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Panetta: Obama Has "Lost His Way"; Bill Clinton Campaigns in Arkansas; New Ebola Screenings at Airports; Nurse Contracts Ebola in Spain

Aired October 07, 2014 - 06:30   ET

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

MICHAELA PEREIRA, CNN ANCHOR: Thomas Eric Duncan remains in critical condition.

Meanwhile, a Spanish nurse has become infected after treating two Ebola patients in Madrid. She is the first person to contract the deadly disease outside of Africa.

New details in a manhunt for suspected cop killer Eric Frein. Authorities in Pennsylvania tell CNN that a handwritten letter thought to have been written by Frein details how he shot two officers then escaped. Officials say the letter does not offer a motive in the shooting. They are unsure whether the letter was left behind on purpose or rather by accident.

Breaking news for you, this year's Nobel Prize in physics being shared by three scientists, two from Japan and one from UC-Santa Barbara who represented create an energy-efficient and environmentally friendly LED light. The committee says the trio succeeded where everybody else failed with the blue light emitting diode.

Another situation for Apple, they find themselves in a hairy situation. Yes, I'm talking about hair-gate. The phenomenon where the iPhone 6 tends to catch the hair when you're on it, and pull it. Apparently, guys are even, guys with beards, even saying the phone is doing a number on their stubble.

The issue not surprisingly spotting these fake ads on the subject. Some are saying it's all just a ruse. Try to see if you -- apparently it's between the glass and the case.

CHRIS CUOMO, CNN ANCHOR: Is this the 6?

PEREIRA: That's the 6. I brought it out as a prop.

ALISYN CAMEROTA, CNN ANCHOR: Thank you.

CUOMO: Oh, all right. I was going to say, because I thought were you devoted to another maker.

PEREIRA: I am.

CUOMO: You know what the problem is?

CAMEROTA: What? CUOMO: I have no hair on my face, as an insult to all Italians.

(CROSSTALK)

CUOMO: Hello, boom. Hello?

PEREIRA: What people are laughing at are if you just used texts, you wouldn't have a problem. Phones are so old-school if you're using them as actual phones.

CUOMO: I'm not feeling. Clearly it's not true. We'll have to commit it to science, and by that I mean, of course, meteorologist Indra Petersons.

Her map is swirling with colors. That's never good.

INDRA PETERSONS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Not a good sign. Definitely, actually, we're talking from the east to west, out there today, even the threat for severe weather into the northeast. We'll start with what's going on out west and keep in mind we have tropical storm Simon out there.

So, we do have the concern that we could see some flooding as the system gets closer into the desert southwest. All the way to the Northeast, look at the elements coming together. We have the jet stream, we have the cold front, we have the low.

We have the warm air. We know what that means. It's a concern for severe weather today, including New York City, guys, Long Island, down through Atlantic city also including the threat for even an isolated tornado. Something we're going to be seeing most likely through the overnight hours, 2:00 or 5:00 in the morning really in through tomorrow.

Otherwise, Mississippi Valley, it's been busy. It's going to be staying busy, still looking at lightning and thunder throughout the day. Even some heavier amounts of rain into your region. But temperature-wise, very easy to see where it's going to be cool and where it's going to be warm. Stay to the north, to the nice chilly like, close to Canada, down to the south, definitely warm. That's going to be staying, very easy to see the divide. Notice the temperatures in Minneapolis, 58 is your high, meanwhile, still looking for mid-90s down South.

Just keep in mind tonight, more like tomorrow morning, we have the blood moon out there definitely send us pictures at CNN iReporter, tweet @IndraPetersons. We will show them tomorrow, on your show, guys. So, for us, it's technically tomorrow. A lot of people say it's tonight.

CAMEROTA: OK, got it.

PETERSONS: When you wake up, right?

CAMEROTA: Yes, the moon last night was also impressive.

PETERSONS: Beautiful, right?

CAMEROTA: Big.

PETERSONS: It gets even better.

CUOMO: Red glow comes from light bent from all sunrises, sunsets on Earth. And why doesn't it always happen? There are always sunrises.

PETERSONS: Literally looking at it going, passing through the shadow of the earth. So, it's like all the sunrises and sunsets at once make it look orange. It's kind of cool, huh?

CAMEROTA: Cool.

(CROSSTALK)

CAMEROTA: Thanks, Indra.

All right. A former top aide is turning on President Obama. Leon Panetta questioning the president's passion to lead and insisting the commander-in-chief has, quote, "lost his way."

CUOMO: Oh, boy.

And speaking of politics, Bill Clinton out on the hustings, hitting the campaign trail. Does he still have the touch? Can he keep a key Democrat Senate seat safe?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TOM PANETTA, FORMER DEFENSE SECRETARY: The first four years in the time I spent there, I thought he was a strong leader on security issues. But these last two years, I think he kind of lost his way. You know, it's been a mixed message, a little ambivalence in trying to approach these issues and kind of clarify what the role of the country is all about.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CUOMO: And that is the nice part from Leon Panetta. He has had some of the heaviest friendly fire that we've seen in the Obama administration. This comes from a friend and a respected one at that.

In new memoir, the former CIA chief and defense secretary slams the president on Iraq, Syria and his stomach for leadership on foreign policy issues.

CAMEROTA: And, you know, coming up in our 8:00 a.m. hour, CNN's Gloria Borger is going to sit down with Panetta.

But, first, let's discuss all of this with CNN political commentator and Republican strategist, Kevin Madden, and CNN political commentator and Democratic strategist, Paul Begala. Paul is a senior adviser to the super PAC Priorities USA Action. Gentlemen, thank you so much for being with us.

Kevin, let me start with you.

Panetta says that President Obama, quote, lost his way. I mean, Panetta was a trusted insider, obviously. This has to hurt the president.

KEVIN MADDEN, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Yes, that's what is so difficult about this type of criticism. It's going to make it hard for the White House to dismiss. They're good at dismissing him when it comes to an obvious Republican partisan. But this is somebody who was inside the cabinet, who's very well-versed in this president's approach to making decisions.

And so that is, that type of criticism from someone so close is really devastating for the White House to dismiss. You know, it seems to me that Panetta is making this criticism first because he's a public servant. He believes that this type of information has to get out to the public.

But secondly, it seems to me that he's trying to get the president to change his course, over these next two years. Given that he's going to be, he's going to have to continue to face these decisions.

CUOMO: Kevin Madden is loving himself some Panetta this morning, Begala, this is what his guys have been saying all along. It's better to hear it from the side you're actually attacking. Yes, he's selling a book. Yes, he's trying to define his legacy.

But, boy, this is someone who was heavily respected. Put in key positions, you got Iraq wrong, you got Syria wrong. And the reason you got it wrong is you don't have the stomach for it.

How do you deal with that, Mr. Begala?

PAUL BEGALA, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: First, I'm a little conflicted. Leon is an old friend of mine. He's a former colleague. He's a terrific guy, a great public servant. I hope he sells a million books.

I think if I were advising the White House, I think they're doing it -- I would say just lay low. Hope some other news crisis takes it over. You don't want to attack a man, first of all, like Panetta who has got a great reputation. Second, a man you had such confidence in his judgment that you put him in charge of the CIA and in charge of the Pentagon. Kind of hard now to thrash Leon.

So, I would never advise them to go after Leon. I think you can argue the merits of the criticism. But Kevin is right, this is going to hurt, there's no fire like friendly fire.

CAMEROTA: Guys, listen to this, because this is one of the issues, the Democrats and Republicans have always sparred over and it's the status of forces agreement. Why President Obama didn't leave more U.S. forces behind in Iraq, and there's always been a debate about it, because the administration always said well al Maliki wouldn't let us do that.

So, here in Panetta book, he writes, "To my frustration the White House coordinated the negotiations, but they never really led them. Officials there seemed content to endorse an agreement if state and defense could reach one, but without the president's active advocacy. Al Maliki was allowed to slip away.

Paul, I want to stick with you for a second. It sounds like he's agreeing with Republicans' take on this.

BEGALA: It does, I would like to hear from other voices involved in it. I do think it's wrong for Americans to blame our country for al Maliki's collapse in Iraq.

But I wasn't there, I don't know. So this is again, it would be easy if it was Kevin's old boss, Mitt Romney. I could say, it's politics, this is not.

Now, there could be some bureaucratic CYA, which is a technical term I learned when I was in the government. I think you got to take it seriously. I want to hear from other voices.

CUOMO: Right.

BEGALA: I do think fundamentally Maliki was a terribly flawed leader and that's why we don't have a status of forces agreement.

CUOMO: Madden, let me try -- I know that you want to do nothing to disrupt the Panetta narrative right now. But let me just try and prevail upon your sympathies for a moment here.

Do you remember Leon Panetta, being an outspoken advocate to keep troops in Iraq? Do you remember him being an outspoken advocate for really arming Syria, for backing the president's decision or being against the president's decision to bomb in Syria last year?

MADDEN: Well, I think that there are two ways that the defense secretaries do that. They fight those battles internally, inside the administration, and there has been reports, people have said that Leon Panetta was somebody who was a very active proponent of making sure we didn't pull out of Iraq too soon.

But then there's the public part of it and publicly, he has to remember, his job is not to set policy. But to execute on the policy that the president makes.

And, again, I think that's why you see this criticism now. I think that Leon Panetta believes as a public servant, it's important that the public knows about these internal debates and that it seems like he and other cabinet officials, even Hillary Clinton and even Robert Gates, have also tried to, tried to -- it seems like they have tried to change the course of the president's decision-making by making these charges public.

CUOMO: That's the nice spin and timing.

CAMEROTA: That is a nice spin.

CUOMO: That's the nice timing spin.

CAMEROTA: I want to ask Paul, is this out of altruism and the goodness of his heart and public service? Why couldn't he have waited two years to write this book, Paul?

BEGALA: Right. Well, we all do what we do for a multitude of motives, OK? And Leon is a very altruistic, terrific public servant, but, here's (INAUDIBLE) with Kevin, I don't like these critical kiss- and-tell memoirs while the president is still serving.

Now, I'm being consistent. When I worked for President Clinton, I don't know if you remember, Cuomo, but there was this tiny little Greek guy I used to work with. One of my very best friends of my life, I didn't like it when George wrote a book attacking his former boss and mine, President Clinton. And I didn't like it when Scott McClellan, Bush's former press secretary, attacked Bush while Bush was still president.

So, I'm being consistent here. I do wish Leon would wait.

CUOMO: And there's an unwritten rule. Republican or Democrat, usually you stick with your own until they're out of office, that's not that unusual.

BEGALA: That's -- that would be my rule. Look, I -- or even more, at least wait until the guy finishes his term or wait until he gets his memoir and then maybe respond to the president's memoir. I don't like doing this while the guy is still in office. He's got enough problems there.

CAMEROTA: Yes, that doesn't sell as many books, though, Kevin.

MADDEN: Just full disclosure to Begala's point, I criticized Scott McClellan as well when he did it. I think with Leon Panetta, the reason he's doing this is because of the nature of the threat that we're choosing right now, and the president just seems disinterested. He said it himself, he's too cautious, he's too academic in his approach to these threats right now, and he feels the need to try and change the course of the president's actions.

CUOMO: And it's also - - he's hitting him with a jab and then a hook, because he talks about Hillary Clinton almost as a point of contrast, Paul, right? I mean, oh, and she would be a good president, because she does do these- - those Clintons get things done. It was really the one-two he's giving him here.

BEGALA: Yes, this calls to mind my uncle George's rule, which is, God gave us family, so we wouldn't have to fight with strangers. I would hate to see the family fight going on here between the Clinton wing and the Obama wing. I don't think it's helpful politically.

CAMEROTA: Alright, guys. Paul Begala, Kevin Madden, thanks so much for the analysis.

MADDEN: Great to be with you.

CAMEROTA: Great to see you.

CUOMO: And, again, the reason Paul can't go after him is, you know, one, personal, but also because this guy ran the CIA, ran the Pentagon, Secretary of Defense- -

CAMEROTA: He knows where Paul lives?

CUOMO: That's right, that's right. He knows where everybody lives, and he has to be respected. And that's why we're going to have later on in the show, you're going to hear from Leon Panetta on the president's ISIS strategy right now, okay?. Hear from him what the president got wrong, what he got right and what he believes needs to be done. It's a significant one-on-one interview with CNN's Gloria Borger.

CAMEROTA: Alright, does Bill Clinton still have the magic touch? The former president hitting the campaign trail, but can he keep a closely watched Senate seat in Arkansas from turning red in November?

CUOMO: And these tougher screenings that are going to come at the airports to try to keep Ebola out. If the passengers are still allowed to fly here from West Africa, is it going to really make a difference? Travel bans, some big airlines are doing them, certainly out of other countries, what about here? Dr. Anthony Fauci of the National Institutes of Health joins us with that debate next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CUOMO: Ah, you hear the jingle, you know what that means, "CNN Money Time." Chief business correspondent, Christine Romans in our Money center. She knows what's going on with the markets.

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN CHIEF BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: I know that.

CUOMO: And, I have to tell you, Christine, you've been cautious and the waves are starting to pick up a little bit on Wall Street.

ROMANS: Yes, they are. You know, it looks like a down day on Wall Street this morning. U.S. stock futures are lower, big decline in Europe this morning. Markets there falling, disappointing data out of Germany. That's Europe's largest economy. So some concerns about weakness in Europe, and that's spilling over here. Big banks may face another round of charges, "The New York Times" this morning reporting that U.S. prosecutors aim to file against at least one bank by the end of the year, maybe more. The charges? They conspired with foreign banks to alter the price of currencies. So, more trouble for U.S. banks.

And New York City is the most innovative city in America. That's according to a new project on CNN money that tracks urban innovation. "CNN Money" surveyed more than 50 cities in U.S. to find the city that tackled issues with the most creative solutions. Also in the top five, Boston, Portland, Chicago and Detroit. For the complete list, check out the most innovative cities at CNNmoney.com. Guys?

CAMEROTA: Thanks so much.

ROMANS: You're welcome.

CAMEROTA: Former president Bill Clinton is heading home to Arkansas on a rescue mission of sorts.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CAMEROTA (voice-over): He'll be headlining several rallies and campaigns today, stops today, to help top Democrats in the state keep their jobs on election day. Senior political correspondent Brianna Keilar is in Little Rock with more.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And President Bill Clinton!

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It's Bill Clinton's biggest mid-term push, a four-stop, two-day swing through his home state.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Ladies and gentlemen, the 42nd governor of Arkansas, Bill Clinton.

KEILAR: As Republican challengers hammer Democrats as proxies for President Obama, Clinton is pushing back.

BILL CLINTON, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: They want you to make this a protest vote. All three of these races, they're saying you may like these guys, but hey, you know what you have to do. You have to vote against the president. Be faithful to the true heritage of your state. Don't vote for what they tell you you have to be against, vote for what you know you should be for.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Your next word is Pryor.

KEILAR: But with Obama's popularity hovering around 30 percent here, the GOP and outside groups are capitalizing on it.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Pryor, o-b-a-m-a.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Close enough.

KEILAR: Arkansas's November 4th ballot reads like cards from Bill Clinton's 1980's rolodex. Mark Pryor, one of the most vulnerable Democrats in the Senate, was just a boy when he first met Clinton.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Can I get a selfie? Right? Let's do it! Let's do it!

KEILAR: Former Congressman Mike Ross, now running for governor, was Clinton's driver when he ran for governor in 1982. These Democrats are hoping Clinton's popularity rubs off on them. Registered voters say a Clinton endorsement is the most important Democratic nod when evaluating a candidate, far more than even a Hillary Clinton stamp of approval, according to a recent poll.

PROF. GARY WEKKIN, UNIVERSITY OF CENTRAL ARKANSAS: The Republican successes here are so recent that one cannot say that the worm has turned. The worm is still alive.

KEILAR: But the political climate is definitely trending red in this state, as Democrats hang their hopes on an unreliable voting block.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: How do Democrats win in Arkansas?

CLINTON: Do more of this. If young people vote, these people will win. They got a good poll today.

KEILAR: Brianna Keilar, CNN, Conway, Arkansas.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CUOMO: So there you have it, Bill Clinton back in his home state, the people love that for sure. The impact? We'll see.

CAMEROTA: He loves it.

CUOMO: He does.

CAMEROTA: He loves being on the campaign trail.

CUOMO: And hopefully they love him, at least for that Senate Democrat seat.

Alright, that's one of many stories we're following this morning. A lot of news to get to, so let's do it.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: As I've said from the start of this outbreak, I consider this a top national security priority.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Thomas Eric Duncan is now getting an experimental treatment that doctors hope might save his life.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We want to do anything possible to increase his chances of survival.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: A nurse's assistant in Spain has become the first person to contract Ebola outside of West Africa.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No one is safe in America, no one is safe anywhere else until that outbreak in West Africa is gotten under control.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: 19-year-old Mohammed Hamzah Khan was on his way to join ISIS.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There are other Americans that are being recruited. They've been trained to fight and kill and that's a serious situation.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CAMEROTA (on camera): Good morning, everyone. Welcome back to NEW DAY. I'm Alisyn Camerota, joined of course by Chris Cuomo. Great to be working with you. We begin with critical new developments in the battle against Ebola.

(BEGIN VIDEOCLIP)

CAMEROTA (voice-over): President Obama promising enhanced new screenings for the virus at airports here in the U.S. and in West Africa. No specifics, though, yet. As we learn more about the first person to contract Ebola outside of Africa, that's a nurse in Spain, testing positive for the virus after treating two Ebola patients in Madrid.

CUOMO (voice-over): Now, in Dallas, we're still watching the situation with Mr. Duncan, the Liberian man infected with Ebola, reportedly at death's door this morning. Doctors are pinning their hopes on an experimental drug originally manufactured for diseases like smallpox.

(END VIDEOCLIP)

CUOMO (on camera): Let's go live to Dallas and bring in senior medical correspondent, Elizabeth Cohen. There had been talk, Elizabeth, about hey, where's the ZMapp, where are the treatments, will he get it? They say they've run out, how hopeful are they that this drug could work?

ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN SENIOR MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Right. As you mentioned, Chris, they ran out of ZMapp, the drug that was given to other patients. You know, there's a tentative hope here. He didn't get this other experimental drug until ten days after getting sick. That doesn't sound like much, but for Ebola, that's quite a long time, because the disease moves so quickly. His family is praying that it's still not too late.

(BEGIN VODEPTAPE)

OBAMA: I consider this a top national security priority.

COHEN (voice-over): U.S. efforts to keep Ebola out of the country now ramping up with President Obama announcing the development of new screenings at U.S. airports to detect those who may be carrying the virus.

OBAMA: The procedures and protocols that are put in place must be followed.

COHEN: What those protocols are, yet to be determined. A federal official tells CNN it could include temperature readings for passengers arriving from infected countries, something that takes place now as passengers leave those countries.

This, amid a frightening new development. A Spanish nurse's assistant becomes the first person to contract Ebola outside of Africa in this outbreak. The woman helped treat a Spanish missionary and priest, both contracting Ebola in West Africa and dying after returning to Spain. An investigation now under way to find everyone the assistant came into contact with while contagious.

This, as Thomas Eric Duncan, the Ebola patient seen here when he arrived in Dallas on September 20th, is now being given an experimental drug called Brincidofovir, originally developed to treat viruses like smallpox. Duncan couldn't be given ZMapp, because there's no more left. That drug was used on two Emory University patients who survived. Duncan remains in critical condition, but his family hopes for the best.

WILFRED SMALLWOOD, HALF BROTHER OF TOMAS ERIC DUNCAN: We know he's going to be okay. When they start treating him with drugs, he'll be fine.

COHEN: The fifth American to contract Ebola, NBC cameraman Ashoka Mukpo, strong enough to walk off a plane Monday in Omaha from Liberia. Health officials at the Nebraska Medical Center where he's being treated say they're preparing for the worst as the disease runs its course.

DR. BRAD BRITIGAN, INFECTIOUS DISEASE SPECIALIST: In most cases, the symptoms tend to progress over a period of time.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CUOMO: Alright, so we'll keep watching. We hope the best for Mr. Duncan. And, in the spirit of optimism, Elizabeth, what do we know about the contacts of Mr. Duncan? You said nine days is a long time for Ebola, because usually it would show, it moves quickly. Well, they haven't had contact for him for at least nine days and they're healthy. So, is this a good sign at least?

COHEN (on camera): You know what, Chris, it is, actually a really good sign. So on average, people, when they get sick, they get sick about eight to ten days after having contact with an infected person and it's been about nine days since these people have had contact with him. So they are getting out of that most dangerous period. Now, they will be followed for 21 days, just to be sure, but they are getting out. Again, as I said, at that most dangerous period. Chris?

CUOMO: Alright, Elizabeth, thank you very much. We'll check back in with you. Alisyn?

CAMEROTA: Alright, Chris. Joining us is Dr. Anthony Fauci. He's the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases at the National Institute of Health. Dr. Fauci, thanks so much for making time for us this morning. We want to start with the enhanced travel screenings that President Obama talked about yesterday. He said he wants increased airport screenings at the source, and here at U.S. airports. Can you help us understand realistically, what that would look like at U.S. airports?

DR. ANTHONY FAUCI, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL INSTITURE OF ALLERGY AND INFECTIOS DISEASES, NIH: Sure. Right now currently we have what's called exit screening.