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Early Start with John Berman and Zoraida Sambolin

FAA Says No Basis To Ground The 737 MAX 8; Paul Manafort's Second Sentencing Is Today; Fed Charges 50 In College Admissions Scheme; California To Impose Moratorium On Death Penalty; Parliament Rejects Theresa May's Brexit Plan; Huawei Tech Used Near U.S. Military Bases. Aired 5:30-6a ET

Aired March 13, 2019 - 05:30   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[05:31:33] DAVE BRIGGS, CNN ANCHOR: The U.S. now the only major country where airlines and the government are sticking with the Boeing MAX 8. It turns out American pilots raised concerns after that first crash in October.

JESSICA DEAN, CNN ANCHOR: Paul Manafort could get 10 more years in prison today or is another light sentence in store as we await Robert Mueller's report?

BRIGGS: Celebrities among dozens caught up in an unprecedented college admissions scandal. An elaborate scheme of cheating, bribing, and lying.

DEAN: And breaking overnight, California putting a moratorium on the death penalty. Why Gov. Gavin Newsom is making that move now.

Welcome back to EARLY START. I'm Jessica Dean.

BRIGGS: I'm Dave Briggs -- 5:32. What a huge news day it is. We will get to Aunt Becky and you cheaters shortly.

But we start with the latest on this deadly plane crash. New potentially damaging details this morning on that Boeing 737 MAX 8.

Documents show at least five complaints from pilots on U.S. flights after the Lion Air crash in October. Some saying the nose pointed down while the plane was on autopilot during departure. Those details revealed in pages from a federal database where pilots can report aviation incidents anonymously.

As countries and airlines around the world are grounding this Boeing MAX 8, the U.S. stands virtually alone this morning.

DEAN: And look at this map. In red, you see where countries or airlines have decided to ground that plane. Overnight, airlines in Russia and Canada stopped their flights.

But the FAA says it does not see a need to pull the MAX 8 despite two crashes that killed hundreds. The agency says a review shows no basis to order grounding the aircraft.

CNN's Richard Quest asked Ethiopian Airlines -- the Ethiopian Airlines CEO if the MAX 8 should be grounded.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RICHARD QUEST, CNN INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT, HOST, "QUEST MEANS BUSINESS": Do you think there should be a worldwide grounding of the MAX planes?

TEWOLDE GEBREMARIAM, CEO, ETHIOPIAN AIRLINES: I think although we don't know -- we don't yet know the exact cause of the accident and speculation is not helpful in either way, but I think there are questions without answers on the airplane.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BRIGGS: President Trump spoke with Boeing's CEO Tuesday with (ph) "The Washington Post". Dennis Muilenburg argued to keep the planes in the sky.

But, Mr. Trump also inexplicably tweeted this. "Airplanes are becoming far too complex to fly. I don't want Albert Einstein to be my pilot. I want great flying professionals that are allowed to easily and quickly take control of a plane."

DEAN: It's unclear why the president isn't calling on the planes to be grounded if he thinks they're too complicated to fly.

Boeing's stock fell sharply. Shares of the company have fallen more than 11 percent over the past two days.

Meantime, family members who lost loved ones on that doomed Boeing jet are now headed to Ethiopia where there is news about the black boxes.

We go live now to Addis Ababa and bring in David McKenzie -- David.

DAVID MCKENZIE, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Jessica.

Yes, those black boxes, according to the Ethiopian Airlines officials, will be heading out of the country to be analyzed. That's critically important to try and get any kind of answers on what happened in this crash.

Now, the family members you describe are at the scene of the crash at this hour, paying their respects to their loved ones. Terrible moments for them.

[05:35:00] We spoke to Feisal Hussein who came all the way from Embu in Kenya to come and pay the respects to his late father.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

FEISAL HUSSEIN, RELATIVE OF PLANE CRASH VICTIM: (INAUDIBLE) and that will not seize until the battle is done. And also, the entire (INAUDIBLE). Our kin, our beloved (INAUDIBLE).

I really -- I really fear going to that site. I'm not -- I'm not -- I'm not -- I'm not -- how do you say -- I don't do well with this. I really don't have the words. (INAUDIBLE).

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MCKENZIE: So difficult for those families from across the world. And you may hear the mass being called here at the church behind me in Addas. This is a time of mourning -- an attempt at closure for these families here in Ethiopia. But they won't have closure until they get answers -- Jessica, Dave.

DEAN: It is just so heartbreaking.

David McKenzie, thanks so much.

BRIGGS: Back here, round two for former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort this morning. Seventeen months after his indictment -- was the first in the Mueller probe -- Manafort will learn how long he'll spend in prison.

After a sentence last week for financial crimes -- a sentence many thought was lenient -- the 69-year-old Manafort now faces a judge who revoked his bail and threw him in jail last summer. He could get 10 years on two conspiracy charges.

Joining us now is "CNN POLITICS" digital director Zach Wolf, live from Washington. Good to see you, sir.

All right, we've said this Mueller report is coming about as often as the White House says it's infrastructure week. So we're not going to say that it's coming this week.

But it is a big week -- a lot of developments -- and let's start with that Manafort sentencing. What is the biggest thing you have your eye on in the next couple of days?

ZACHARY WOLF, DIGITAL DIRECTOR, CNN POLITICS: Well, I think first of all, it's important to remember the Mueller report is -- the Mueller investigation appears to be far from over --

BRIGGS: Yes.

WOLF: -- while Manafort is -- you know, may have his final day in court today. And, you know, everybody was talking about a light sentence last week. He could get a lot more time this week.

And this one is arguably more directly tied to the Mueller investigation. So it's important to sort of keep -- not lose the forest for the trees. I mean, the tree being a light sentence last week; the forest being -- wow, you know, the president's former campaign chairman is getting a lot of time in jail.

DEAN: And, Zach, I want to take a look at 2020 as well because we got some pretty big information yesterday -- some developments in two of the candidates that have so many eyes on them.

Beto O'Rourke -- CNN reporting that he's kind of got his finger on the button, ready to go. And, Joe Biden talking to two groups and essentially saying he's pretty much there. That he may need some help in the coming weeks.

Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE BIDEN (D), FORMER VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I appreciate the energy you showed when I got up here. Save it a little longer. I may need it in a few weeks.

(APPLAUSE)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DEAN: You see the word there on the screen -- an "imminent" decision.

How does Joe Biden and Beto O'Rourke getting into this race change the dynamics of 2020 for the Democrats?

WOLF: I think we're still trying to see who's going to be the person that really seizes that middle lane for the party. We have a lot of progressive candidates. We have a Democratic socialist in Bernie Sanders. We have Elizabeth Warren with her tirades against Wall Street.

Who is going to be the person that sort of seizes the middle of the party and really becomes their standard-bearer. And between O'Rourke and Biden, I think both of them kind of have that possibility.

DEAN: Yes, and if there's that appetite for that, right, from this -- from this Democratic base -- yes.

BRIGGS: It sure sounds like they are in.

You have a piece out about 2020. But also, a piece coming about college admissions and the scandal --

WOLF: Right.

BRIGGS: -- that the whole country is talking and reading about this morning. Are there politics regarding this?

WOLF: Well, you know, it's not a political scandal, obviously. But you can't help but look at this and see people of privilege buying their way into colleges and universities and not make a very short jump to the sort of progressive political nerve that a lot of Democratic politics are touching right now.

They want to have free tuition so that everybody can get in, not just a few people. They want to give health care to all people.

There's this sort of underlying frustration, I think, in a lot of the country that the -- that the capitalist system has built around the super-wealthy and the wealthy and given them an entirely different reality. And this college admission scandal, while isolated, is just, I think, a symptom of that frustration.

DEAN: Yes.

BRIGGS: Don't tell the folks over at Trump T.V. it's not political. They are going with this as a liberal elite Hollywood leftist scandal.

WOLF: Right. And we should point out --

[05:40:00] BRIGGS: Yes.

WOLF: -- Felicity Huffman is a big Democratic donor, so I don't want it to be a knock on Republicans.

BRIGGS: Fair point.

Zach Wolf, thank you, sir.

DEAN: Thanks, Zach.

WOLF: Thanks.

DEAN: Well, let's talk more now about that scandal.

Fifty people across six states charged in Operation Varsity Blues and among them, actress Felicity Huffman seen here at federal court, and actress Lori Loughlin, famous for their roles in "DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES" and "FULL HOUSE." The allegations have generations of fans upset and perplexed by all of it.

The cooperating witness who helped bring them down, the very man who helped the rich and famous pull it all off. That's Rick Singer.

CNN's Brynn Gingras is in Boston.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BRYNN GINGRAS, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Dave and Jessica, the mastermind behind this elaborate scheme also cooperated with authorities in their year-long investigation. He actually left the courthouse after pleading guilty to four federal charges and didn't say a word. He could serve up to 65 years in prison.

Now quickly, let me describe how this scheme would operate, according to authorities. They say the parents would pay Singer to help their kids get into elite universities and colleges across the country by one of two avenues -- either academically or through athletics.

If it was academic, he would ask a -- he would hire someone to basically change test scores or to have someone take a test for students with those SATs or ACTs in order to get them enrolled -- admitted, rather, into colleges and universities.

If they went the athletic route, Singer would bribe coaches of athletic teams and get these students admitted through that route as a potential athlete, even if that student never played the sport that they were allegedly being recruited by.

So it was an elaborate scheme which was a case-by-case basis, depending on who Singer was helping out.

Now, we have two names, of course, that everybody has been talking about. That is Felicity Huffman and Lori Loughlin. Both of them, according to authorities, took different routes.

In Felicity Huffman's case, attorneys for the DOJ say that she paid $15,000 to get her daughter's test scores altered. In the case of Loughlin, authorities say that her and her husband paid $500,000 to get her two daughters admitted to USC on the crew team when they never even rowed for a crew.

So again, just elaborate schemes that not only include those two actresses, but we're talking about CEOs of major companies, fashion designers, and a lot of people charged in this case that was dubbed Operation Varsity Blues. More people are pleading guilty, we're expecting -- and it's possible that more arrests could come down the line.

And as far as universities and how they're responding, essentially, they are distancing themselves from this. And again, no universities have been charged in this case -- Dave and Jessica.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

DEAN: All right, Brynn, thank you.

Breaking overnight, California Gov. Gavin Newsom just hours from imposing a moratorium on the state's death penalty. That means an instant temporary reprieve for 737 inmates, the largest death row population in the nation. The executive order will not change any current convictions or sentences and it will not lead to the release of any prisoners currently on death row.

BRIGGS: California's executions were halted in 2006 when a condemned inmate challenged the state's protocol for lethal injections.

In a speech later today, Gov. Newsom is expected to highlight the racial disparities in sentencing. Six in 10 prisoners on California's death row are people of color.

Coming up, overseas, British lawmakers facing a Brexit deadline with no answers, and a no-deal exit may be the only way to leave the E.U. The latest, live from 10 Downing.

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[05:47:58] BRIGGS: All right, 5:47 Eastern time, 9:47 over there in London.

How the U.K. exits the European Union, anybody's guess at this point. The Brits have just over two weeks to figure this all out. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Come to order. The prime minister.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BRIGGS: Prime Minister Theresa May there suffering another humiliating defeat in Parliament. Lawmakers voting down her Brexit deal 391 to 242. So, what in the world happens now?

Hadas Gold joining us live from 10 Downing Street in London. Hadas, good morning.

HADAS GOLD, REPORTER, CNN BUSINESS: Good morning, it's a busy morning here. You might actually be able to spot some cabinet ministers leaving 10 Downing Street behind me. They are meeting just the morning after that devastating defeat for Theresa May's Brexit deal -- the second time her deal has been voted down.

Now we move on to other votes. Tonight, there will be a vote about whether members of Parliament want to take a no-deal scenario off the table. That means that the U.K. would not leave the European Union without some sort of withdrawal agreement in place.

Now, as we know, we have that deadline of March 29th as the current deadline for Brexit. If they vote tonight to take no-deal off the table, tomorrow members of Parliament will get the opportunity to vote again to extend that deadline. And, in fact, they actually have to ask the European Union for an extension and get that extended.

However, that doesn't really give us any more answers on what will happen next. Will Theresa May try to get her deal through once again? Will members of Parliament try to take control of the scenario? Will there somehow be a general election at some point? All of those are possible situations.

But beyond the political and bureaucratic mess, there is -- are actual people and businesses that will be affected by whatever happens in the next days. If there is a no-deal scenario, drug companies, for example, have been told to make sure they have enough stock in place for six weeks' worth of medicines.

There are U.K. residents living in the European Union who might not have their health insurance if a no-deal scenario takes place. We are just in incredible hours right now and nobody knows, including the people behind me in 10 Downing Street -- and they do not know what is going to happen next, Dave.

BRIGGS: Just reading about all the betting odds. They have no clue what will happen. A contentious day ahead there in London.

[05:50:02] Hadas Gold, thanks.

DEAN: The Chinese tech giant Huawei under increasing pressure. Federal prosecutors have already filed charges claiming the company steals U.S. trade secrets. And on Monday, CNN reported its technology is deployed by small wireless carriers. Many are the only providers of cell coverage in rural areas close to U.S. military bases.

Huawei's CEO spoke to CNN's Matt Rivers who joins us now from China -- Matt.

MATT RIVERS, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Jessica, it's a -- it was a pretty rare opportunity to interview the founder of Huawei. He doesn't give many interviews.

But clearly, he feels that his company is under threat and he's really counterattacking the United States because the U.S. really has gone after Huawei. So they filed a lawsuit against the U.S. last week saying that he wants more access for Huawei products in the United States. He says U.S. claims about Huawei as a national security threat are unfounded.

Here's what he had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REN ZHENGFEI, CEO, HUAWEI (through translator): Why is Huawei being singled out?

There's no Huawei equipment in the U.S. networks. Has that made the U.S. networks totally safe? If not, how can they tell other countries that your networks would be safe without Huawei?

That's why we want to make clear our stance by suing the U.S. government.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

RIVERS: Now, it's not just the United States going after Huawei simply for Huawei and its activities or would-be activities in the U.S. It's also a concerted campaign by the United States to get other countries, other governments around the world to also shun Huawei products.

You've got the vice president, the Secretary of State all basically going around and saying if you, other government, work with Huawei and buy their products, your relationship with the United States will get worse. And we saw an example of that this week in Germany where the U.S. told the Germans that if they buy Huawei products they would see limited intelligence sharing with the Americans.

DEAN: All right. Matt Rivers for us in China. Thanks so much.

And we'll be right back.

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[05:56:24] DEAN: Flyers with Nazi swastikas found inside a California school. It's the same school -- Newport Harbor High School -- where Holocaust survivors spoke to students who posted anti-Semitic photos during a party. Putting up Nazi flyers is not a crime but an investigation has been launched. Max Drakeford is a senior at Newport Harbor High. His grandmother

survived the Holocaust. And he calls the latest incident "super disheartening."

BRIGGS: Dick's Sporting Goods will remove firearms from 125 of its stores. Bloomberg reporting Dick's will start pulling hunting gear from the shelves this summer in response to the slowing sales.

The move follows the company's ban on assault-style weapons last year in the wake of the Parkland shooting. Dick's also halted sales of high-capacity magazines and guns to anyone under 21.

The retailer says it will replace firearms with other sporting gear as it combats a decline in sales.

Disney's takeover of 21st Century Fox will take effect March 20th, changing the entertainment industry as we know it. The deal is valued at $71 billion. Disney picking up the studio, a controlling stake in Hulu, a suite of entertainment channels like FX and Nat Geo, as well as other assets.

The remaining parts of 21st Century Fox will be spun off into a new company simply known as Fox. It will include the Fox Broadcast Network, Fox News, and Fox Sports.

Staffers at the 20th Century Fox studio now bracing for layoffs. Analysts expected Disney will lay off at least 5,000 people.

DEAN: Sometimes truth is just weirder than fiction.

In Sandwich, Massachusetts over the weekend -- that's an important component to this story -- a woman escaped serious injury after her car hit a turkey in the town of Sandwich. Police say the bird crashed through the windshield, continue on through the car, and then slammed into the rear tailgate.

The driver did sustain minor injuries. The turkey, unfortunately, did not survive.

BRIGGS: Major moves for both New York NFL teams. The Giants agreeing to send superstar wide receiver Odell Beckham, Jr. to the Cleveland Browns. The Giants will get first and third round draft picks from Cleveland, along with safety Jabrill Peppers.

And, ESPN reports free agent running back Le'Veon Bell plans to sign with the New York Jets. That deal reportedly for four years, $52.5 million -- $35 million guaranteed. Bell set out the entire 2018 season after failing to agree on a contract with the Steelers.

DEAN: So, who's the most popular person in New Jersey? It could be this guy because of this billboard. Chris Ferry is getting thousands of birthday wishes, mostly from strangers, thanks to his two sons who bought the billboard as a prank for dad's 62nd birthday.

And when CNN attempted to reach Ferry -- well, his voicemail was full. It's shocking. BRIGGS: All right. It's almost six. We can call him.

That'll do it for us, though. I'm Dave Briggs.

DEAN: I'm Jessica Dean. "NEW DAY" starts right now.

ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: So, welcome to our viewers in the United States and all around the world. This is NEW DAY. It's Wednesday, March 13th, 6:00 in New York.

And we do have breaking news on a major story.

We learned overnight there have been at least five complaints from pilots in the United States in recent months about the Boeing 737 MAX 8 jets during critical moments of flight. The MAX 8 is the aircraft involved in two crashes in the last five months, including the Ethiopian Airlines crash that killed 157 people this weekend.

Countries around the world are grounding the 737 MAX 8 -- Europe, Asia, South America -- but not the United States. Why?

END