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Trump Campaign Pushes Back Against Media; Baton Rouge Neighborhoods Submerged in Floodwater; Simone Biles Going for Fourth Gold Medal; Usain Bolt Makes History in Rio. Aired 4:30-5a ET

Aired August 15, 2016 - 04:30   ET

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

[04:30:00] CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN ANCHOR: Officers used armored vehicles to rescue the victim who was rushed to the hospital. Officials say one officer who was hurt by a rock thrown at a patrol car is now also being treated at a hospital.

Now the violent protest Saturday came in response to the death of 23- year-old Sylville Smith and led Governor Scott Walker to declare a state of emergency. But Milwaukee police have been trying to restore order on their own, without help so far from the National Guard.

ALISON KOSIK, CNN ANCHOR: Happening today, Donald Trump giving a speech in Ohio, laying out his plan for defeating radical Islamic terrorism. A senior campaign official previewing this speech, says Trump will portray the war against Islamic terror as a titanic ideological struggle on par with the Cold War. It will emphasize that the U.S. will abandon nation building or spreading democracy in the Mideast.

It will make it clear that any country helping the U.S. defeat Islamic terrorism will be deemed an ally which campaign officials believe will expand the anti-ISIS coalition. And Trump will also propose banning immigration from countries where the U.S. can't adequately vet visa applications especially those with a lot of terrorist activity.

The campaign official also says a Trump administration would test the views of visa applicants and bar any who are anti-Semitic, anti-gay, or otherwise against American values of pluralism and freedom.

Now it is unclear how the immigration bans Trump is set to announce today will fit with his previously described total ban on Muslims coming to the U.S.

ROMANS: All right. The "Wall Street Journal" urging -- urging the Republican Party to give up on Donald Trump if he does not change his act by Labor Day three weeks away. This is remarkable statement in the paper's conservative editorial page out this morning accusing Trump of alienating the party and running an incompetent campaign.

The "Journal" this morning says if Trump doesn't turn things around, the GOP will have no choice but to write off the nominee and focus on saving down-ballot candidates. Now Trump spent the last week railing against the media with a barrage of tweets like this. "I am not only fighting crooked Hillary, I am fighting the dishonest and corrupt media, and her government protection process. People get it." The "Wall Street Journal" responding that the problem is not the

media. The problem is Trump himself, saying, quote, "He needs to stop blaming everyone else and decide if he wants to behave like someone who wants to be president or turn the nomination over to Mike Pence, his running mate."

More now on Trump's battle with the media and this, you know, blockbuster "Wall Street Journal" editorial from CNN's Chris Frates in Washington.

CHRIS FRATES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey, good morning, Christine and Alison. The Trump campaign spent Sunday pushing back against reporting that campaign officials have failed to tame the gaffe-prone candidate and put him back on track and back on message. Conceding that Trump may be beyond help.

Now Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort was pressed about the narrative and Trump's falling poll numbers in some battleground states on CNN's Jake Tapper.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PAUL MANAFORT, DONALD TRUMP CAMPAIGN CHAIRMAN: We think that contrary to your report and contrary to the "New York Times'" nameless sources story, the campaign is moving -- it could get forward and is very strong. We raised over $132 million in the last two months. We are organized in all 50 states. All 50 states. We have been in the battle ground states every day this month, including Pennsylvania, Ohio and Florida multiple times this month and we're starting to get traction on those states.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FRATES: Now Trump chimed in on Twitter criticizing the media's coverage of his campaign. Today he'll be in the swing state of Ohio to deliver a speech on his plan to defeat ISIS.

Meanwhile, Vice President Joe Biden, campaigning today alongside Hillary Clinton in his hometown of Scranton, Pennsylvania, will make the case that Trump is the most unprepared nominee in the country's history when it comes to national security. But Clinton make it a knock-off message with yet another development over her e-mails. Sources tell CNN that lawmakers could learn as early as today what Clinton told the FBI about her private e-mail server when the bureau sends a note from that conversation to Capitol Hill, which is it's sure to reignite the political battle over whether Clinton should face criminal charges for her handling of classified information.

Christine, Alison, back to you guys.

ROMANS: Thanks, Chris.

KOSIK: All right. Thank you, Chris.

Joining us to break down the escalating battle between Trump and the media, and everything else, senior media correspondent Brian Stelter. He is the host of CNN's "RELIABLE SOURCES."

Good morning. Thanks for waking up with us.

BRIAN STELTER, CNN SENIOR MEDIA CORRESPONDENT: Good morning. Thank you.

ROMANS: He doesn't sleep either. We love it.

STELTER: No. never. Never.

ROMANS: Never sleep.

KOSIK: So you look at how the weekend went for Donald Trump. He was very busy on Twitter, very busy at his rallies, he's blaming who? He may be running against Hillary Clinton, but it seems he's really making the media his nemesis.

STELTER: He may wish the media were on the ballot but we're not.

KOSIK: Yes. But he certainly kind of went off the rails this weekend especially after the "New York Times" had that scathing piece about this culture of crisis going on with the Trump campaign.

[04:35:03] You know, first you had, you know, Muslims, you have Mexicans, and now you have the media. That is who Trump is really setting his sights on now.

STELTER: I mean, some people would say that he's using the press as a scapegoat and it does seem to have a lot to do with this "New York Times" story over the weekend. Maggie Haberman and Alex Burns Saying that Trump himself is erratic and sullen, not really enjoying running for president. The story describing a sputtering campaign and advisers who are increasingly frustrated because they can't help him stay on message.

Trump has denied the substance of the story. He even suggested the sources were made up, which the offered no evidence of. I had a Trump campaign aide on my program over the weekend who said he wanted to throw the entire article in the trash.

Honestly, when you hear rhetoric like that, that usually signals there is something real behind the scenes. The fact that Donald Trump had to tweet and deny the story and say that he's having a blast running for president speaks volumes. When have you seen a presidential candidate have to come out and deny that he's not having fun, that deny that he's not interested in running? Yes, it confirms that he really wants to have his heart in this -- in this race.

ROMANS: So that's the "New York Times." Right?

STELTER: Yes.

ROMANS: So you can see how a Republican candidate could -- you know, they have fought with the "New York Times" before. Let's talk about the "Wall Street Journal." The conservative editorial page of the "Wall Street Journal." Today out with this scathing editorial. STELTER: Yes.

ROMANS: Ninety some days before the election. Essentially giving a road map for Republicans and for the Republican Party to save this -- to save this campaign. "As for Mr. Trump, he needs to stop blaming everyone else and decide if he wants to behave like someone who wants to be president or turn the nomination over to Mike Pence."

It also says this, "Mr. Trump is right that most of the media want him to lose. But then that was also true of George W. Bush, George H.W. Bush and Ronald Reagan. It's true of every Republican presidential nominee. The difference is that Mr. Trump has made it so easy for the media and his opponents."

How remarkable is this?

STELTER: We've heard similar comments from people like Newt Gingrich who has said, Donald Trump, it's your job not to give the press anything to use against you. Now I don't necessarily subscribe to that view of how the media operates, but even if you do, and that's what the "Journal" is saying. They are criticizing Trump for giving the press ammunition and giving Trump's critics ammunition against him.

We've heard this for days, actually for weeks now. The question is whether it's getting through to Donald Trump. He obviously has this opportunity today with the speech on radical Islamic terror to try to focus more on policy. When you see him all weekend long only tweeting about the media, those are a lot of missed opportunities to talk about Hillary Clinton and talk about policy. I think that's why his fans, his supporters, get frustrated by him.

KOSIK: So you were seeing Donald Trump today. He's going to have a big speech, his campaign is billing the big speech on how he's going to go after terrorism. This is one of many, quote, "resets" that we have talked about. How effective will it be in the sort of dust cloud of media hatred? How effective will his message that he's trying to get out really resonate?

STELTER: First of all, let's keep in mind, he needs the cameras and he needs reporters who are going to be at that rally, even though -- in that speech. Even though it's been very effective with his base to criticize the press, there's a difference between the crowds that cheer him on when he boos the media and the rest of the country which probably doesn't care that much.

I have seen some conservatives -- some Republicans say this sounds like whining from Trump when he goes after the press. He did seem to go nuclear on this over the weekend. It would make sense to pull back and to focus more on policy and on Clinton. But we'll see if that's something he's interested in doing.

ROMANS: And if he can stay on message. I mean, that has been the test for him before. He's tried to switch to policy and he doesn't really stay on message. Gets into, you know, personal dispute with somebody. STELTER: And it's because he has that entertainment aspect to him,

right? Which is why viewers love to watch him. He sometimes goes what we would call off message because he's trying to entertain the crowd and make it more interesting. That's something, as a viewer, I really enjoy sometimes about him, but it's what causes days of news coverage that's very critical.

KOSIK: But he's trying to get -- he's trying to glean those independents, how effective is that? He may be appealing to the crowd but --

STELTER: Well, that's the thing about this. Right? We should be honest about the cause and the effect. The cause of some of these media bashing are the polls, where we see him sliding in the polls especially in key swing states. All the news he's hearing is negative because a lot of the polls for him are very negative. Even Breitbart, which is a conservative news site, that's very friendly to Trump, commissioned its own poll, trying to break through the mainstream media spin and that poll found Trump losing by five points. So the effect of all these poll stories is that he is bashing the press.

ROMANS: The irony, to me, you know, the ultimate irony to me is that he is bashing the press now. But for months and months and months, he's so skillfully used the press to get through the primary process on top. You know?

STELTER: Yes. He's not even buying television ads.

KOSIK: Right.

STELTER: He is using free media -- what we call free media to get his message across.

ROMANS: Right.

STELTER: But now he's frustrated with the messenger .

ROMANS: All right.

KOSIK: All right. Brian Stelter, thanks. We'll see you in a bit.

STELTER: Thanks.

ROMANS: Talk to you soon.

All right. A new investigation by CNN Money shows Donald Trump made tens of millions of dollars running a failed casino company.

[04:40:02] The steep dive shows that -- just exactly how much money he made. In 1995, Donald Trump launched his first and only initial public offering. Essentially the public could buy shares in a company that even bore the ticker symbol of Trump's initials. Trump Hotels and Casino Resorts raised $140 million from public investors. Ten years later, it had lost more than $600 million and filed for bankruptcy. But SEC filings reviewed by CNN Money showed Trump was paid $39

million from 1995 to 2004 to run the failing company. How did that happen? Most of the earnings came from his salary and bonuses. But he also made a substantial amount consulting -- consulting for his own company and licensing back his own name. In the end, the losses for investors were devastating. Filing showed that investors -- someone who invested, say, $100 in the company in 1995 would be left with just $8.72 by the year 2000. That is a loss of 90 percent.

You can read that story on CNN Money if you're interested.

KOSIK: All right. Switching gears to lighter fare. Seth Rogen's "Sausage Party" sizzling at the box office this weekend. The raunchy low-budget animated comedy is about talking grocery store items. It raked in almost $34 million, good for a second place finish behind "Suicide Squad." That was three times Hollywood products and almost twice the cost of making the film. In this film, Rogen plays a talking hotdog named Frank in the film which also stars Kristen Wiig as a hotdog bun.

ROMANS: All right. 41 minutes past the hour this Monday morning. Top story here in weather. Devastating floods in Louisiana. Destruction in their wake. Claiming at least five lives now. Two fatalities confirmed overnight. The governor announcing the devastation is not yet over. The rivers are rising, folks. We've got that next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[04:46:03] KOSIK: The death toll and the damage estimates keep rising with the flood waters in Louisiana. Five people have been killed, 10,000 more are in shelters this morning. The governor calling in the National Guard with two feet of rain triggering 20,000 rescues this weekend alone. President Obama granting the state's request for emergency assistance.

We get more now from CNN's Boris Sanchez in storm-battered Baton Rouge.

BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Christine and Alison, we're standing in what used to be a street in a neighborhood, now it's become part of the Manchac Bayou. It's actually a body of water that's just behind these homes. And from what you can see, it's covered, this neighborhood, in about two, almost three feet of water.

What I can tell you actually, this area didn't get that much rain compared to other parts of Louisiana. In fact, what's happened is that most of the flood water that was on the eastern and northern part of the state has moved in this direction and has caused several bodies of water, swamps and rivers to overflow and submerge neighborhoods.

It's really, really emotional out here especially when you see people come out in canoes and going into the water with high boots just to go inside their homes to try to retrieve personal objects.

I actually spoke to one woman who lives in a home here. And she told me that at midnight, around midnight last night, there wasn't that much water. She didn't think her home was going to be flooded. And then around 3:00 a.m., she had to rush out the door because there was about a foot of water that started entering her home. She came back here today. She told me she'd gotten brand new furniture for her home. She said she didn't care about the furniture, she cared about these photograph, these personal photographs that she was afraid were going to be destroyed. Fortunately she was able to recover them.

But that speaks to the emotion and the pain that this flood has caused. The governor has come out and asked people to stay at home. He says the danger is not over. Once it stops and the water starts to recede, we'll get an idea of just how extensive the damage from this -- from this flood was -- Christine, Alison.

ROMANS: Boris, thanks for that. And just watching these alerts, you know, school districts -- one school district I see is closed for the whole week already because they know it's going to be a very tough go here.

So what's in store for Louisiana today? Meteorologist Pedram Javaheri has the latest.

PEDRAM JAVAHERI, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Christine and Alison, good morning to you both.

(WEATHER REPORT)

KOSIK: All right. Thank you, Pedram.

New York City police are questioning a possible suspect in the weekend shooting death of an imam and his assistant. The men were shot in the head in broad daylight on Saturday afternoon after leaving a prayer service at a nearby mosque. Investigators are trying to determine whether a dispute at the service led to the killings. So far they say there is no indication the men were targeted because of their faith.

ROMANS: All right. Wall Street focus on some of the biggest names in retail this week. We want to know if those results could maybe show us how healthy the American consumer is, the American economy is, and could it stop the record run in the stock market?

[04:50:01] We get an EARLY START on your money next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KOSIK: A history-making weekend this weekend in Rio. Simone Biles on the balance beam today going for her fourth gold medal after winning her third gold for the United States in the vault. And the sprinter Usain Bolt with a win for the ages, becoming the first man to capture gold in 100 meters in three Olympic Games.

ROMANS: And then this. A close call for four U.S. swimmers, including Ryan Lochte. They were robbed at gunpoint on Sunday. And everyone is fine. But, you know, a reminder of the security concerns in Rio.

Let's go there now to Rio right now and bring in Christina MacFarlane. Good morning.

CHRISTINA MACFARLANE, CNN WORLD SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Christine. Good morning, Alison. From Rio where the odyssey continues. Usain Bolt last night becoming the first athlete to win three 100-meter titles on Saturday making it 1 of 3 for that triple- triple.

[04:55:09] And it may not have been his fastest final average, just 9.81 seconds. Nearly two tenths Slower than his win in London 2012. But Bolt turned on the speed when it mattered. As you see powering through to final 60 meters to edge clear of the field and American rival Justin Gatlin who finished in silver position. And while cheers rang out for Bolt around the arena, Justin Gatlin was greeted by jeers from the waiting crowd, clearly voicing their disapproval of his doping past. Now the Lightning Bolt will return to the track this Tuesday to compete in the 200 meters.

Now meanwhile in the gymnastics arena, Simone Biles keeps on killing it. Having clinched the team and individual all-around gold in the gymnastics, the American superstar added another, this time in the vault. Her score was 15.966. A winning margin of .7. So that's three down, two to go for Biles. She's got the beam on Monday and the floor exercise on Tuesday. She is, of course, on course for a remarkable five gold medal haul here in Rio.

Now elsewhere, it was a close call for the men's U.S. basketball team. Grinding out another win this time against France. They failed to put away the game after taking a 12-point lead in the fourth quarter. Eventually Klay Thompson finally busting out the shooting slump, knocking down seven three-pointers and scoring 30 points to lead the old scorers spurring them on to the 100-97 victory. And they now go off 5-0 in group A to clinch that first place spot. The win marking their 22nd consecutive Olympic victory.

Now you mentioned this before. Olympic medalist Ryan Lochte and three American swimmers are safe and said to be cooperating with police after being robbed at gunpoint on Saturday after leaving a hospitality house heading to the Olympic Village that night. Their vehicle was stopped by a group of men dressed like police officers who demanded they hand over their money and personal belongings.

Now speaking to NBC, Lochte said he had -- even had a gun put to his forehead by one of the men. Now fortunately they all walked away unscathed but without their wallets and their personal belongings. And after the event, the Australian Olympic Committee announced it was banning its athletes from going to the beaches here in Rio between the hours of 6:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m. They also don't want their team strolling around in public in national colors.

We're heading into the second week here of the games, with a sense of unease and caution I think around these ongoing security concerns -- Christine.

ROMANS: You are hearing from some of the athletes. They do feel -- they do feel secure because they do have security personnel around them. They're happy with the plan they have in place. But certainly raising some concerns. Thank you so much for that.

KOSIK: All right. Boko Haram proposing a new prisoner swap in a new video that was released Sunday. A group of school girls abducted in 2014 appear in the background. The terror group wants Nigeria to release jailed fighters in exchange for the young women. The video also shows images of several dead and injured girls that Boko Haram claims were killed in Nigerian military air strikes.

ROMANS: All right, 58 minutes past the hour. Let's get an EARLY START on your money this morning. Another week, another record run in stocks possible today? Dow futures are up. Stock markets in Europe, trading slightly higher. Look at Asia, they finished mixed. There's a report in Japan that showed that economy barely growing in the first quarter despite big stimulus from the government there.

Let's look at oil, it is now rising back above $45 a barrel.

All right. Nasdaq, the Nasdaq making history. The Nasdaq composite has never been higher. Ever. Coming into today's session. The Dow and the S&P 500 have hit records as well. Well, the Nasdaq is especially impressive here. It was down almost 15 percent after the worst start to a year ever. Since then, the Nasdaq up 22 percent. A surge of 22 percent. For the year, Nasdaq is higher, 4.5 percent higher. The Dow rising 6.6 percent. So far in 2016 the S&P 500 the big winner there with a 6.8 percent gain.

So how strong is the U.S. economy? We could get a better idea this week. Some of the nation's largest retailers report earnings that include Lowe's, Home Depot, Target, Wal-Mart, GAP stores. Consumer spending is the biggest part of the U.S. economy. The retail sector is full of highs and lows. Discount stores have been a bright spot in recent months. Along with home improvement chains. But traditional brick and mortar stores are struggling especially with online rivals like Amazon.

You remember Macy's announced 100 store closures last week. But its stock jumped after the news because investors liked its turnaround plan. So watch that one this week as well.

KOSIK: Interesting to see how actually retailers help the indices get to record levels.

ROMANS: That's right.

KOSIK: That we haven't seen since 1999 because all of this is taking a nugget of good news to move those retailers higher.

ROMANS: That's right.

KOSIK: All right. EARLY START continues right now.

At this moment, police trying to calm dangerous protests in Milwaukee. At least one person shot and police cars smashed. The tense moments happening right now.

ROMANS: Donald Trump getting down to policy today. Laying out a plan to defeat ISIS. Can he stick to his script?

KOSIK: Usain Bolt making history at rocketing to gold. But the runner is not stopping there. The exciting moments from the Olympics.

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