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New Day
Trump, Carson Dominating Polls with Combined 49 Percent; Interview with Sen. Angus King Regarding the Debt Ceiling; Late Night Comics Take Aim at Trump; Ahmed Mohamed at the White House. Aired 7:30-8a ET
Aired October 20, 2015 - 07:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
MICHAEL SMERCONISH, CNN HOST, "SMERCONISH": It's 49 percent of the Republican Party right now.
[07:30:03] And I think that's a reflection of who belongs to the GOP today. I think it's emblematic of what you see in Congress with the sway that's held by the Freedom Caucus. I think they're all related. But when half the GOP is tied up between two mavericks, very conservative, who've never held elective office, I think it tells you where the party is.
CHRIS CUOMO, CNN ANCHOR: Well, you can't expect Donald Trump to say he's not going to win with any group. Right? He's not in the business of saying that, you know. And I'll tell you what, they've issued a challenge. Carson and Trump have issued a challenge to that party. And until somebody is able to show, yes, I understand why you're upset but I have a better way to get it done than these guys, they're going to stay right where they are
ALISYN CAMEROTA, CNN ANCHOR: He also, as you know, Michael, said that stranger things have happened then a Carson/Trump ticket. Or a Trump/Carson ticket.
CUOMO: I don't know what, though. What ticket would have been even less orthodox than Trump/Carson. I don't know which one in history.
SMERCONISH: Hey, I would point out there's a real good analysis at "The National Journal" by our colleague Ron Brownstein who breaks down this phenomena by talking about the divide in the Republican party between blue collar and white collar Republicans. And he talks about how Donald Trump is running particularly well with those who are not college educated and that they've -- within the GOP -- and that they've absolutely coalesced, cemented around Trump. And it looks like this is going on for quite some time because the support that he holds there is very strong.
CAMEROTA: Michael Smerconish, we will talk to you again soon. Thanks so much for the insight.
SMERCONISH: Thanks, guys.
CAMEROTA: Michaela? MICHAELA PEREIRA, CNN ANCHOR: Is another government shutdown in the cards? Lawmakers are talking about long-term budget deal, but will all that talk turn into action? Ahead, we're going to speak with a senator, Senator Angus King, all about it.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[07:35:56] CUOMO: All right. You've got politics and then you have governing. And we have real issues. Members of the Republican and Democratic leadership are urgently trying to hash out a long-term budget deal, as well as come to an agreement on raising the debt ceiling. Can they work together or are we really looking at another government shutdown?
Senator Angus King is an Independent from Maine. He is on the Senate Budget Committee, the Select Committee on Intelligence, and the Committee on Armed Services. Senator, good to have you. You can answer every question I have this morning. The first one is do you believe a shutdown is in the cards?
SEN. ANGUS KING (I), MAINE: I hope not. I don't think so. But you put it exactly right, Chris, when you said we're talking about the relationship between politics and governing. This debt ceiling thing, for example, is 100 percent politics and has nothing to do with governing. It's a completely phony issue.
CUOMO: It plays to people that say we borrow too much as it is and then Republicans will say and now they want to raise the debt ceiling again. How is that a fake issue?
KING: Well, because the problem is it implies, most people think this is so the government can spend more. No, this is in order to enable us to pay the bills we've already incurred. Not raising the debt ceiling would be exactly like spending money for a month on your credit card, and then at the end of the month saying, eh, I don't think I'm going to pay it back. What would that do to your credit? What would that do to your financial situation?
The debt ceiling is to allow us to pay the bills we already have made. If it were to open the floodgates for more spending, I'd be on the other side of the issue. But that's not what it is. But that's -- people are confusing it and it ought to be called, instead of raising the debt ceiling, it ought to be called the "pay your bills" enactment. And that's the confusion that's out there.
It's a handy way for people to vote for spending, take credit for it back in their districts, and then vote against the debt ceiling and saying I'm a fiscal conservative. It's fake and it doesn't do the country any good.
What if an enemy said we're going to do something that's going to cause your interest rates to go up? It could cause a global financial meltdown. It will certainly cost you hundreds of thousands, maybe millions of jobs. We'd be having investigates up here about whose fault it is. Well, guess what? That's exactly what we're trying to do, or some are trying to do, to ourselves. It's ridiculous. CUOMO: How do you make it stop? How do you make the spending stop? How do you make government be more accountable and fiscally responsible?
KING: Well, I think that's -- now that is the real question. And the answer is we've got to stop borrowing. I agree with that. We're borrowing half a trillion dollars a year, digging a hole for our kids. I think that's wrong.
There are three things we have to do. We have to responsibly cut spending. We do have to, I believe, have some more revenues. And finally we have to do things that will grow the economy. It's not going to help the economy grow if we're cutting spending and things like R&D, infrastructure, highways, and education. That's a way to collapse your economy. So we've to look at that.
The real problem, by the way, Chris, with the budget is -- and as you mentioned I'm on that committee, I've been living that stuff for three years -- is not with what most people think of as federal spending. The Department of Agriculture, the Department of Defense, national parks, and those kinds of things. It's Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid. That's where the growth is. Why? Because health care costs are going up. They have been for 20 years. Faster than the rate of inflation. And, secondly, because we're aging. 10,000 people a day are qualifying now for Social Security and Medicare. That's a demographic reality.
Spending on domestic needs and even on defense are at the lowest level, as a percentage of our economy, for 50 years. So if people wanted to reduce the level of federal spending, they've done it. But attacking Head Start or the national parks or even the Department of Defense to try to control federal spending and ignoring two-thirds of the budget that's where the real growth is just isn't going to work.
CUOMO: All right, so that's one side of the argument. And we will see where it goes because obviously you've got your deadline looming.
[07:40:00] Another topic of the day, what is going on with all the hacking? This guy that was on our air this morning, you know, his voice was described, but he sounds like a dope, and yet he was able to hack, allegedly, the director of the CIA. Do you think that that happened? And if so, what is going on with our security on the Internet?
KING: I don't have -- I can't confirm either way about whether or not it happened but I know it can happen. One of the problems is, Chris, we're the most -- the good news is we're the most wired society on earth. We're the most advanced technologically. The bad news is that that makes us the most vulnerable.
I had a thing up in Maine recently for Maine businesses about cyber security. And, by the way, we hope to have a cyber security bill on the floor as early as today. It should have been some months ago. But, hey, I'm not going to argue. Let's try to get it done this week. But people have to be aware that there are all kinds of bad guys out there, whether they're hackers or crooks or foreign governments, that are trying to get into our system.
CUOMO: This guy says he smokes pot all day long and he's able, with a couple of buddies, to get in and get after the CIA director?
KING: Yes, if it's -- if the CIA director I presume may have a private e-mail address just like most people do, like you and I probably do, it was that was what they got in. I don't think there's any allegation that they got into any kind of CIA system.
But we all have to be more sensible. All of us get these e-mails from somewhere around the country that says you inherited $100,000, click here. We got to be smart about not doing that.
CUOMO: I'm still waiting on my money, by the way.
KING: Changing our passwords --
CUOMO: I had no idea I had relatives in Ghana.
(LAUGHTER)
KING: That's right. Well, also we got to change your passwords. I mean, this is -- we've got to get up to speed on the kind of basic Internet sensibility about how to protect ourselves from things like this. We are vulnerable; there's no doubt about it.
CUOMO: Last question. Are you ready to support Trump for president yet?
KING: Well, I think Michael made a really good point, that between Trump and Carson -- you notice I'm dodging the question --
CUOMO: Yes, very artfully.
KING: Very artfully. That's what I do. Trump and Carson together, 49 percent of Republican vote, neither one have ever served five minutes in public office. I think that says something very interesting and deep about the state of our politics and the state of the country.
They're -- People are distrustful. They're looking for a new voice. And I think you guys sometimes are spending too much time on Trump's issues. What does he say about September 11? What does he say about immigration? People don't vote for issues; they vote for people. And I think a lot of people are responding to Trump not because of what he's saying, but how he says it and the idea that, you know, he's not kidding people. He's giving it as it is. He's being himself.
It's very interesting. You've got Trump and Bernie Sanders who are getting a lot of support because of who they are. They're sort of feisty and people are looking for leaders and people that will make problems go away.
That's a little dangerous, though, Chris. Historically, throughout history, not only in this country but other places, when times get tough and people are unsure of themselves, they look for the man on the white horse. Somebody is going to come in and sort of take care of them. And that can be very dangerous, and dangerous for democracy because our system is based upon more than just one person having all the power.
CUOMO: Candor is something that has to be used the right way. Certainly that's something you're credited with very often.
Senator King, thank you very much. And we appreciate your tacit endorsement of Donald Trump on NEW DAY this morning.
(LAUGHTER)
KING: There you go, Chris. Run with it, buddy. Thank you.
CUOMO: all right, and we'll stay with you on the debt ceiling. It's an important conversation. We'll be back when the timeline gets even closer. Thank you, Senator.
Michaela.
PEREIRA: Well, as you just heard the senator discuss, the FBI and the Secret Service are investigating how hackers were able to breach the private e-mails of two of top U.S. intelligence officials. We're going to break down what the hackers did and what they plan to do.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[07:47:46] PEREIRA: The Republican presidential contest now a two-man race. According to the latest CNN/ORC poll, Donald Trump and Ben Carson with 27 and 22 percent respectively. They're well ahead of the other candidates amid a wave of voter discontent with Washington. That poll also shows Carly Fiorina tumbling 11 points. She saw a big jump after the CNN debate last month but questions arose about the facts that she used that night.
CAMEROTA: Pilots of U.S. fighter jets being warned by commanders not to react to Russian military planes in Syria. Officials say more Russian aircraft have been flying near American planes. Pilots have been told to follow standard aviation safety procedures. This comes as the U.S. and Russia near an agreement on flying safety and maintaining radio contact.
CUOMO: Planned Parenthood dumped from the state Medicaid program in Texas. Citing those hidden camera videos, Texas health officials claim Planned Parenthood is, quote, "no longer capable of performing medical services in a safe, legal or ethical manner." Planned Parenthood blasted the decision, calling it outrageous and political. A federal judge, it's important to note, blocked a similar move that was attempted in Louisiana, citing obvious concerns about a lack of any investigation or any due process.
PEREIRA: Probably a night that 14-year-old Ahmed Mohamed will never forget. The 14-year-old from Texas met President Obama briefly last night during the White House Second Annual Astronomy Night. You'll recall Ahmed was arrested after a clock he built for a school project was mistaken for a bomb. The teen said he's glad the president has his back. He was there with 300 other students, some 11 astronauts, and Bill Nye the Science Guy. It was their Astronomy Night.
CAMEROTA: That sounds cool.
PEREIRA: Didn't that the sound great?
CAMEROTA: Yes.
PEREIRA: Nice to be at the White House.
CAMEROTA: All right, meanwhile, late night hosts taking aim at Trump again. That's next.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CONAN O'BRIEN, LATE NIGHT HOST: Now Andy's guessing you're for him.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
[07:49:34]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PEREIRA: Late night comics targeting Donald Trump, scoring some big laughs. In case you missed it, here's what you missed.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TREVOR NOAH, HOST, "THE DAILY SHOW": Bush called Trump pathetic. All Trump will have to do to win this fight is do anything not pathetic.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He tweeted no, you're pathetic for saying nothing happened during your brother's term when the World Trade Center was attacked and came down.
CHRIS WALLCE, FOX NEWS HOST: Do you blame George W. Bush for 9/11?
DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDDIATE: Look, look. Jeb said we were safe with my brother. We were safe. Well, the World Trade Center just fell down. Now, am I trying to blame him? I'm not blaming anybody. But the World Trade Center came down. So when he said we were safe, that's not safe.
NOAH: Strictly within the factual confines of that sentence, Donald Trump is r --
(LAUGHTER)
NOAH: Donald Trump is r --
(LAUGHTER)
NOAH: He's not wrong.
O'BRIEN: Donald Trump is now saying that his immigration policies would have prevented 9/11.
(BOOING)
O'BRIEN: Trump is also claiming his hair would have kept the Titanic afloat.
(LAUGHTER)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PEREIRA: Good use of his own hair.
CAMEROTA: That's right, yes. Conan O'Brien has quite a head of hair himself. That's really funny.
CUOMO: Moving on a new CNN poll has Trump and Carson riding high again. But here's a question. Carly Fiorina, she really handed it to those guys in the debate. And now a huge tumble. What happened to her? We break down the numbers
[07:55:00]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CUOMO: Nearly half of Republicans throwing their support behind Donald Trump and Ben Carson.
PEREIRA: Is Vice President Joe Biden running for president?
TRUMP: How can he say we were safe under his brother? They knew an attack was coming. I'm leading in every single poll. Every single state.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Odom has started physical therapy.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: A medical chopper reportedly has flown into a hospital in L.A.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's very important that e gets around people that are part of his recovery.
DARTH VADER: Unfinish what you started.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The Force Awakens.
JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR, "EARLY START": The advanced ticket sales crashed the Internet.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANNOUNCER: This is NEW DAY with Chris Cuomo, Alisyn Camerota, and Michaela Pereira.
CUOMO: I think we should keep the music that way.
CAMEROTA: I think so too. It portends greatness. CUOMO: Good morning. Welcome to your NEW DAY. It is Tuesday October 20th, 8:00 in the East. That means it is time to go to school, Cha- Cha. Good morning, I love you. Kindergarten very important.
All right, so the message from Republican voters is clear. They want an outsider in the White House. A brand new CNN/ORC poll shows Donald Trump and Ben Carson dominating. That is the only word for it. That's what they're doing to the pack.
[08:00:02] Combined, they have support from nearly half of the Republican voters. Trump leading 27 to 22. Their closest competition is literally some 14 points back.
