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Early Start with John Berman and Zoraida Sambolin

Republicans Release Report On Benghazi; Trump Softens Proposed Muslim Ban; E.U. Leaders Meeting To Handle Brexit Fallout; Are Markets Turning Around On Brexit?; Sources: VW To Announce $15 Billion Settlement; Ikea Recalling Dressers After Death Of Third Child. Aired 5-5:30a ET.

Aired June 28, 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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[05:00:08] CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN ANCHOR: Happening right now, the official report on the deadly Benghazi terror attack, it has been released just this moment. We have advanced, exclusive access.

ALISON KOSIK, CNN ANCHOR: Markets rattled this morning, major meetings between European leaders, the British government in turmoil. The latest fallout from the Brexit vote.

Good morning and welcome to EARLY START. I'm Alison Kosik.

ROMANS: It's nice to have you here.

KOSIK: Good morning.

ROMANS: Very busy morning.

KOSIK: It is.

ROMANS: I'm Christine Romans. It is Tuesday, June 28th, it is 5:00 a.m. in the east. Let's start with breaking news this hour happening right now. The Republican led house select committee on Benghazi releasing key portions of this report on the 2012 attack in Libya. They killed four Americans including the ambassador during Hillary Clinton's time as secretary of state.

Now, CNN given exclusive advance access to part of the report. Chief political Correspondent Dana Bash. She has gone over that section. She has it in her hands. She joins us now. Dana, the House created this select committee more than two years ago. Finally this morning, this morning this report is coming out, you have seen some 200 pages of this document. What can you tell us about what is in there?

DANA BASH, CNN CHIEF POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: We were given advanced to exclusive access to, as just you said, a little more than 200 pages and we're told the full report is 802 pages. So, the section we have seen describes the events leading up to the deadly attack on Benghazi and the compound there. And the committee uses what they say are 75,000 new documents, 81 witnesses never questioned before by Congress. And with the report we have seen paints is a narrative of the Benghazi outpost as a bureaucratic and diplomatic no-man's-land, which made it unnecessarily hard to get funding and security, even especially as things became so dangerous and the situation really deteriorated on the ground.

But in what we have reviewed, there doesn't seem to be a smoking gun when it comes to Hillary Clinton, who, of course, was the secretary of state at her time and her culpability. But the report does conclude that the former secretary and her top aides had the intelligence to realize how high of a risk Benghazi was for her personnel. This is one quote from the report we have. It says "It is not clear what additional intelligence would have satisfied either Kennedy, who's one of her top aides, or the secretary in understanding the Benghazi mission compound was at risk, short of an attack." Christine.

ROMANS: Interesting. All right, one of the -- there's so many questions. One of the questions about that night in Benghazi, a questions is been around for years, why was Ambassador Chris Stevens even in Benghazi on September 11th, 2012, when he knew it was so violent and when his security for U.S. personnel there was so limited? Did the Committee shed any light on why he was there that day?

BASH: Yes. This is the part where I think we learn a little bit more new information based on e-mails that they got for the first time from the late ambassador, and other sources. The report says that Ambassador Stevens saw Benghazi as we know, as a really crucial part of Libya, wanted to make a permanent U.S. Diplomatic consulate there. And what Stevens learned was that funding would be available to make that happen, but only through the end of the fiscal year, September 30th at that time 2012. So he had to act fast to make the case to secure the funding.

And Stevens is described as somebody who is really tenacious and took too many risks but this report actually notes he canceled a trip to Benghazi a month earlier because it was too dangerous and there was one other thing, and that is they were apparently preparing for Hillary Clinton to come the next month, so in October of 2012, in this report says that aides wanted to give her a "deliverable" when she did that, Christine.

ROMANS: Deliverable. Al right, Democrats, though, Dana, released their own minority report preemptively yesterday and accused Republicans of basically this entire process of political witch-hunt of Hillary Clinton. Does it look that way to you?

BASH: Well from the section that we've seen, the majority report doesn't draw any conclusions at all. In fact, Trey Gowdy, who is the chairman, who were hear from later this morning, he wanted to release a lengthy narrative of events based on all of the interviews and the hearings they have conducted over the past two years, but not draw any conclusions as a way to prove this was if his perspective a fair investigation aimed at detailing a picture for the public so that they know what happened and it can be corrected for the future. Two Republicans on the committee don't think that that is sufficient. So they have written their own 42-page report, where they do draw conclusion including about Secretary Clinton's role in all of this, Christine.

ROMANS: All right, a lot to go through here this morning. Stick with us, Dana, because we're going to continue to unpack what we know about these 200 pages that we have seen of this house committee on Benghazi.

[05:05:08] KOSIK: And while Dana stays with us, we want to break down the politics of the Benghazi report and the effect on the 2016 race. Let's go to CNN political analyst Josh Rogin, he is a columnist for the Washington Post. Good morning to you.

JOSH ROGIN, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: Good morning.

KOSIK: So, I understand that Dana got 200 of the 802 pages. Did the Washington Post get a different portion of those 800 pages as well?

ROGIN: Just to speak for myself, I did not get any pages. I did do a bunch of reporting and I did read the summary that Dana mentioned by Mike Pompeo and Jim Jordan which represents a narrative based on the 800 pages.

You had basically is you had four sections. You had the section on what happened before the attack, why was the security not up to snuff, what happened there. And you have a section on what happened during the attack where the committee seeks to present evidence that the response, while the attack was going was insufficient that senior officials didn't communicate and didn't know what was going on, didn't talk to each other, and then you have a section about after the attack, which is about the talking points, and how it was spun and all this stuff about how the administration claimed there was a protest but it turns out there was no protest, then the fourth section about compliance, section all about how the administration didn't really cooperate with the Benghazi investigation.

And what all of that adds up to in my view is a lot of new details about what happened before, during and after the Benghazi attack, but not a lot of exculpatory dummy information that's going to change anyone's mind about who's to blame..

KOSIK: Right. So it doesn't give the scathing indictment of Hillary Clinton, but it does argue that intelligence was available suggesting an attack was possible and Clinton and Patrick Kennedy, who is the top aide, should have realized the risks posed to the Benghazi mission by extremist groups. That is one finding. Although, once again, this is not the outcome that Republicans had be, necessarily looking for.

ROGIN: Right. You got it exactly right. I mean there is a lot of evidence and some new evidence from this committee to show that there were a lot of warnings about how dangerous the facility was, there were requests for security that were denied or ignored, and, you know, it seems clear that we left our diplomats in harm's way without adequate protection and our nation suffered a dear price.

Now, all of that has already been out there.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Right. ROGIN: There have been seven investigations and what is happened here is that this whole investigation is sort of become part and parcel of the bitter partisan debate over the Benghazi issue that has gotten wrapped up with the presidential campaign. And because Republicans and Democrats were so split on this committee, and we're just at war with each other, as much as they were trying to investigate the facts, it's really difficult to pick out what the committee came up with, that we didn't know already that is new and interesting from the sort of partisan fight over what was the money well spent and should Hillary Clinton really be held up for scrutiny.

ROMANS: Yes. In two years then several million dollars of taxpayers' money.

ROGIN: Right.

ROMANS: Let's look, Dana, at what the Democrats said, even before this was released. And I found this kind of their own indictment of the whole process. "Decades in the future historians will look back on the investigation as a case study in how not to conduct a credible investigation. They will showcase the proliferation of Republican abuses as a chief example of what happens when politicians are allowed to use unlimited taxpayer dollars and the formidable power of Congress to attack her political foes.

Yet, at the same time, you know, Trey Gowdy, you know, the statement on Monday kind of Trey Gowdy saying the state department wasn't cooperative for us, you know. You still have the same lines drawn, political battle lines drawn in the whole Benghazi nightmare.

BASH: My sense, you're right, Christine. My sense is the Democrats expected this to be much more of a political document. I mean obviously inherently you have the person who is the head of this department, the secretary of state, Hillary Clinton, running for president, just a few months before an election to put this report out, it is -- the whole thing is inherently political. And it has the narrative and the discussion about what happened when she was at the helm of this department.

Having said that, when you look at the details, Democrats, my sense is, expected it to be a lot tougher as Josh was saying. And a lot more sort of maybe blatantly partisan in the way it was written and it's conclusions. Now there are two Republicans as we've been talking about who thought it should be go further than the chairman was determined it do.

But when it comes to politics, maybe not so much. But I do have to say that, you know, in reading at least the part leading up to the attack, it is kind of mind numbing for people to really wrap their heads around the kind of bureaucratic mess that was the requests for security.

[05:10:03] And the fact that they approved, again, on secretary Clinton's watch, whether or not she knew about all the details, they approved extending this mission in Benghazi for an entire year without giving the proper security and personnel and everything that should have been needed to go along with that.

KOSIK: All right. We have so many more questions. And we're going to bring you back later in the show to talk about it more. Thanks so much, Dana and Josh.

ROGIN: Thank you.

ROMANS: All right, two minutes across the hour. Happening today, Donald Trump campaigning in battleground state Pennsylvania, Ohio and West Virginia. Now, he's expected to deliver an economy speech, an economic policy speech, as his campaign readies a policy memo walking back his signature proposal banning Muslims from entering the United States. Walking back that signature policy proposal that really launched him on to the national stage. This as Trump hires a top communications aide from Ted Cruz's presidential campaign. Taken together, these two moves seen as a sign perhaps Trump may be finally shifting toward a softer tone for the general election.

For more on this, let's turn to CNN's Phil Mattingly.

PHIL MATTINGLY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey Alison and Christine. It's the tale of two Donald Trumps. There's the Donald Trump we've seen repeatedly on the campaign trail, on the attack, whether it's Hillary Clinton or Hillary Clinton's top surrogates. Then there's the Donald Trump who is watching a campaign to prepare for the general election and that strategy now involves a policy paper that will ratchet back his Muslim ban.

Now, it pertains according to advisers to just people coming from terrorist states, not all Muslims as to ban was initially crafted. Yet it's another sign that at least on the campaign side of things everybody is focused on the general election. But where is Donald Trump? That remains the question. Off the campaign trail yesterday, back on it today. Two very important appearances in battleground states, Pennsylvania and Ohio. But no question, Donald Trump is not going to pull off his attacks. And neither is his surrogates. Take a listen to what former Massachusetts Senator Scott Brown had to say when it came to Elizabeth Warren.

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SCOTT BROWN, (R), FORMER MASSACHUSETTS SENATOR: She not Native American. She's not 1/32. She has no Native American background except for what her family told her. The easy answer on that is you all know is that Harvard and Penn can release the records, she can authorize the release of those records, she can take a DNA test, she can release the records herself and there's never has bee any effort.

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MATTINGLY: Now Brown's attack mimicking what Donald Trump has said often up to this point. Donald Trump also saying in NBC news interview yesterday that he's going to continue to be himself. People told him to change since the primaries, he hasn't. And he won the Republican nomination. Now, the big question becomes going forward, are these just small changes on the campaign side of things or is this a full blown strategic shift? We'll have to wait and see as that plays out. Alison and Christine.

ROMANS: So interesting on the campaign he stopped, not talking so much about deporting people here illegally, instead saying we should bring people in legally and stop talking about deportation. That might be a subtle shift as well.

KOSIK: Yes. We shall watch how his campaign turns and shifts as time goes on.

All right, major fallout on the back of the Brexit vote, resigning politicians shattering provinces and days of economic chaos, all wreaking havoc. Will the markets rebound? The latest next.

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[05:17:29] ROMANS: All right, British lawmakers meeting today to deal with the fallout from Brexit. So much uncertainty now facing the country, the pound, its currency, plunging. What will happen to the U.K economy? And who will replace Prime Minister David Cameron come September? He says Britain will not start the official withdrawal process until his successor is in place. That means more uncertainty, right.

But as Cameron meets today with European leaders at a summit in Brussels, they'll urge the U.K to get the ball rolling sooner. For the latest, I want to bring in international diplomatic editor, Nic Robertson, live in Brussels.

And Nic, you just have a moment to pause and reflect here for a moment. I mean, the beginning of my career, it was about getting rid of these European currencies, going to one currency, going to one economic zone, going to unity, together stronger, together richer, together happier. And here we're in this unbelievable position where we're talking about retreating from that. It's just remarkable.

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: You have all these leaders who work so hard to stitch this together over all those years and decades, and then now worried that Britain is going to unravel all of that.

Now, you got David Cameron arriving here today, and, you know, for him, arriving to European Union is going to be sort of embarrassing, he's going to try to explain what happened in Britain and at the same time sort of lay out why this is relevant for the European leaders. But they're with him arriving here, they laid out some very clear red lines, no negotiation before you trigger this Article 50, which is the only way to negotiate out of the European Union. So no side deals, no saying you want a little bit of business here and you don't want the migrants here, that's another red light if they said, if you want access to the European markets, then you're going to have to allow freedom of movement and travel to people, to Britain, which is what essentially so many people in Britain voted to reject that notion.

So that is what David Cameron is going to face here. Back home, of course, is leaving his own party in disarray, they don't have a leader, they don't have a strategy for moving forward. The opposition party as well in absolute disarray, about to and appear at lest have vote of no confidence in their leader and Scotland as well, looking like it will break away. What a legacy for David Cameron. So, as a political leader to walk in a room packed with political leaders here, somewhat of an embarrassment.

ROMANS: It's just really something, really something to watch and this is only the early innings of whatever this game is going to look like. Thank you for that, Nic Robertson. We appreciate you being there for us in Brussel following all this.

Let's get an EARLY START on your money this morning.

[05:20:02] That Brexit gloom giving way to a Brexit bounce. Most Asian markets closed higher. You could see European markets there is also trading higher. That's decent, you know, two almost 3 percent bounce in Paris. But it comes after two very devastating days of losses. Make no mistake, the damage the last two days has been significant and historic. More than $3 trillion in global stock market value erased. $3 trillion after the U.K. vote to European Union. The fallout only just beginning of U.K.'s perfect credit rating downgraded two notches by Standard & Poor's, the pound still there nears a 30-year low.

Want to check U.S. futures quickly. They suggest a triple digit bounce today, but look at the last three months for the Dow Jones Industrial average. Yesterday, the Dow lost 261 points. Lowest level in more than three months. Add in Friday's 610 point loss, Alison, you're talking about 900 points wiped away, wiped away from the Dow. 900 points in two days.

KOSIK: I've been at the stock exchange those two days and I tell you what, those traders are exhausted, but, you know, as much as we're going to see a bounce today, it may not stick around. A warning.

ROMANS: I think it's going to be a crazy summer, I really do, between the election and the Brexit of limitation, it's going to be crazy summer for investors.

KOSIK: Yes. All right. With the Cubs looking to get back on track, one of their young stars has a night for the history books. Andy Scholes with the highlight in this morning Bleacher Report, that's next.

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[05:25:52] ROMANS: All right, no one in baseball history has ever had as good a night as Chris Brian and the Cubs.

KOSOK: Andy Scholes has more on his record-setting performance in the Bleacher Report. Good morning.

ANDY SCHOLES, CNN SPORTS ANCHOR: Hey, good morning guys. Simply put Chris Brian, a one man wrecking crew against the Reds last night. He hit not one, not two, but three home runs in this game and on top of that, he added two doubles, no player had ever done that in the major leagues in those record books date back 103 years. 24-year-old is the youngest Cubs player to ever hit three home runs in a game, beating Hall of Famer Ernie Banks by ten days. Chicago went on to win this one by a mile 11 to 8.

A rough week for England continues, first, Brexit, now the national team suffers a huge upset at the hands of Iceland at the European Championship. Iceland had never even been in a knockout game. They eliminated the brick with a 2 to 1 win and just to put this upset in perspective, Iceland has more volcanos than professional soccer players. The England manager makes about $5 million a year, Iceland's manager, meanwhile, is a part-time dentist. England's manager would resign after the loss.

All right, finally, 19-year-old swimming Phenom Katie Ledecky is on her way to the Rio Olympics. She won the 400 meter freestyle at the U.S. Swimming Trials last night. Just missing her own world record by less than a second. Still the third fastest time in history. Ledecky, the overwhelming favorite to bring home the gold in a couple of months.

And guys, it's interesting, you know, qualifying period of the Olympics obviously a very stressful time, and the U.S. Olympic team, they brought in therapy dogs to hang out with all of the swimmers back and all -- they're getting great reviews. Everyone is saying they're even more relax and coming up with better times than ever because they're having out with the dogs. It's pretty interesting strategy by the U.S. Olympic team.

ROMANS: Whatever it takes. Whatever technology in your world that takes, we'll take it. All right, cool.

KOSIK: Thank you, Andy Scholes.

SCHOLES: All right.

KOSIK: All right, right now, new information released to Benghazi report two years in the making. What we're learning, that's coming up next.

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