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Booker: We Can't Get to Net-Zero Without Nuclear; Dorian Batters Carolinas with Heavy Rain, Winds, and Storm Surge; Tornadoes Reported in NC and SC As Dorian Lashes Coast; Trump Inaccurately Claimed Alabama Was in Hurricane's Path. Aired 12:30-1p ET

Aired September 05, 2019 - 12:30   ET

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

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[12:30:00] SEN. CORY BOOKER (D-NJ), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: That's 10 years from the time that I will win the presidency of the United States of America. And right now, nuclear is more than 50 percent of our non-carbon causing energy. So people who think that we can get there without nuclear being part of the blend just aren't looking at the facts.

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JOHN KING, CNN HOST: Does that and do other differences between and among the candidates make a difference here or is this mainly about convincing the slice of the electorate that thinks this is urgent that I got it.

LAURA BARRON-LOPEZ, NATIONAL POLITICAL REPORTER, POLITICO: It might make a difference with slightly more tuned-in voters, younger voters which consider climate change one of their top priorities when they cast their vote. Those are voters who are much more in line with someone like Sanders, Bernie Sanders who is adamantly opposed to nuclear. But I think that on the whole, a voter is probably not going to cast their vote in the primary deciding whether or not a candidate supports nuclear versus totally banning natural gas or fracking as opposed to just as long as they are willing to confront the entirety of the climate change crisis.

KING: You mentioned fracking. An example there too of how when it comes to energy and climate issues, yes, there are ideological differences and partisan differences but often it's geographical. Julian Castro, the candidate from Texas saying states should decide if you want to ban fracking. He wasn't prepared to go there. Again, Julian Castro from the state of Texas.

TOLUSE OLORUNNIPA, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: Yes, the candidates actually agreed much more than they disagreed but on some of the specific issues where there are regional interests or some of these candidates have a history, they have a past where they have voted in favor of things like fracking may be in part because of their constituents supported those policies in the past. We've seen these candidates trying to shift to the moment, trying to make sure they are as progressive as possible. But I think the biggest difference is between the candidates who say -- know certain things are pragmatic and certain things can actually be achieved versus sort of the most ambitious, most progressive plans from people like Senator Sanders and even Senator Warren saying, you know, we need to have a bold, progressive agenda.

And the difference between pragmatism and progressive, you know, boldness is sort of where we see the fault lines in this debate. But in terms of the overarching issue, they do agree more than they disagree on the issue of climate change.

KING: And to that point, Elizabeth Warren among the candidates saying when you hear the opponents, when you hear our critics, your fuel costs are going up, your cost for (INAUDIBLE) of your living room is going go way up, paper straws versus plastic straws, she says pay no attention.

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SEN. ELIZABETH WARREN (D-MA), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Understand this is exactly what the fossil fuel industry hopes we're all talking about. That's what they want us to talk about. This is your problem. They want to be able to stir up a lot of controversy around your light bulbs, around your straws and around your cheeseburgers, when 70 percent of the pollution, of the carbon that we're throwing into the air, comes from three industries and we can set our targets.

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KING: This is my question here. Can any of these Democrats win that argument with the country -- the rest of the country, the non- Democratic base part of the country that is going to go through a lot of shock and trauma if you address on the scale they want to address it the climate change crisis. Much like ObamaCare disrupted the healthcare system, Democrats paid for that. Can they convince the country to come along?

JEFF ZELENY, CNN SENIOR WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT: It's their burden obviously. But I think what we also saw last night was the beginning of a reality check. That we're going to see Democratic candidates like Cory Booker was doing there say, whoa, whoa, these plans are not possible. This is the aspirational time of a campaign where candidates throw out ideas. Like let's think big, let's think large, but on climate and other issues, I think we'll see that this week or later in Houston at the debate, are Senator Warren's plans, are Senator Sanders' plans and others, are they workable.

But at this moment right now, I think Democrats believe they can get younger voters, Republicans, and independents on this issue. This is not just a Democratic/Republican issue. You know -- I mean, it's a regional issue as you said, but there is an opening most Democrats believe of getting some younger voters who do believe this is an issue if they like Democratic policies or not.

HEATHER CAYGLE, CONGRESSIONAL REPORTER, POLITICO: I think the big question going down the line to November 2020 is, will Democrats settle on a message that appeals to the whole and not gets bogged down in the divisions. You know, because you have a bunch of House moderates who are running in GOP-won districts and they do not want to talk about a $10 trillion energy plan. So can they all settle on a message that works for the party between now and then?

KING: Can you have a north star and then have a more realistic conversation about what's achievable in the short term especially with a divided Congress that we have now? Just to that point, Republican Congressman Dan Crenshaw tweeting last night in the middle of this instead of hours of grandstanding, "Here are bills Democrats could work with Republicans on right now to reduce emissions, promote clean energy, conserve our natural resources."

Now, Crenshaw saying there are some things we could do. President Trump just denies the problem. He was tweeting last night, "Democrats' destructive environmental proposal will raise your energy bill and prices at the pump." Don't they care about fighting poverty the president went on to say?

But there's a divide among the Republicans but I think the preliminary challenge for the Democrats is can you -- there -- if you want to pick a particular thing, like they're going to take your car away or they're going to make gas more expensive, it's easy to criticize.

[12:35:09] Can they win the bigger aspirational argument?

ZELENY: We'll see if they can. I mean, that's one of their challenges on all these issues but certainly on climate. I mean, the party is being moved via left and we'll see where they settle on. But you're absolutely right in terms of can the party come together. Like say the nominee is not as progressive, will people sort of flip out about that? You know, don't lose the forest for the trees some would argue, but we'll see.

BARRON-LOPEZ: And Democrats have like a very sharp contrast with Republicans in this. So the closer we do get to November 2020, Democrats are much more willing to engage in actually the climate science and talk about actual policy proposals to address the problem, whereas the vast majority of Republicans do not want to address this issue. And as you mentioned, John, Trump doesn't even want to acknowledge that climate change is occurring, so.

KING: Yes, there are wet days and dry days, you know. But I do think to close on a serious note, we still don't know who the third-party candidates are going to be. And if there are -- is this is a disappointment on this issue, it is an opportunity for a Green party candidate or something that could siphon away some younger, potentially Democratic votes. We will see. A long way to go on that front.

Coming up for us, another closer look at Hurricane Dorian from the famous Frying Pan Tower in North Carolina.

But first, Vice President Mike Pence visits the embattled British prime minister and shares a message of support.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) MIKE PENCE, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I spoke to President Trump this morning, your friend, and he asked me to send you his very best greetings and to assure you that the United States supports the United Kingdom's decision to leave the European Union. We're anxious to stand with you and to do everything in our power to strengthen what has been a historic and special relationship.

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[12:42:28] ERICA HILL, CNN HOST AND NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Welcome back to our live coverage, I'm Erica Hill in Charleston, South Carolina where the winds are really whipping up here.

There's a major concern about flooding not just in Charleston but frankly all up the coast. We're even getting pictures in, these pictures coming to us out of Myrtle Beach where you can see in the shot there's an SUV, we have confirmed that there's no one in that car. It seems to either have been abandoned or left on the street there looking very close to being swept away (INAUDIBLE) becoming as submerged. That was also a major concern here in Charleston where the city actually was offering free parking in a number of parking garages.

Part of that (INAUDIBLE) of course is to urge people to get their cars off the street because if there is flooding, you don't want anything else in the street that doesn't need to be there understandably. So again, those parking garages open for free parking for cars only, they've made it very clear not boats or trailers.

Also, want to bring you now to Myrtle Beach where we had just seen images of that SUV. My colleague, Rosa Flores, is standing by. And Rosa, we had heard that there were concerns about tornadoes. You're actually at a location where a tornado we believe did touch down.

ROSA FLORES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: You're absolutely right. And I just talked to a resident who says that he witnessed this so he described beyond that sound that we normally hear individuals say, that freight train, he says he heard the snapping of the trees. He was outside his door. And then look, he says he heard this roof, and pieces of this roof just peel off. And of course, there was a family at this house at the time that this alleged tornado hit. And according to this neighbor, the family was able to leave, they were able to seek shelter, they have insurance so they're actually in a neighboring city in a hotel.

Now, I want to walk in this direction because this is the direction that according to the Horry County fire rescue that they believed the tornado traveled. And you can see that this electric box has already been repaired. You can probably hear the generators. Yes, there's generators here because electricity is still out, they're still trying to repair it.

But if you look closely at these homes, you'll see that pieces of the homes have been peeled off, others are bent or literally uprooted. There's uprooted trees or snapped trees, and then there is this dramatic picture that I want to leave you with, Erica, because if you look in the distance, you'll see that this entire tree was peeled off and it's pretty dramatic. And you'll see how the tornado also splashed the homes here in this neighborhood.

[12:45:06] Now this is in unincorporated Horry County. And just take a look at this and you'll see the force of this tornado.

Erica?

HILL: The power of nature. Rosa Flores for us in Myrtle Beach. Rosa, thank you.

I also want to bring in now Richard Neal from Southport, North Carolina, near the mouth of the Cape Fear River. And Richard, many people may be familiar with the Frying Pan Tower cam that you put up so we're able to watch some of the conditions there. You don't put it up though just for people to see the conditions, you actually have a bigger message that you want to get out there.

Why is it so important for you that people see that power of Mother Nature from your camera?

RICHARD NEAL, FRYING PAN TOWER OWNER (via telephone): You know, people all hear about the things going on with the ocean but until you actually see it yourself, you don't know what it's like and only can imagine it. This puts people in the eye of what's actually happening. So you can see the storm, you can see the waves, and almost feel the wind tearing the flag.

HILL: We can see conditions picking up there and we know the storm is certainly headed your way. Appreciate taking a minute. We'll continue to watch it there on your camera.

John, as you can see, this is not letting up here in Charleston. We're going to hand it back to you for now. We'll go dry off for a little bit but we'll continue our coverage with our colleagues up and down the coast here live on CNN.

KING: Appreciate that, Erica. And at every stop, you see the images, you understand the power of the weather, the power of the nature as you said.

Up next for us, President Trump's decision to go all-in on defending a false hurricane forecast.

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MAYOR PETE BUTTIGIEG (D-IN), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I'm really worried about -- I feel sorry for the president. And that is not the way we should feel about the most powerful figure in this country.

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[12:51:30] KING: As Dorian threatens the Carolinas today, President Trump's focus very much on Alabama and his ego.

A new series of tweets today, you see them there from the president, defending what the president knows is indefensible, his inaccurate claim that Alabama needed to brace for the hurricane. His own National Weather Service quickly pointed out the president was wrong. He didn't appreciate that, as he made clear yesterday.

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DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: They got lucky in Florida, very, very lucky indeed. We had actually our original chart was that it was going to be hit -- hitting Florida directly. And you see it was going to hit not only Florida but Georgia. It could have -- it was going toward the gulf. That was what we -- what was originally projected.

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KING: Now that was a real projection, that's true, but note the modification, a sharpie map edit to show the storm threatening Alabama, so that's a fake map originating from the real Oval Office. What's more, even the original sans sharpie was already days out of date by the time the president first warned about Alabama getting hit. The forecast that morning, when the president said Alabama was in the track, showed Dorian turning north along the Florida coast.

But for the president being right no matter what, Trump is everything else.

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TRUMP: I know that Alabama was in the original forecast. They thought it would get hit. The original path that most people thought it was going to be taking, as you know, was right through Florida where on the right would have been Georgia, Alabama, et cetera.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And that map that you showed today looked like it had a sharpie --

TRUMP: I don't know, I don't know, I don't know.

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KING: Three I don't knows there at the end as to who put the sharpie to the map. White House officials do not push back strongly when you suggest it was the president. I don't know, I don't know, I don't know. Alabama was in the path. When the president said Alabama was in the path was days after Alabama was no longer in the path, period. Those are the facts, period.

ZELENY: Right. And how you view this is how you view the Trump presidency probably. This is why it matters. It's more about Alabama. The president's words in times of national crisis, in times of international crisis, must matter. They must carry weight, they must be accurate. This is just one more example of, a, he must be at the center of everything. Why he was talking about Alabama and the forecast in the first place was not, you know, all that necessary. It's not really his job at that point. But b, just what the president says has to be credible. So all of these words, every sort of passing, you know, month of this administration, can you believe him, can you not believe him. And I think that's why this is the big deal not specifically the sharpie.

You know, I mean, a lot of people are saying the media is making too much of this. The reality is the president's words must be true. In this case, they're not.

KING: The media is making of it what it makes of it. Hogan Gidley, the president's deputy press secretary saying Trump is absolutely right we should focus on the hurricane. We're having this conversation 54 minutes into this program here where we focus most of our time on the hurricane, including the great reporting by CNN correspondents in the Carolinas and in the Bahamas and in Florida and elsewhere.

Those images are real. Those images are real. The president took a sharpie to a map or someone took a sharpie to a map on the president's behalf to perpetuate a lie.

OLORUNNIPA: And the president has actually been focusing much more on Alabama than in places where the hurricane actually went, the Bahamas and elsewhere in the Carolinas. You have to wonder sort of why the president was even bringing out this old map yesterday because that map was several days old at that point. The hurricane was not going through Florida the way the map showed, definitely not through Alabama. So you sort of -- have to wonder whether or not the president was just trying to cover his tracks and sort of edit what had already happened and say, you know, I was right in the first place by saying this could go to Alabama even though it was several days after he originally made the statement and several days after the hurricane had already turned.

[12:55:08] It's clear the president fixated on this issue and he's still tweeting about it today.

KING: But he re-stirs it. This came up a couple of days ago and then we did get back after brief mentions of that to covering the storm and then he brings it back because of why?

BARRON-LOPEZ: Well, the National Weather Service of Alabama even corrected him last weekend saying no. It is not -- we're not going to be in the path of the hurricane at all. But this is a classic example of when the president is faced with any element of criticism or fact- checking, that he doubles down and refuses to then say I was wrong and instead continues to attack the press and continues to attack anyone that corrects him.

KING: He bends the truth all the time, twists the truth all the time, and lies frequently. You would hope that during a hurricane or an approaching hurricane to your point, Jeff, people could have trust the word of the president of the United States. Not in this case.

Thanks for joining us on our INSIDE POLITICS and our special coverage of Hurricane Dorian. It continues with Brianna Keilar after a very quick break. Have a great afternoon.

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