Return to Transcripts main page

New Day

Young Swimmer Raises Diabetes Awareness; Second American Beheaded in ISIS Video; President Obama to Speak Ahead of NATO Summit

Aired September 03, 2014 - 08:30   ET

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

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Carly Lenett was born to be in the water. A competitive swimmer since she was four, this spunky little gal from outside Allentown, Pennsylvania, has her eye on the Olympics. A pretty impressive goal for a nine-year- old with type 1 diabetes. Her upbeat attitude really helps.

CARLY LENETT, 9-YEAR-OLD WITH TYPE 1 DIABETES: I'm no different from any other kid. I just need to watch sometimes what I eat.

GUPTA: Type 1 diabetes isn't a stranger to the Lenett family. Carly's dad Mitch also has it. The family was told their daughter had only a 7 percent chance of also contracting the disease, but the odds weren't with him.

MITCH LENETT, CARLY'S FATHER: It was really hard for me because I felt responsible.

GUPTA: But Mitch and Carly decided to turn a negative experience into a positive one. Two years ago, they began to raise money for the American Diabetes Association by starting a swimathon. Carly swam 100 laps and collected more than $9,000. Last year, 110 laps. Later this month, she will attempt three miles and hopes to add to the goal of $100,000 in five years.

C. LENETT: I'm really proud of myself because I know that I'm doing the right thing.

M. LENETT: Words can't describe how proud we are of Carly and her dedication and her commitment to empowering herself.

GUPTA: Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN, reporting.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN ANCHOR: Carly's not only swimming, she's doing the butterfly as we were commenting while we were watching it. That is no joke.

CHRIS CUOMO, CNN ANCHOR: Yes. She says she is not unlike other kids. Yes she is, she takes care of her body, she thinks about how to be healthy and that makes her very different in a very good way.

MICHAELA PEREIRA, CNN ANCHOR: Well done kiddo. BOLDUAN: (INAUDIBLE).

PEREIRA: Absolutely.

CUOMO: And that butterfly ain't easy. I'll tell you that right now.

So, what do we know about the government this morning. The government says that the ISIS video of Steven Sotloff's beheading is real. Now authorities are going to use it as their biggest clue. They're hoping it may lead them to the killers.

BOLDUAN: And President Obama, he's getting ready for his first big speech ahead of tomorrow's NATO Summit. We're going to look at what he's likely to say with Fareed Zakaria, coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CUOMO: So with ISIS putting out this video in their disgusting effort to brag about what they can do with their violence, did they also wind up giving us the biggest clue in the mission to take them down? Investigators are going over that video showing the death of American Steven Sotloff frame by frame and it turns out there is a lot here that can be useful. How do we know? CNN counterterrorism analyst Philip Mudd tells us exactly that.

What can you use this video to do to help catch these guys?

PHILIP MUDD, CNN COUNTERTERRORISM ANALYST: Chris, I think there are a few bits and pieces you can do. If I were back at the CIA, we'd have a team of people looking at this and breaking it down to see if we could identify, for example, where it came from. But to my mind, those questions are secondary in the broader fight.

There are two questions I've had that go beyond evaluating the video. The first is, waiting on the U.K. There is somebody in southern England who knows who this guy is, waiting for that person to come forward or for U.K. authorities to identify who the assassin is, not just because of his name, but because you're then going to ask, who paid for him? Who'd he touch in the U.K.? How did he get to Turkey, to Syria, to Iraq? He did get radicalized? Who did he radicalize? And then the critical question at the Hoover Building for the FBI is, did that potential network in the U.K. ever touch anybody in the United States?

The second question, Chris, and final is for the CIA, and that is, once you identify this guy, whether it's because he's identified in the U.K. or somehow through this video, do we have enough information on how people like him are brought into ISIS in Syria so if the president ever authorizes operations in Syria, you can eviscerate the command and control network that brings people like this in. The focus really isn't on him personally, it's potentially on a network of conspiracy in the U.K. and on a foreign fighter network in Syria.

CUOMO: So let's drill down on the latest that we found out about in the news. Three hundred and fifty more sets of boots. You've got over 1,000 Americans on the ground there, supposedly in Iraq, not fighting but helping. One, does that make sense? And two, how does that help the mission?

MUDD: I think that makes sense, but only if you put this in the context of a decision to continue this operation for the duration of the war against ISIS. Let's go back to yesterday and the day before. We had a strike against the remnants of the al Qaeda organization in Somalia. People in the United States, I think rightfully, have forgotten our focus on Somalia, where there's a pretty significant al Qaeda operation. That operation and the collection of intelligence of Somali goes back years. We lost American kids from Minneapolis, Minnesota, into Somalia in 2006-2007. So if we're putting troops on the ground against ISIS, which is a much larger organization than the al Qaeda affiliate we saw in Somalia, to my mind the focus is not just on whether 300 or 400 troops are in, it's whether we have the patience to use them to build an intelligence picture that we might be using if you take the Somali example in 2020, 2022, because uprooting ISIS is going to be a multiyear, maybe a decade-long process. Patience.

CUOMO: It's an interesting point. Many in your community say it is easy to take out ISIS. You can go in there on the ground. You could wipe out huge numbers. But the question is, do they come back? Yes, they come back. And will you sustain the effort to really take down their operation through the intelligence infrastructure you're suggesting? And many in your community say, no, we won't. That's why you keep seeing these guys coming back as the Taliban, as al Qaeda, as ISIS, as al Shabaab. Whatever you want to call them, they're the same population.

MUDD: That's right. I think we have to remember -- we focus on these guys as terrorists. This is not the right way to think about this organization. This is an organization that's inspiring people to commit a revolution to overturn what they view as corrupt regimes to try to get the United States, which they view as the head of the snake, to leave the region. They want to return this region to what they view as the golden age of Islam 13 centuries ago. We're not fighting a group, we're fighting the idea. An idea is -- the half-life of an idea is 10 years, 20 years, 30 years. Remember, we're already 13 years into our campaign against al Qaeda. Al Qaeda goes back to -

CUOMO: Yes, so the question becomes how do you defeat -

MUDD: Yes.

CUOMO: How do you defeat an idea? People also say, well, you can't. No, yes, you can, with better ideas, with different ideas. And that gets to -- not to something that's semantical, but something that's very practical. Where are the Saudis? Where is Jordan? You know, if what Syria really is, and this is part of our education in this as we figure out who we're fighting here, if they really are just this extension of the desire for a Sunni state that we saw with the Ba'athist Party under Saddam and Syria and Iraq, where are these other Arab nations condemning this type of extremism and fighting it themselves culturally?

MUDD: I think going back again to Somali, we have an example for how to defeat the idea because we can't do it. We do not - there's a lot of conversation in the United States about the war of ideas. Let me give you my personal opinion. We don't have a dog in that fight because we have no credibility in the community that is radicalized by these folks. As you say, that's got to be people like the Turks, the Saudis, three pieces of that. Number one --

CUOMO: Yes, where are they?

MUDD: They're talking about it. What the president is trying to do is get - to get them on the ground, which I think is exactly right. They're reticent to be there because they're afraid. Three pieces we need. The first is a unity of countries around the region to put some people on the ground so psychologically it's not an American fight, it's a middle eastern, it's an Arab fight. Number two, we need people to cooperate with the Sunni tribes because it's the local populations who are going to say, we don't want these foreigners in here beheading us.

CUOMO: Right.

MUDD: Forget about, frankly, an American journalist. And number three, we need American intelligence and drones. So besides the fight on the ground, we can take out command and control in places like Syria. And then we need about five or 10 years, because this is going to be a long, ideological fight.

CUOMO: You know it reminds of what Israel does for the U.S. Israel's great at intelligence, as people may or may not know. They're often providing intelligence for what's going on in the region to help, you know, plan for U.S. action. It's what the U.S. should be doing in this situation right now, having people like you, Professor Mudd, and other intelligence committee - you know, community people telling them what's going on and let the Arab community and let the Middle East kind of empower their own change. But I guess this is a bigger discussion for another day.

Mr. Mudd, thank you very much for giving us some perspective on what's going on.

MUDD: Sure.

CUOMO: Always appreciated.

Now - and, obviously, this is context for you as we get ready to hear from the president. He's going to give another speech now in Estonia after the press conference a couple of hours ago. We're going to look at what he needs to say about the escalating situation in Ukraine as well ahead of tomorrow's NATO Summit. And what is the plan for ISIS? There needs to be more meat on the bones. What's next?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BOLDUAN: In just about 15 minutes the president is scheduled to speak about the crisis in Ukraine. This is of course just ahead of the big NATO summit getting under way tomorrow, where allies are planning their response to Russia's military aggression, and so many other things are on the plate as well. So what will the president likely say? Let's discuss. We're joined once again by Fareed Zakaria, host of CNN's "FAREED ZAKARIA GPS" and John Avlon, CNN political analyst and the editor-in-chief of "The Daily Beast."

So this is the president's first big speech in heading overseas ahead of the NATO summit. I mean, he's laid out in his press conference this morning kind of the U.S. position on Russian aggression, but then you had this back and forth that we discussed earlier, Fareed, a cease-fire, no cease-fire, what is it? What do you think the president needs to be laying out as he heads into the NATO summit tomorrow?

FAREED ZAKARIA, HOST "FAREED ZAKARIA GPS": I think more than anything else he has to remind people why NATO exists to rally forces. This is a rhetorical effort and words matter. It's important that he gives substance to the idea that NATO is an alliance, that it will protect its own, that it cares about the stability of Europe, explain how Russia has really violated the principle of the post World War II order, not just the post Cold War Order. He has always been good, and I think he does need to reaffirm the idea that we want a negotiated settlement. We understand Russia has interests in the area. So far the problem is the president has said that, but Putin doesn't take him up on it. He keeps constructing off-ramps and Putin keeps driving the car even faster down the highway.

BOLDUAN: What will tip the balance, though? What will tip the balance?

CUOMO: That's the right question, because for something to tip the balance you have to have leverage, right? And the question is, what is the president's leverage? Because I have to tell you, hearing about these sanctions and how they're having an effect, yes, the effect seems to be that Russia gets more and more bold, John.

JOHN AVLON, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: Look, this comes to the issue, leverage comes from the credible threat of force, or Putin actually believing that he would go too far and create irreparable damage. Either an escalation beyond his intention or economic damage which would really rock his popularity in the country. And that's why I think the speech, rhetoric is important and its a language of diplomacy. He needs to assuage the fears, frankly, of people in the Baltics about a renewed expansionist Russia, but its not sufficient. He actually has to lay out specifics about what NATO is doing and will do to bolster and revive the idea of NATO for the 21st century in the face of an expansive Russia.

ZAKARIA: John, I agree with you but here is the problem. Russia spends, I looked at the math, it spends 18 times what Ukraine spends on defense. We can even arm the Ukrainians a little bit. At the end of the day when Putin said to Barroso, the head of the - -

BOLDUAN: I was just going to bring that up.

ZAKARIA: I could take Kiev in two weeks.

BOLDUAN: He wasn't kidding.

ZAKARIA: Unfortunately he's right. Even with American efforts, the truth of the matter is we're 8,000 miles away. They spend 20 times roughly what Ukraine spends. I agree with you that it's important, but it's symbolism.

BOLDUAN: But also, guys, that plays exactly to my question and get to your point in this, is that not only the United States being 8,000 miles away, how does the president then make the case to the American people that the NATO alliance, the U.S. involvement in the crisis in Ukraine matters?

AVLON: It's about the world order. It's about international stability. It's about the principle that borders don't get redrawn at barrels of guns and that is something that is eternal. We can forget European history and pretend that this is all abstract. People in Europe haven't forgot the recent history where you have these slow- roll invasions and false flag operations and these sorts of things. So one of the things you need to do is pierce the propaganda. You need to pierce the propaganda.

CUOMO: That's a good point. I think that we hear that a lot, and you heard it on the ground in Ukraine. People want the president of the United States to call Vladimir Putin on his b.s. That's what they want in that part. They want to hear him say, "You're a liar. You're in there, we know you're in there," and at least maybe, I know this is total caveman but you're dealing with some caveman mentalities here in terms of what's going on in Eastern Ukraine with Russia especially, to maybe you go at Putin man to man. I know that sounds unsophisticated - -

ZAKARIA: I don't know if you saw, he just said Russia has to stop pretending that it is not involved in Ukraine.

BOLDUAN: He did say that this morning. That's right.

ZAKARIA: And I think you're exactly right, that there needs to be a kind of piercing of the Russian propaganda bubble. I don't know whether this is possible but voice of America, maybe other Western statesmen so it doesn't seem like it's just Obama constantly pointing out that that what Russians are hearing about this conflict is all wrong, because one of the reasons Putin's popularity keeps rising - -

CUOMO: 80 percent.

ZAKARIA: Despite the fact that the sanctions are taking their price, what he's looking at is his poll numbers and part of those poll numbers is that Russians have no idea what's really happening.

CUOMO: Sure.

BOLDUAN: And John, let's also talk about, it may not be the top agenda item for the NATO summit, but it is one of the most top priorities for the president as well as the host of the NATO summit, David Cameron, is how do you tackle ISIS. How do you take ISIS on? This is an important moment for these world leaders to be able to come together and to try to craft possibly this regional strategy that President Obama continues to talk about and did again this morning.

AVLON: This is an essential moment for the West at a time when our values are facing challenges on multiple fronts, and what needs to be asserted is a kind of muscular multilateralism. That it's not the U.S. going it alone, as in the Bush years with unilateralism, but a multipolar response to a myriad of threats where the West, and particularly through NATO, can start being muscular and taken seriously again It's the vacuum of power, frankly, that has allowed Putin and ISIS to proliferate right now.

BOLDUAN: Well, and that's when laid out how complex it really is. Chris, you've been talking about it this morning, it can't just be the United States going in to destroy ISIS.

CUOMO: I mean, you have 28 members now, the North Atlantic part of NATO doesn't really apply anymore, you know, who is not in it is the Arab league. Help us understand, Fareed, why this problem, it is naive to say ISIS is not the U.S.'s problems. That's just cheap politics, but it really is more the ability to change for the Saudis, the Jordanians, the Turks, where are they, Fareed?

ZAKARIA: Well, let's talk about that. Where are they as states, why are they not in the forefront - -

CUOMO: Yes.

ZAKARIA: - - of creating an anti-ISIS alliance, an anti-ISIS policy? Where are they as a culture and a people? I feel very bad about the civilian deaths in Gaza and I'm glad that there are people raising that issue, but where are the people who were marching about civilian deaths in Gaza when they see civilian deaths caused by ISIS? 700, 800 beheadings of Muslims in Syria, not to mention the two Americans. When you have this kind of cancer that is growing in the Arab world, that is the principal engine of destruction and death for civilians who are Muslims in the Arab world, where is the outrage, where are the Saudi preachers who should be preaching against this? In fact what is happening is the Saudis are nice to us and want us to continue to treat them as a gas station. Meanwhile, quietly where does ISIS get its funds from? Its from Saudi individuals, Saudi charitable trusts from other Arabs.

CUOMO: True.

BOLDUAN: They are well financed, that is for sure. Fareed Zakaria is going to stick with us. John Avlon is here with us as well. We're going to be back after this. We are moments away from President Obama's big speech talking about all the issues we laid out here. We're going to bring it to you live. Carol Costello and Wolf Blitzer will be picking up our coverage right after this quick break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning to our viewers in the United States and around the world. I'm Carol Costello. Thank you so much for joining me.

(BEGIN VIDEOCLIP)

COSTELLO (voice-over): You are now looking at Tallinn, Estonia where nearly 2,000 people are packed into a concert hall in the capital city, waiting for President Barack Obama to speak about the crisis in Ukraine. The president's address comes on the heels of the news that there may be a cease-fire agreement between Ukraine and Russia, something Russia is now denying. Also, confirmation this morning that the video showing the beheading of American journalist Steven Sotloff is authentic. However, President Obama is going to focus solely this morning on the situation in Ukraine and Russia, and the United States continued support of the Baltic region. Mr. Obama will make the case to bolster security, intelligence and surveillance across the globe and be prepared for the future.

(END VIDEOCLIP)

COSTELLO (on camera): With more on the president's address, I'm joined now by Wolf Blitzer. He's in Washington. Good morning, Wolf.

WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, Carol. We're going to be covering the president's speech from all angles, CNN clearly using its expansive resources both here in the United States and indeed around the world to break down what President Obama will say. Our team of correspondents and analysts, they are all standing by. President Obama is expected to speak at any moment now, but earlier, as you pointed you, during a joint news conference with the president of Estonia he finally addressed what many have been waiting to hear. His personal reaction and the reaction of the United States to the beheading of the American journalist Steven Sotloff.

(BEGIN VIDEOCLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: Whatever these murderers think they'll achieve by killing innocent Americans like Steven, they have already failed. They've failed because, like people around the world, Americans are repulsed by their barbarism. We will not be intimidated. Their horrific acts only unite us as a country and stiffen our resolve to take the fight against these terrorists. And those who make the mistake of harming Americans will learn that we will not forget and that our reach is long and that justice will be served.

(END VIDEOCLIP)

BLITZER: That's the president just a little while ago at a news conference in Estonia. Now he is speaking before a group of some 2,000 people who have gathered at this concert hall in Estonia.