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Man Confesses to Killing 4-Year-Old in Road Rage Incident; Lawmakers to Grill Clinton on Benghazi Attack; Trump Makes Big Push for Evangelical Voters; Mets Sweep Cubs, Advance to World Series. Aired 6-6:30a ET

Aired October 22, 2015 - 06:00   ET

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

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: This morning, Hillary Clinton goes before the House Benghazi Committee.

[05:58:40] HILLARY CLINTON (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Four two-hour rounds of questioning. I really don't know what to expect.

TOM FOREMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: She will have more experience with congressional hearings than most of the people there.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It looks like some sort of medical emergency. It's not an accident.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Concession in a fatal road rage shooting.

GORDEN EDEN, ALBUQUERQUE POLICE CHIEF: This is a complete disrespect of human life.

VERONICA GARCIA, MOTHER OF LILLY GARCIA: And she's going to be missed by a lot of people.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And strike three called! We haven't been to the World Series since 2000, and the Mets are on their way back.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ANNOUNCER: This is NEW DAY with Chris Cuomo, Alisyn Camerota and Michaela Pereira.

CHRIS CUOMO, CNN ANCHOR: The theme this morning is destiny. You've got the Mets looking forward in baseball. You've got Hillary Clinton and this Benghazi Select Committee.

ALISYN CAMEROTA, CNN ANCHOR: I thought you were over that (ph).

CUOMO: It's kind of obvious in front of us this morning.

Good morning to you. Welcome to your NEW DAY. It is Thursday, October 22, 6 a.m. in the East. And there's just no way else to say it. Today is a big day.

Hillary Clinton's campaign for president, the state of political play, both may well change in status, after the former secretary of state testifies before the controversial House Benghazi Committee this morning.

What do we know to this point? What is Clinton responsible for in the security lapse that led to the deaths of four Americans? And is this committee able to conduct a fair search for answers? We're going to tackle all of these questions in a moment.

CAMEROTA: OK. But, we begin with breaking news for you. The manhunt is over. Authorities in New Mexico arresting a man who has confessed to gunning down a 4-year-old girl during a road rage incident.

Police say the suspect opened fire on a pickup truck, killing Lilly Garcia in the backseat of her father's truck. CNN's Ana Cabrera has all of the breaking details for us. What have you learned Ana?

ANA CABRERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Alisyn.

Authorities say it was an anonymous tip that ultimately led them right to their suspect. He was taken in for questioning without incident and then arrested more than 24 hours after that fatal road rage encounter that's now left a family shattered.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CABRERA (voice-over): Breaking overnight, the lengthy manhunt in New Mexico ends with an arrest in that heartbreaking road rage that left 4-year-old Lilly Garcia dead.

GARCIA: She just grabbed your heart. The first ten minutes you met her, she would grab your heart. And she's going to be missed by a lot of people.

CABRERA: Now 32-year-old Tony Torrez is in police, custody thanks to an anonymous tip. Police say Torrez confessed to killing Lilly on westbound Interstate 40 in Albuquerque Tuesday afternoon.

EDEN: This should have never happened. This is a complete disrespect of human life.

CABRERA: The deadly encountering unfolding over two miles. Two vehicles cutting each other off on the highway. The drivers exchanging words. Moments later, shots ringing out. Torrez pulling out a gun and opening fire on the red truck Lilly's father Alan was driving.

CALLER: I'm not sure what's going on. There's a red Ford F-150 in the center median. And it looks like some sort of medical emergency. It's not an accident, but there's an adult holding what looks like an unresponsive child.

CABRERA: A fatal gunshot to the head striking Lilly, who was in the car next to her 7-year-old brother, picked up from her second day of school.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The caller is advising his daughter is breathing.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: 10-4, and that was the one with the head injury?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: That's 10-4.

CABRERA: Lilly was rushed to the hospital where she was later pronounced dead.

GOV. SUSANA MARTINEZ (R), NEW MEXICO: I just can't express how sad it is to know that something as simple as going down the freeway, and your child dies because of road rage.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CABRERA: Torrez is now accused of murder, child abuse, and several other charges. He's currently being held on a $650,000 cash only bond -- Alisyn.

CAMEROTA: What a tragic and terrible story, Ana. Thank goodness, they have a suspect in custody.

Now to our other top story. Democratic frontrunner Hillary Clinton expected to face a grilling this morning when she testifies before the House Benghazi committee. What will they ask her? CNN senior political correspondent Brianna Keilar live in Washington with the preview. What are we expecting, Brianna?

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: We're expecting many unanswered questions. That's what Republicans will say. Democrats will say they've all been answered by seven previous congressional investigations.

The goal here, according to the GOP chairman of this committee, Trey Gowdy, is for this to be the final and definitive accounting, investigation into what happened during this 2012 terrorist attack in Benghazi. But Democrats who support Hillary Clinton say this is just a political hatchet job. And a new poll shows that the public is more inclined to agree with Democrats.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

HILLARY CLINTON (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I really don't know what to expect.

KEILAR (voice-over): This morning, just hours away from Hillary Clinton's highly anticipated Benghazi hearing...

CLINTON: They ended up becoming a partisan arm of the Republican National Committee.

KEILAR: A new CNN/ORC poll reveals the public agrees with the Democratic frontrunner. Seventy-two percent believe the investigation is being used for political gain.

REP. KEVIN MCCARTHY (R-CA), MAJORITY LEADER: We put together a Benghazi special committee. A select committee. What are her numbers today? Her numbers are dropping.

KEILAR: Two numbers of the GOP seemingly admitting to as much.

REP. RICHARD HANNA (R), NEW YORK (via phone): This may not be politically correct, but I think that there was a big part of this investigation that was designed to go after people.

KEILAR: But committee Chair, Republican Trey Gowdy, strongly denies he's playing politics.

REP. TREY GOWDY (R-SC), CHAIRMAN, SELECT COMMITTEE ON BENGHAZI: I have told my own Republican colleagues and friends, shut up talking about things that you don't know anything about it.

CLINTON: Was it because of a protest? Or was it because of guys out for a walk one night and decided they'd go kill some Americans?

KEILAR: That anger and frustration palpable in Hillary Clinton's last testimony before Congress more than two years ago.

CLINTON: What difference at this point does it make?

KEILAR: A moment likely still fresh in the minds of the Republican- led committee members.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Madam Secretary, you let the consulate become a death trap.

KEILAR: Yet after three years of accusations, seven investigations, thousands of pages of e-mails and hours of testimony, Republicans say they still have unanswered questions.

On September 11, 2012, Islamic extremists overran the U.S. consulate in Benghazi, setting it ablaze and then storming the nearby CIA annex, killing U.S. Ambassador Chris Stevens, as well as an information officer and two former Navy SEALs. But is Clinton ultimately to blame for the terror attack and deadly security lapse? That's what some Republicans say is still unknown.

[06:05:21] CLINTON: With specific security requests, they didn't come to me. I had no knowledge of them.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KEILAR: Now, this committee, the Benghazi Select Committee, is the one that uncovered Hillary Clinton's sole use of private e-mail and the fact that she housed her e-mail, stored her e-mails on a private server in her New York home.

But one of the aims of this -- of this committee hearing is to question Clinton's judgment. Also what you heard there in the last 2013 hearing, on why this mission was not more secure. Republicans say it's a very valid question. Democrats say that this is something that has been asked and answered -- Chris and Alisyn.

CUOMO: All right. Well, there's certainly very much two sides to this, maybe three sides to this, Brianna. So let's take a look at it right now. We're going to bring in David Roth, the founder of Correct the Record. That is a pro-Hillary Clinton super PAC. And we have Ben Ferguson, friend of the show, CNN political commentator and the host of "The Ben Ferguson Show" here on NEW DAY.

Gentlemen, as you both know, we use the -- use arguments, not insults, and everybody gets a chance to speak. So, let's begin with you, Mr. Ferguson. Lay out the argument for why this hearing is necessary today.

BEN FERGUSON, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Families still don't have answers to what happened that night. They were told they would were going to give -- be given answers from Hillary Clinton. And then they've been locked out of the answers that they want. And they believe that this matters, because their loved ones died. It's really that simple for them.

And I think for Trey Gowdy, I think it is that simple. You want to find out what happened and where there were lapses and why was there not better security on the anniversary of 9/11. Why was there this made-up story afterwards, that this happened because of a video on YouTube, which was not true?

Why was it that people couldn't answer their call and their request for help, and these -- at the time of need, before they died. If you're a mom, you don't care about the politics of this. You buried your son, who was serving this country. And you deserve to get better answers than "No one will call me back and no one will talk to me."

With the argument, they said, "Well, you're not direct family." You birthed a child, for goodness sakes, and you buried your son. That's not a good enough answer for that mom. And that's what I think this matters for Trey Gowdy.

CAMEROTA: OK, David. You heard there Ben lay out the three sort of overarching questions the Republicans don't think have been answered. Why wasn't there better security? Why was there this story about the video? Why wasn't there a quicker response? Do you believe that those have already been answered?

DAVID ROTH, FOUNDER, CORRECT THE RECORD: Yes, they absolutely have been. This is a discredited and illegitimate investigation. We know that seven congressional committees and an independent statereview by the State Department all concluded -- all answered those questions. They answered many more. And they all concluded that Secretary Clinton had no wrongdoing in this matter. So she's being brought up here and the questions that have asked have already been answered, except for ones that are political cheap shots.

CAMEROTA: Hold on.

ROTH: In a sentence, what is the answer? Why wasn't there better security?

ROTH: Well, look, the security arrangement is ultimately the responsibility of the ambassador on the ground, as all these inquiries have found. And so...

CAMEROTA: But Ambassador Stevens was asking for more security.

FERGUSON: He requested more security.

ROTH: There was a security lapse here, and that's just what the prior investigations have found. But that has nothing to do with hauling Hillary Clinton back in...

FERGUSON: Are you blaming...

ROTH: No, no.

FERGUSON: Are you blaming the ambassador for his own death?

ROTH: No, no. I'm saying the Republicans in their own words have said this is a partisan exercise, just trying to drive down Hillary Clinton's poll numbers and to show her to be, quote -- Kevin McCarthy made up a name untrustable. And that's what's going on here. It's an outrage, and it's an abuse of power.

FERGUSON: The outrage is the fact...

ROTH: It's an abuse of power...

FERGUSON: The outrage is the fact, David, that you just said that the ambassador...

ROTH: ... by Congress, by the chairman...

CUOMO: Hold on, hold on, hold on. We can't hear when both speak.

ROTH: If the chairman cared about the families, maybe he would have gone to some of the hearings that they scheduled that are actually on the merits of Benghazi.

(CROSSTALK)

CAMEROTA: OK. Hold on, David. Let Ben -- let Ben respond to what you say the answer to the question is.

FERGUSON: David, you just said the person on the ground that's in charge of security, you're blaming or you're saying the person who's in charge of security on the ground, who requested more security, multiple times is a guy who is a dead ambassador. And you're saying it's his fault.

And you're saying to a mother who buried her son, who was on CNN yesterday, that basically, "We gave you answers. And if you don't like them, tough luck, because the ambassador is dead and your son's dead." And you're saying this is political and that's your answer?

ROTH: I'm not saying it's political. The Republicans in their own words have admitted that this whole thing is political. And if a chairman of the -- they really wanted to know the answers here, some of the hearings he scheduled that are on the questions they're asking. Maybe he would have shown up for, instead of only going to the ones where he could score political cheap shots.

CUOMO: Hey, Ben, obviously, when someone has passed, you change the analysis in terms of what their accountability is. The man is gone. His family has to deal with that. That's going to cloud the analysis, any way you look at it.

The point here is, is this committee necessary, based on everything that's been said before? There was a nice little hit piece put out on me before by our friends on the right, saying that everything that I asserted in any interview yesterday, about that the secretary has talked about the threat; she's talked about her responsibility; she's talked about what she knew and what she didn't know are lies, like it never happened. Four people were dismissed from the State Department on recommendation because of their failure to act in this situation. How come they're not focusing -- the focus of this hearing?

FERGUSON: Because, I think you see that there was more time spent on the cover-up and the time spent on putting out a false story, and a false idea that this was all caused by some random guys, to quote Hillary Clinton, walking down the street, wanting to kill some Americans. And she said, what difference does it make? Well, it makes a big difference...

CUOMO: Ben -- Ben, you just -- you just laid out very eloquently the emotional pull of these families to get answers, and they had to delay. And you're not direct family. And if you don't like their answers, that's fine. Four people got dismissed for this. They are not the subject of this committee's investigation. Why wouldn't you talk to those guys if you want these answers?

FERGUSON: Because I think you look at the people that put out the narrative afterwards to cover their rear end in leadership. You hold those accountable in leadership. Unlike what your guest said, which he said hold the ambassador accountable who, by the way, is dead.

ROTH: The secretary took responsibility.

FERGUSON: ... requesting multiple times security. The secretary did not take responsibility.

ROTH: Yes, she did.

FERGUSON: She threw a story out there that was a lie.

CUOMO: David, did the secretary take responsibility?

ROTH: The lying here is by Trey Gowdy, who has misled the public, put false information into the press. Lied to his own members of Congress when they tried to frame...

FERGUSON: You still believe they're dead because of a YouTube video? You actually are saying that today going into this thing. You believe all the people that died in Benghazi was because of a YouTube video?

ROTH: Of course not. There's no evidence that there was any deliberate attempt to mislead the public, and we've looked at this time and again. If you're so outraged, why don't you denounce the Republicans who raised money off this?

CAMEROTA: I just want to bring up some of the polls. These are just out this morning, and they talk about the public's perception of the Benghazi committee. And it's not, David, exactly what you're saying, that the public thinks that this is all just ginned up for political reason. If we can pull up P-3, have the Benghazi hearings gone too far, the GOP gone too far with the Benghazi hearings?

Now, 40 percent say no. Handled appropriately, 51 percent. Believe that it was handled appropriately. So more people think that the Republicans are trying to ask questions, then, that they're overreaching -- David.

ROTH: Well, there's a question in that poll that shows that even most Republicans believe there's partisan motivation here. And on whether the committee has gone too far, people are still learning now. It's only been very fresh in the news what's really going on here.

We had a whistle-blower from this committee, a conservative Republican, say that he was fired for refusing to try to frame Hillary Clinton. And then the committee went out and trashed their own employee, breaking the law, doing that.

So the real accountability here and the one who really should face the music is Trey Gowdy and the rest of the Benghazi hoaxters (ph), not Hillary Clinton.

CUOMO: So here's the problem with this, Ben. Ben, here's the problem with this, and I will demonstrate it with other statistics. I hear what you're saying on this. And there's no question that how this started led to where we are right now. I'm not just saying the incident; I'm saying how it was handled.

You know, a lot of critics of Hillary Clinton are saying it's an analogy to the e-mail situation. That it's not what it ultimately became, but it's how it started that motivated it.

But look at the numbers here, you know, if we're going to talk polls. Is it about political gain? Forty-nine percent of the GOP says that it's for political gain. This is -- overall, 72 percent say it. But if you break it down by party. Put that one up; that's P-2. Forty- nine percent of the GOP says, see, that's the problem here, is that the idea that it's just about finding facts isn't -- is it -- here's my question to you: is it fatally compromised by the fact that it's being conducted in a political sphere?

FERGUSON: Well, look, in politics, it's always -- things always are termed political. When you have this many members of Congress and the Senate, they're going to use everything they can to their advantage, some of them will, for whatever their reason is.

But let's look at the real issue, and that is not -- look, I don't think it should be political. I want to make that abundantly clear. And there's still questions that need to be answered. And I think Trey Gowdy is doing this in a way that is going to at least get some sort of closure for those families. And make it very clear the time line of the four and the response after and why lies were told and misled stories about what happened on that night.

I also think it's other -- one other important issue with Hillary Clinton. The issue that was asked and one of the poll numbers said more than 60 plus percent of Americans say they're dissatisfied with the way that Hillary Clinton has handled Benghazi. Among independents...

[06:15:04] CUOMO: Fifty-nine percent. That's the number.

FERGUSON: That is a big issue, 69 percent.

CUOMO: Fifty-nine. Fifty-nine percent. But it's a big number.

FERGUSON: Well, it's a very big number. And the reason it is, is because people do not feel like Hillary Clinton is trustworthy. The same reason why they don't trust her on e-mails. The same reason why they have issues of trust is because she doesn't answer questions to a mother who asked about why her son died that night. It's that simple.

CAMEROTA: Ben, David, you have laid out perfectly for us and previewed the fireworks that we will be seeing starting at, I believe, 9 a.m. this morning, when the committee gets under way. Thanks so much.

CUOMO: And we'll have you guys back after this. Because the after analysis is very important. Because we're going to have to make sense of this. And you're going to have a lot to make sense of.

We're going to have complete coverage, because it matters, and you've got to cover it completely. Nine-thirty eastern. They could question Clinton for as long as eight to ten hours.

CAMEROTA: All right. Meanwhile, Donald Trump now topping national polls for 100 days straight. And with a little more than 100 days to the Iowa caucuses, Trump is beefing up his ground game there, making a big push to court evangelical voters.

CNN's Athena Jones is live in Washington with more. What's he doing, Athena?

ATHENA JONES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Alisyn.

This has been remarkable to watch. Trump has had incredible staying power in the race so far. You hear a lot of people talk about how, in 2012, Herman Cain and Rick Perry held the lead at different points and didn't end up being the nominee, a point Jeb Bush has been making. But none of them were on top for 100 days.

And of course, as you mentioned, voters in Iowa Trump was campaigning yesterday, trying to appeal to white evangelical voters, who are a very important part of the GOP electorate there in Iowa that make up the majority of Republican caucus goers.

He made a clear attempt to appeal to them yesterday, when he talked about his Christian faith. And also the need to bring back the phrase "Merry Christmas." Take a listen. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I'm a good Christian, OK? Remember that. And I told you, about Christmas. And I guarantee, if I become president, we're going to be saying "merry Christmas" at every store. The "happy holiday," you can leave that over in the corner.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

JONES: So a clear attempt to appeal to those folks who feel like there's a war on the word "Christmas."

Now, as for Trump's standing with white evangelical voters, this is a group where he faces some stiff competition from Ben Carson. In our latest poll, the CNN/ORC poll, it shows that Carson leads Trump by two points nationally, you can see there. That is well within that poll's margin of error.

I should mention that Trump skipped an opportunity to appeal to a huge crowd of evangelical voters at a forum outside Dallas this weekend at a megachurch. Carson was there. So was Cruz, Bush and others.

And one more thing I should tell you about the religious front. Carson also said in an interview with FOX Business News that he would, quote, "look at closing mosques," if they are, quote, "loaded for bear." By which he apparently meant if they're a threat -- Chris.

CUOMO: Carson or Trump? Trump said that, that he'd look at closing the mosques, right?

JONES: That's right. It was Trump. Excuse me.

CUOMO: You know, got to keep it straight. Got to keep it straight. People confuse one for the other all the time, Athena. It's not you. All right. We'll check back with you in a little bit.

We also have breaking news out of Sweden. A masked man with a sword attacks a school about five hours southwest of Stockholm. Authorities confirming at least one person dead, four injured. Those numbers are early. Police say the suspect has been shot. Serious condition. We don't know more about that yet. Information is coming in. We're reporting on it. When we get it, we'll give it to you.

CAMEROTA: Well, Congressman Paul Ryan's demands to take the speaker's job have not yet completely been met. Ryan's bid to become House speaker just did get the backing of a majority of the conservative House Freedom Caucus. However, that falls short of the caucus's 80 percent threshold for a formal endorsement. Ryan is forging ahead anyway, hoping the backing of two other House caucuses to continue his quest to succeed John Boehner.

CUOMO: It's a tricky one. You got 70 percent, a super majority. But they need 80 by their own rules.

CAMEROTA: Right. CUOMO: But then the leadership came out and said, "We support him, but we don't endorse him."

CAMEROTA: He doesn't meet the threshold. So what will he do about that?

CUOMO: All right. So New York is headed for greatness once again. The Mets on their way to the big, big dance. They swept the Chicago Cubs. It's got to be said, they had a great season. They got closer than they have in a very long time to this.

Let's get to Andy Scholes joining us now.

Andy, is Daniel Murphy the best player ever? That's what Mets fans are asking this morning.

ANDY SCHOLES, CNN SPORTS: Good morning, guys. Yes, it's hard to put in words how amazing Daniel Murphy has been in the postseason.

This is a guy, Chris, who's never hit more than 14 home runs in an entire season. And after taking one deep last night, he's now homered in six consecutive games, which is a postseason record. He's got seven overall during the playoffs. Just an incredible run by Murphy.

His latest bomb coming in the eighth inning last night. It made the score 8-1. Another insurance run for the Mets right there. Murphy was your NLCS MVP.

And this was a crazy stat. The Mets never trailed the Cubs at any point in any game during this series. They would complete the sweep with an 8-3 win in game four. And they're now going back to the World Series for the first time since 2000.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DANIEL MURPHY, NLCS MVP: It's such a blessing to be able to contribute to what we've been able to do. I really can't explain it. It's just -- it's just a complete blessing. That's the only way I can describe it. And I can't explain why the balls keep going out of the ballpark, but they do. And we keep winning ball games, which is the most important part and the clueless part.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCHOLES: And the Mets now will now wait for the winner between the Royals and the Blue Jays. K.C. leads that series in three to two. Game six is going to be Friday night in Kansas City.

And guys, with four great arms -- Harvey, Degrom, Syndergaard, Matz -- the Mets, they're going to be tough to beat in the World Series.

CUOMO: We were having a very different conversation here, which was actually much more interesting.

CAMEROTA: Andy, they were quizzing me. He said, "Do you even know where the Mets play?" I said, "Yes, Shea."

CUOMO: Shea Stadium.

SCHOLES: It's now Citi Field, but...

CAMEROTA: Yes. Also, I remember one time, I was telling my husband where I'm going, I said, "I'm going to Shea Stadium." I spelled it "S-H-A-Y." He was like, who are you?

CUOMO: Yes, yes. Well, it's very close.

CAMEROTA: Thank you.

SCHOLES: Learn something new every day, Alisyn.

CUOMO: It's going to be very exciting for the city. You know, I'm a Yankee fan. But it's great to see them get there. You know, the Mets, they're kind of like Jets fans, Mets fans. Usually if you're a fan of the Jets, you're a fan of the Mets. Jets, Mets, both play in...

CAMEROTA: They rhyme.

CUOMO: And they're both very beleaguered franchises, so the Mets have done, arguably, much better than the Jets have done.

CAMEROTA: Even I get this conversation. I understand.

CUOMO: Even you know that the Jets suck. That I actually did know.

Meanwhile, Donald Trump is on top in the polls for three months running now. But his closest rival, Ben Carson, may have the edge when it comes to the evangelical vote. What will Trump do to neutralize that edge?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:21:05] CAMEROTA: Well, Donald Trump's 15 minutes of political fame is now reaching 100 days. That's how long he has been on top of the national polls. And he's now making an appeal to evangelicals to help him stay there.

So let's discuss all this with our CNN political commentator and political anchor at New York One, Errol Louis, and CNN's political analyst and presidential campaign correspondent...

CUOMO: It sounds like you were saying that Trump was saying please pray for us. Maggie Haberman, sorry.

That's what it said, though. He's making an appeal for evangelicals to stay there. Is he asking him to pray for him to keep him at the top of the polls, like Pope Francis?

CAMEROTA: Not yet. Not yet. He hasn't asked that. But perhaps.

MAGGIE HABERMAN, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: Can't hold that smile.

OK. Let's talk about Donald Trump. He's dominated the polls. He's led for the past 100 days. Maybe I can even pull up a poll to prove that to you. But in the meantime, how do you explain it, Errol?

ERROL LOUIS, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Well, look, 22 percent. Twenty-three percent, 24 percent. And up until the low 30s at times say that they want Donald Trump. And you delve down into the polls. They want him a lot. They're very enthusiastic about it.

What this means is that most Republicans who say they're going to vote in Iowa and in New Hampshire don't want him, but he's got more than everybody else because you have a very crowded field. Will this all shake itself out? I'm been wondering for quite a while now if we're going to see history made here. And it really would be history that someone with no experience whatsoever comes close to becoming president. That simply hasn't happened.

You know, I mean, you can go all the way back to George Washington. People were either generals, or they're cabinet secretaries or they've run for office before. None of the above for Donald Trump. And it remains a great mystery to me as to how long this will continue and if it will continue.

CUOMO: Well, now looking at this evangelical vote, specifically going into the Iowa numbers, if you put those up, that's one of the headlines for you today in politics, is that Carson is now beating Trump in Iowa. And the evangelical vote comes into the -- into play there. Those numbers come later in the morning.

But, here's the question. If we are looking at the evangelical vote, they are different than other voters. Their tolerance for B.S. about their core of beliefs and positions, very low. What is the plus/minus for Trump going after this particular group?

HABERMAN: I think it's going to be very difficult for him to get this group. I mean, this is -- there -- this has been a group that has been hardened against him for a very, very long time. And this is a group -- and we've talked about this before, that likes George W. Bush a lot. This is a group that has Jeb Bush has in mind, among others.

But this is one of them when he talks about "My brother -- my brother kept us safe. My brother did well." That he embraces his brother's legacy in a way that we hadn't seen for most of this race.

Donald Trump, I think, is going to be a very hard sell. Donald Trump, this is where sort of the gold-plated logo, being from New York, sounding like you're from New York doesn't really help. We're talking about Iowa. It's a very conservative Republican electorate there. And I think Ben Carson is going to -- or someone else, if Ben Carson collapses, but not Donald Trump, is going to capture that vote.

CAMEROTA: And yet, Errol, he is talking about religion. In fact, Donald Trump said something this week that is quite incendiary about Muslims. He was on FOX Business Network, and he was asked about how Britain is handling its terror threat, including the closing of mosques. Listen to this exchange.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They've got a whole new series of proposals to deal with this, including withdrawal of passports.

TRUMP: Absolutely good. Good.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And closing some mosques. Would you do the same thing in America?

TRUMP: I would do that, absolutely. I think it's great. I know they have a lot of proposals over there. If you go out, if you go fight for ISIS, you can't come back here.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Can you do it?

TRUMP: Why can't you do it? You can do it here.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Close the mosques?

TRUMP: Well, I don't know. I haven't heard about the closing of the mosques. It depends, if the mosques is, you know, loaded for bear, I don't know. You're going to have to certainly look at it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CAMEROTA: OK, so he backtracked a little bit. First, he said, "Absolutely, I would do that." And then he's reminded that there's freedom of religion here. And he goes, "OK, well, I would have to look at if the mosque were, you know..."

LOUIS: I mean, Alisyn, it is so striking. And on issue after issue, whether you're talking about a border with Mexico where you're talking about deporting 11 million people, Donald Trump has openly, as we just heard in that exchange, making it up as he goes along.

I don't know. I'll look into it. Maybe I'll do this; maybe I'll do that. No other candidate in that kind of a position would be given such a pass.