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Early Start with John Berman and Zoraida Sambolin
New Trump Slam Against Gold Star Dad; Clinton Leads Trump in New Polls; CDC's Historic Zika Warning; U.S. Launches Airstrikes Against ISIS in Libya; Is Rio Ready for the Olympics? Aired 4:30-5a ET
Aired August 02, 2016 - 04:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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[04:31:39] CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN ANCHOR: Donald Trump escalating his feud with the Gold Star family. Why he thinks the Muslim parents spoke out against him.
JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: Hillary Clinton taking the lead back from Donald Trump in a new CNN poll. Will this post-convention bounce stick?
ROMANS: The CDC with a historic new warning for pregnant women in the United States. Here in the United States, local transmission of Zika.
Welcome back to EARLY START. I'm Christine Romans.
BERMAN: I'm John Berman. Nice to see you. Thirty-two minutes past the hour right now.
There's no sleep in the 2016 election because we have breaking news overnight. A new exchange in the political feud with Donald Trump and parents who lost their son in Iraq 12 years ago. Khizr and Ghazala Khan spoke at the Democratic convention last week, questioning Donald Trump's knowledge of the Constitution, and lashing out at what they called Trump's smears of Muslims. All day yesterday, the Khans repeated their criticism of Trump on TV, including right here on CNN.
Last night, Trump responded, saying that the real reason for Khan's attack is Trump's plan for keeping terrorists out of the United States.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: I was very viciously attacked, as you know, on the stage. And I was surprised to see it. And so, all I did, I have great honor and great feeling for his son, Mr. Khan's son. But, you know, as far as I'm concerned, he's a hero.
INTERVIEWER: You've talked a lot about border security as a way to prevent terrorists from getting into the United States.
TRUMP: It's very big subject for me, and border security is very big. And when you have radical terrorists probably all over the place, we're allowing them to come in by the thousands and thousands. And I think that's what bothered Mr. Khan more than anything else.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROMANS: This controversy seems to follow the campaign, including his running mate, Indiana Governor Mike Pence, who has a son serving in the Marines. At a rally overnight, a self identified military mom condemned Trump's criticism of the Khan family.
Now, the mother's question drew boos from the crowd. Pence did not directly address Trump's criticism of the Khan family, but he did praise that woman, the questioner. He praised her son and he praised the Khans.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MILITARY MOM: My question, Mr. Pence, is, time and time again, Trump as disrespected the armed forces and veterans. And his disrespect for Mr. Khan and his family is just an example of that.
(BOOS)
MILITARY MOM: Will there ever be -- will there ever be a point in time when you are able to look Trump in the eye and tell him enough is enough? You have a son in the military.
GOV. MIKE PENCE (R-IN), VICE PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: It's OK.
MILITARY MOM: How do you tolerate his disrespect?
PENCE: Well, I thank you for the question.
Let me just say, first, I want to honor your son's service to the country and your family's service to the country. I truly do, ma'am.
(APPLAUSE)
Let me say, I know this has been much in the news of late, in the last few days. As I said last night, as Donald Trump said Saturday night, Captain Khan is an American hero. And we honor him and honor his family as when we do all Gold Star families.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BERMAN: You see Mike Pence handling the situation in a different way than Donald Trump. It's very interesting to see on one ticket.
As for that campaign today, Trump holds a rally in Ashburn, Virginia. Governor Pence going to Tucson, Arizona, home state of John McCain, who said words himself about the Khan.
[04:35:02] That is interesting.
Now, Trump himself did not talk about the Khans at campaign events on Monday. That doesn't mean he took it easy. He referred to Hillary Clinton as, quote, "The Devil".
CNN's Jim Acosta has the latest from Harrisburg.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JIM ACOSTA, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: John and Christine, Donald Trump is steering clear as much as he can from his war of words with the Gold Star parents of a fallen Muslim American soldier. At two events in Ohio and Pennsylvania, Trump avoided any further criticism of Khizr and Ghazala Khan, who protested the GOP nominee's policy on Muslims at the Democratic convention. Trump did tell a local TV station that he considers the couple's son a hero.
But Trump ignited a new controversy in Pennsylvania, calling Hillary Clinton "the devil". Here's more of what he had to say.
TRUMP: Oh, by the way, did you see the Nielsen ratings came out? So, my final speech against Hillary's final speech, not even a contest, won by four or five million people.
(CHEERS AND APPLAUSE)
Now, the press doesn't report that as an example when Bernie Sanders people walked out. You had this mass exit. Nobody showed it. When they showed Bernie very angry, they are talking about Bernie because he made a bad deal. He would have gone down as done something really important.
Once he made that deal, believe me, he has buyer's remorse, you know? This guy has buyer's remorse. He looked at that and he was so angry when they were talking about him. His people are angry at him. They should be.
If he would have just not done anything, just go home, go to sleep, relax, he would have been a hero. But he made a deal with the devil. She's the devil. He made a deal with the devil. True.
(CHEERS)
ACOSTA: And Trump also appears to be gearing up for a battle with his fellow Republicans. One day after Paul Ryan issued a statement supporting Gold Star's families, Trump posted a tweet Monday night saying he appreciated the kind words coming from Ryan's opponent in the GOP primary for the speaker's congressional district in Wisconsin. A warning shot of sorts fired at one of the party's top leaders -- John and Christine.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ROMANS: All right. Jim Acosta, that is so interesting.
You know, there politics and there are other politics and all these people running campaigns. Just so fascinating.
Let's dig into it. The Gold Star controversy, the rest of the political menu, senior media correspondent Brian Stelter, host of CNN's "RELIABLE SOURCES."
You know, on this arc of this unconventional campaign more than a year from Donald Trump, a new story line that he injects last night. He was in Columbus, Ohio. Trump warning that maybe the election is already rigged against him.
Listen to his words.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: I'm afraid the election's going to be rigged. I have to be honest. I hear more and more that the election on November 8th, can you believe it? We're almost there.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROMANS: Rigged. Rigged against him. He said the economy is rigged. He said business is rigged. But he is talking about the election rigged.
BRIAN STELTER, CNN SENIOR MEDIA CORRESPONDENT: Yes, and went a step further in television interview last night, saying the election already is rigged. He used that as an opportunity to encourage his supporters to work. And that would be the typical thing you can hear from a candidate, encouraging your side to get out to the polls in November.
But what we don't normally hear is a warning that especially in August that the idea that the election is secretly over and has been rigged against him. He is maybe setting the stage later to legitimize the results.
BERMAN: Talking to the Trump campaign. They think their campaign turned around. Remember when their back were up was up against the wall after Ted Cruz won Wisconsin? That's when Donald Trump started talking about things being rigged. He was talking about the Republican primary rigged against him. Everything was rigged.
They think that was key in turning the election around. They think that was key in lining up supporters behind them. It has worked for them every step of the way, and they're dipping back into that well as much and as often as they can. It may not be to set the stage for an election, to protest the election in November. It may be just to rile up voters.
ROMANS: Turnout.
STELTER: To motivate supporters, yes.
BERMAN: It is interesting to see.
STELTER: Certainly, the word "rigged" has had great resonance throughout the campaign. It speaks to the idea that Donald Trump is the ultimate Washington outsider.
And this battle with the Khan family is in some ways similar. He is doing what no politician or normal politician would ever do. Mike Pence's comments about the Khans are very relatively predictable. It's what a strategist would tell a politician to say. What Trump is doing is not that.
ROMANS: The contrast in the ticket, as you point out, is really interesting. And the way Mike Pence handled that moment with the woman saying how do you support this kind of language or what are you going to say to Donald Trump even as the people in the room are booing her. He really did handle that moment --
STELTER: Normally, Donald Trump's advantage is television . In this case, Khans are using television to their advantage. They continue to make appearances on CNN and other channels, and for saying yes to interview requests. So, they're continuing in some ways to put Trump on the defensive using his preferred media.
[04:40:00] ROMANS: Let's talk about the devil comment. That is in the headlines. Donald Trump calling Hillary Clinton the devil. It really riled up the room, riled up his base.
Let's listen to Donald Trump say that last night. I want to get your thoughts on this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: If he would have just not done anything, go home, go to sleep and relax, he would have been a hero. But he made a deal with the devil. She's the devil. He made a deal with the devil. It's true.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROMANS: Bernie Sanders made a deal with the devil by backing Hillary Clinton. That's what he said.
STELTER: You know, back in February, Donald Trump said something similar. He called Hillary Clinton evil. And the time, Jane Sanders, Bernie's wife, said that kind of language has no place in the election.
It seems like with this, the predictions of this being an unusually nasty election cycle are clearly coming true.
BERMAN: I'm not sure he was saying she is literally devil, as in Satan or Lucifer with the clubbed foot and everything there. I think he was speaking at the context of a deal you make with someone -- you know, it's idiomatic expression in this case. Having now heard it several times, I'm not sure it's the biblical definition of the devil. But we can ask him that.
STELTER: I'm sure it will be asked.
ROMANS: It is your parsing of the clubbed foot.
BERMAN: I'm just saying.
STELTER: And by being provocative, he may be trying to change the conversation away from the Khans. That is typical strategy by Donald Trump and by other candidates from the past. Take one controversy to try to create a new one.
ROMANS: And away from the other Hillary Clinton storylines. For example, yesterday, Warren Buffett, the billionaire in Omaha, with Hillary Clinton, standing up with her. And he challenged Donald Trump to release taxes, to release his taxes.
STELTER: This is a battle of the billionaires.
ROMANS: Battle of the billionaires, I mean, who's got the hearts and minds of the regular guy? Who's got the most billionaires? Let's listen to what Warren Buffett said about taxes.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
WARREN BUFFETT, BERKSHIRE HATHAWAY CEO: One point and he said it several times. He can't release it because he is under audit. Now, I've got news for him. I'm under audit, too, and I would be delighted to meet him any place, anytime between now and election. I'll bring my tax return. He can bring his tax return.
Nobody's going to arrest us. It is -- there are no rules against showing your tax returns. Just let people ask questions about the items on there. You're only afraid if you've got something to be afraid about.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROMANS: Folksy billionaire has often said that his secretary pays a higher tax rate than he does. And he's talked about how CEOs already, rich people already pay too little in taxes. Donald Trump would cut taxes for the very, very rich.
What are the optics of the billionaires, Mark Cuban and others, lining up with Hillary Clinton?
STELTER: Yes, Mark Cuban's endorsement over the weekend and now this. I'll tell you, last week on stage at the Democratic Convention, another billionaire Mike Bloomberg suggested and questioned Donald Trump's sanity. Well, if you want to drive someone crazy, this is what you would do -- you bring out billionaire after billionaire after billionaire to criticize the billionaire.
I don't know if Donald Trump has been watching this, but I'm sure word will get back to him that these men have lined up against him in recent days.
ROMANS: Are they trying to poke his ego a little bit too?
STELTER: That's exactly what it is. You come out of the convention, come out of the Democratic convention, and line these men up. Cuban and Bloomberg, and Buffett to get under Trump's skin.
ROMANS: Sheryl Sandberg, she's a billionaire, she's supporting Hillary Clinton. BERMAN: But, again, you know, it is interesting. It may be effective when it's these other billionaires questioning Donald Trump's riches and how he got them and his business acumen, because that may get under his skin. We saw that with Michael Bloomberg.
But having an army of billionaires on your side may not be what you want in this election cycle, right? It's the ultimate insider optics there. And I don't think Donald Trump necessarily minds being the one guy up against Hillary Clinton and her rich friends.
STELTER: Money and politics bring you right back to the "R" word, rigged. Trump again last night repeated his point on Twitter about how Clinton has so much money behind her, so many super PACs. Trump, he presents himself, as the one who is not influenced by money and politics.
ROMANS: Interesting. All right. Brian, we're going to talk to you again and the rest of the rest of this hour. Thank you so much. Nice to see you.
STELTER: Thanks. You too.
ROMANS: Up bright and early for us. We love that.
STELTER: Thanks.
ROMANS: All right. Time for an early start on your money this morning. Dow futures edging lower, a small drop yesterday. But everything really here still very close to record highs.
Stock markets in Europe down. Shares in Asia, they are closed now for their Tuesday. But they closed mostly lower.
Look at oil, down about 40 bucks, below 40 bucks a gallon right now. Crude dipped below that $40 mark yesterday.
That puts oil back in a bear market, Wall Street lingo for a 20 percent drop from recent highs. Concerns are the same as the last time crude plunged. The world is awash in oil. Producers aren't taking any steps to slow down. It's good news for you.
Gas prices heading back to 2 bucks a gallon. The national average sitting at $2.13. That's the lowest price for this date since 2004. The lowest gas prices since 2004 for this date.
Gas is down 15 cents in the past month. More than 50 cents lower than this time last year.
Fourteen states, Berman, have gas below $2 a gallon.
BERMAN: Whoa.
ROMANS: I know, that's big.
BERMAN: All right. The United States expanding its role in the battle against ISIS right now. We'll tell you where a new round of airstrikes is happening right now.
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[04:49:07] ROMANS: The Centers for Disease Control has issued an unprecedented travel warning over a Zika outbreak in Florida. The CDC is advising pregnant women to avoid travel to a small neighborhood just north of downtown Miami. This comes after a number of local transmissions from mosquitoes in the area more than tripled from four to 14. Officials also say women who live or travel there should be tested for Zika infection in the first and second trimesters of pregnancy even if they have no symptoms.
BERMAN: The United States now conducting air strikes against ISIS targets in Libya. The main focus of this operation is the coastal city of Sirte. This is an ISIS stronghold. The Pentagon calls this the beginning of the ongoing campaign with the air strike coming at the request of the Libyan government, in so far as there is a Libyan government.
CNN Pentagon correspondent Barbara Starr with the latest.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: John and Christine, this first round of air strikes in Libya carried out at President Obama's authorization in conjunction with the emerging Libyan government called the Government of National Accord.
[04:50:11] This government has been asking the U.S. for help in striking ISIS inside Libya. They are looking for those precision U.S. air strikes to push back ISIS fighters.
One of the big concerns has been that ISIS had been gaining strength in Libya. These fighters had been moving against ISIS. Now they want the extra fire power from the U.S. to push them out once and for all.
The question right now is where are the ISIS fighters? Some certainly have been killed in the recent weeks and months of fighting. But there is concern that some have fled and some have disappeared into nearby towns and villages, mixed in with civilian populations.
And ISIS in Libya is always a big concern, because ISIS operatives can fairly readily move across the Mediterranean into southern Europe or across North Africa and carry out more attacks. The hope is that this extra U.S. fire power with more attacks in the coming weeks expected will be enough to push ISIS out once and for all -- John and Christine.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ROMANS: All right. Barbara, thanks for that.
A long time FBI employee facing prison time for passing sensitive information about the U.S. government to a Chinese official. Forty- six-year-old Kun Shan Chun, an electronics technician with top secret security clearance at the bureau's New York field office, he was arrested in March. On Monday, he pleaded guilty to illegally acting as an agent for the Chinese government. Under a plea deal, Chun will be sentenced to about two years behind bars in December.
BERMAN: Attorneys for accused Charleston church shooter Dylann Roof are mounting a legal challenge against the death penalty defense, but they are offering to drop the challenge if prosecutors agree not to pursue the death penalty against their client. The accused killer is facing 33 federal charges, including hate crimes in the shooting death of nine black parishioners at the Mother Emmanuel Church last summer.
ROMANS: All right. An unabated rush to guns in America. The FBI performing more background checks than ever. That's how you measure gun demand in this country, and that means one stock is at an all-time high. We'll get an early start on your money, next.
BERMAN: All time high.
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[04:56:31] BERMAN: All right. I have been working out for months. The Olympics set to begin in just a few days in Rio. Athletes from all over the world pouring in to that Brazilian city. The opening ceremony set for three days from now with the first competition beginning tomorrow.
Still though, a whole lot of problems remain, including severely polluted water and concerns about Zika.
CNN's Shasta Darlington live for us in Rio.
You know, I think many concerns is an understatement, Shasta.
SHASTA DARLINGTON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: That's right, John.
And what is one of the biggest concerns and what officials here themselves call the biggest lost opportunity of these Olympics is the dirty water. The Guanabara Bay, which is where the selling competition is going to take place, is clogged with raw sewage. There's garbage bobbing on the surface. Body parts even washed up on a beach just a couple of weeks ago.
It wasn't supposed to be like that. Back when Rio won its bid to host this Olympics in 2009, it promised to clean up its water and said it would get homes connected to the sewage system. Well, fast forward seven years later, only half of the homes in the state of Rio are connected to a sanitation system. That means all of that raw sewage is flowing downhill and ending up on the beaches and in the bay where the sailors are competing.
And if that wasn't bad enough, researchers have just found what they call super bacteria in the water in the bay and also in some of the beaches. They believe it got there from hospitals. These super bacteria that are resistant to antibiotics. They believe the hospitals aren't connected to sewage systems. So, it's also here, and they don't know what effect it could have on the people who are exposed to it in these open waters, John.
BERMAN: Yes, I think super in this case doesn't mean good when we're talking about superbugs.
Shasta Darlington, in advance of the Rio Games, I have never seen an Olympics with these many questions heading into the opening games. Thanks, Shasta.
ROMANS: All right. Let's get a start on your money this morning. Almost top of the hour.
Stocks and markets around the world are weak this morning. Dow futures following that lead just a little bit. Oil stumbling to 40 bucks a barrel. Big world oil supplies have pushed crude down 20 percent from its highest point this year. That means, of course, what kind of market 20 percent?
BERMAN: Bear.
ROMANS: Bear market, John Berman. Ding, ding, ding.
BERMAN: Thank God I got that right.
ROMANS: A warning on stocks from Goldman Sachs, stay out of the stock market until the election. Investors had a terrific July. Now, sit back, Goldman says stock prices are expensive and earnings growth is poor.
Shares of Smith & Wesson have never been higher. Robust, unabated demand for firearms in America. The FBI reported 2.2 -- look at that -- 2.2 million background checks performed on Americans buying guns. That's the largest number ever recorded in July. And then, that means shares of Smith & Wesson are up nearly 40 percent this year.
Gun maker stocks have jumped following recent events of gun violence. We have seen this pattern over and over again. Consumers rush to buy guns amid worries about stricter future laws.
New York's Governor Andrew Cuomo wants sex offenders ban from playing Pokemon Go. Cuomo instructed the state's department of corrections to forbid sex offenders on parole from playing the game and other Internet games that are popular with kids.
He's also turning over an updated registry of six offenders to the company that developed the game. Pokemon Go has been downloaded 100 million times, 100 million times. That's according to a new report this morning.
And my producer were saying 40-year-old men on train like running to train cars going after Pokemon thingies. I'm serious. People are doing this all over the place.
BERMAN: And by that, he means him. Right?
ROMANS: Yes.
BERMAN: That's what he means.
All right. EARLY START continues now.
