:44:50] ROMANS: The director of the Cincinnati Zoo is defending the decision to shoot and kill a 17-year-old gorilla after a 3-year- old boy climbed through a barrier and fell into its habitat. He says the silverback gorilla, Harambe, was dangerous and disoriented. The life of that little boy was hanging in the balance. The child's family releasing a statement thanking the zoo's staff for taking quick action.

[05:45:00] We get more this morning from CNN's Jessica Schneider.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JESSICA SCHNEIDER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: John and Christine, the zoo director put it very bluntly. He said we stand by our decision and we would make the same choice today. He said all those Monday morning quarterbacks out there just don't understand how dangerous a silverback gorilla can be.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) THANE MAYNARD, DIRECTOR, CINCINNATI ZOO: Naturally, we did not take the shooting of Harambe lightly but that child's life was in danger, and people who question that or are Monday morning quarterbacks or second guessers don't understand that you can't take a risk with a silverback gorilla. They're very big. Three times bigger than a man, six times stronger than that. This is a dangerous animal.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCHNEIDER: Harambe was 450 pounds and a 17-year-old male. They say that they had once seen him crush a coconut with his hands. And during those 10 tense minutes when that 3-year-old boy was being dragged around and violently yanked, they said that Harambe was just growing agitated and aggressive.

The dangerous animal response team -- they tried to lure him out of the exhibit. He didn't comply. They said that using tranquilizers would be just too dangerous so they had to take that action. They had to shoot and kill him.

The anger around this whole situation just continues to grow. In fact, now people are calling for the parents to be prosecuted. There's an online petition that has garnered more than 100,000 signatures at this point. People are saying that they want prosecutors and the police to criminally charge these parents for negligence.

And also, a lot of people giving their support and their sadness for Harambe. However, the zoo director says he refuses to point any fingers and as of yet no criminal charges have been filed -- Christine and John.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

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

BERMAN: All right, you know what I want to know?

ROMANS: What?

BERMAN: I want to know what's coming up on "NEW DAY".

ROMANS: I wonder if someone could tell us.

BERMAN: Luckily, we have Chris Cuomo with us now to tell us. Good morning.

CHRIS CUOMO, CNN ANCHOR, "NEW DAY": It's nice to see you both, but not so fast. This story about the zoo -- we have Jack Hannah coming on.

ROMANS: Oh, good.

CUOMO: John, and I remember him well from our days at "ABC News". He was an extended family member there. Where are you guys on this story? ROMANS: I feel like -- I look at those pictures. I feel like that child could have been killed. I mean, I really -- it's really -- it's just hard to watch and what, 10 minutes -- I can't believe the child was not injured more.

CUOMO: J.B.?

BERMAN: I'm contractually obligated to agree with Christine Romans on pretty much everything, so --

CUOMO: Well look, I just think that -- we're doing it today. We're going to take more of a look at this because it's resonating more and more, and way outside just Ohio, so we're going to look at the issues. Of course, you have a parenting issue. You have to figure out how this kid got into the zoo. That takes you into the security of the enclosure but also the level of parenting that was going on. We'll look at both of those.

But then, we're going to talk to some animal specialists about what this behavior meant. What the options really were. What they really were considering there in this 10 minutes that they took before they made the decision to kill this gorilla. So, we'll take you through all of that.

And then we're going to get you into the world of politics and there was a little bit of a scare yesterday -- a security one -- from Bernie Sanders. (Video playing) You see that right there. That's Secret Service grabbing Bernie Sanders, shielding him from protesters. They rushed the stage at a rally Monday. Why? Who were they? What do they want?

Also, disclosure day for Donald Trump. He's releasing the details of his donations to veterans. Two big schools of thought on this one, my friends. One is like wow, Donald Trump gave $1 million and all this money. Why is he being hassled? Donald Trump certainly owns that position.

And then there's the other one. Well, what does this say about his ability to manage, his ability to promise, and his ability to deliver? So, that's what on the show. The big stories today.

ROMANS: All right, a big day for Trump disclosure. Thanks for that, Chris. We'll talk to you very, very soon. Forty-eight minutes past the hour. The Verizon strike is over. Workers scored big. We're going to tell you exactly how much a raise they're going to get. An early start on your money, next.

[05:49:05]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[05:53:15] BERMAN: One week after launching an operation to liberate Fallujah from ISIS, Iraqi forces say they are preparing for a key offensive in the city. The fighting on the outskirts of Fallujah is already described as intense with the U.S.-led coalition providing air cover. CNN's Ben Wedeman tracking the latest developments for us live from

Rome, and Ben, this is a complicated operation. One, because you're dealing with urban warfare. Two, because of the forces involved here.

BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, that's right, John. What we're hearing now this morning is that Iraqi forces trying to enter from the southern part of the city had to repel a 4- hour counterattack by ISIS. ISIS is using snipers, booby traps, car bombs, suicide bombers, which really are going to be a problem as the Iraqi forces try to enter this city.

Now, we know the situation for civilians is extremely difficult. The U.N. says as many as 50,000 may be still stuck inside. The city's been under siege by Iraqi forces for as much as six months with very little, now, in the way of food, clean water, and medicine. We're hearing people who are leaving the city -- who are able to leave the city -- the few who have -- talking about only having old dusty dates left to eat.

Now, the U.N. is also worried that because of the lack of clean water that a cholera epidemic could break out. So, we have this on top of the fact that the Iraqi forces, themselves, are quite a diverse group. It includes anti-terrorist forces fairly well-trained, local police forces.

But also thousands of members of these Iranian-trained, equipped, and often advised, as I've seen myself, by Iranian advisers in the field. These Shia Militias which many people worry could spark sectarian tensions in already very difficult situation -- John.

[05:55:00] BERMAN: All right, Ben Wedeman for us reporting on the operations underway right now in Fallujah. Thanks, Ben.

ROMANS: North Korea's attempt to launch another missile apparently failed. That according to South Korea's military. The North's medium-range missiles are supposed to have the potential to reach Japan and U.S. military bases in the Pacific. But in the string of high-profile misfires for Kim Jong Un's rule, North Korea has now failed four times to successfully launch a medium-range missile.

BERMAN: Baylor athletic director Ian McCaw has resigned in the wake of the scandal that already cost the university president -- that would be Kenneth Starr -- and a football coach their jobs. McCaw says he is stepping down to best promote unity and healing at the school. The university is under fire for allegedly covering up sexual assault allegations against members of the football team.

Steph Curry and the Golden State Warriors -- they will defend their NBA title after they beat the Oklahoma City Thunder in a thrilling, gritty game seven last night. Steph Curry scored 36 points. He brings seven 3-pointers.

The Warriors had to stage asecond-half comeback, this after staging -- you know, they were down three to one in this series. They had to come back from that. A lot of people said they were done. They are not. Now, they go on to face LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers. Game one, Thursday night in Oakland.

ROMANS: Oh, sleepless nights ahead for morning T.V. anchors.

Let's get an EARLY START on your money this morning. Investors return from the Memorial Day holiday to a week jam-packed with economic data, including a jobs report Friday that could signal a Fed interest rate hike this summer.

Stocks ended their best week in months after Fed chair Janet Yellen said you can expect an interest rate increase sometime this summer. The Dow and S&P 500 both up nearly three percent now for the year. Right now, U.S. futures up 20 points there in small gains across the board here.

The Verizon strike is over and workers scored big raises and bonuses. Unionized employees will return to work this week after striking since mid-April. The main complaints were over working conditions, call center closures, and jobs shipped overseas. The union said workers will receive a $1,250 signing bonus and a three percent raise. Verizon also committed to 1,400 new hires in the U.S.

All right, Memorial Day weekend usually a big bang for the box office. This year, a big letdown. "X-Men: Apocalypse" took the top spot, $80 million there. But, you know, that's a big drop-off from the last "X- Men" movie which earned $110 million two years ago. Disney's "Alice Through the Looking Glass" also a big disappointment there. The sequel only brought in $34 million on a $170 million budget. Johnny Depp, a big star in that.

BERMAN: Again, I think what they should have done is combine the two films so it would be like "Alice Through the Apocalypse".

ROMANS: I think you've just --

BERMAN: Or, "X-Men Through the Looking Glass".

ROMANS: There you go.

BERMAN: Which one would be better?

ROMAN: You've got a whole new genre there, John. I think that you have a future in Hollywood.

BERMAN: What we don't know is what Alice's mutant powers are. All right, the Secret Service forced to step in as protesters rush Bernie Sanders on stage in California. He is back on the trail today and now Hillary Clinton is set for a big California push later this week. "NEW DAY" starts now.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BERMAN: Protesters tried to storm the stage at a Sanders rally.

SEN. BERNIE SANDERS (I-VT), DEMOCRATIC PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: We don't get intimidated easily.

DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: We won. We, we -- I'm just a messenger.

HILLARY CLINTON (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: This is not a reality show. It's not just politics.

TRUMP: Hillary can't even beat Bernie, and beating Bernie would not be tough.

SANDERS: I'll do everything I can to see that Trump is defeated.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The gorilla had the child.

MAYNARD: This child was being dragged around. This is not a gentle thing.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Was he looking at this child to protect or was he looking at it as just a rag doll?

MAYNARD: There was no other decision to make.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Rio de Janeiro, the host of the 2016 Summer Olympics.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Everything is going to be ready on time.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Don't come here expecting that everything will be perfect.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Are Rio's Olympics somehow cursed?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANNOUNCER: This is NEW DAY with Chris Cuomo and Alisyn Camerota.

ALISYN CAMEROTA, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, everyone. Welcome to your NEW DAY. It's Tuesday, May 31st, 6:00 in the east. Up first, Bernie Sanders back on the campaign trail after a big security scare at a rally in Oakland. The Secret Service racing to shield Sanders when protesters rushed the stage. Sanders and Hillary Clinton barnstorming California today, one week before the critical primary there.

CUOMO: For Donald Trump it's disclosure day. He's expected to provide a full accounting of which veterans' charities benefitted from that controversial Iowa fundraiser back in January. You remember, he claimed to have raised $6 million. Now, Trump says he's the only one to raise money and that this analysis is unfair. Others say it's about delivering on a promise.

Now, the more critical disclosure for Trump today is his internal playbook documents from Trump University. Those are also being unsealed today.