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Jeb Bush Talks New Book; CNN Money Now; Benefits for 9/11 Workers Held Up in Congress. Aired 8:30-9a ET

Aired November 04, 2015 - 08:30   ET

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


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[08:32:51] MICHAELA PEREIRA, CNN ANCHOR: A new Quinnipiac poll out this morning shows Republican presidential candidate Jeb Bush's numbers have continued to fall. He's at 4 percent, in fifth place, in a new Quinnipiac poll. He is not giving up, though. On Monday, he released a new book, a book full of e-mails from his time of Florida governor, in an effort to show that he is a leader that voters can trust. CNN's Jamie Gangel spoke with Bush. Quite an extensive interview. Has the book.

JAMIE GANGEL, CNN SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT: Right. Here it is.

PEREIRA: Very proud of this.

ALISYN CAMEROTA, CNN ANCHOR: That's quite a (INAUDIBLE). How many pages is that?

GANGEL: Seven hundred pages of e-mails. But, ladies and gentlemen, this is Jeb Bush. No other candidate would put out a book like this. It's the un-Trump. It's about what he did in office and it's what he cares about.

So we talked to him about that. We talked to him about the very rough time he's having in the polls. They are moving in the wrong direction. That said, he insists he's turning a page and he has a new slogan, a new campaign speech. You're going to hear the words "fix it" a lot. But we started by talking about the book, his e-mails, while he was governor of Florida. This is not like any other presidential candidate.

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GANGEL: The book. Here it is. Seven hundred pages. This book is Jeb Bush. The policy wonk. The guy who likes to talk about budgets, fix things. But I know you say it's the polls. I know you say it's going to change. But do you think you've waited too long?

JEB BUSH (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: This book is not about policy. This is a book about a servant leader. It's a book about -

GANGEL: Meaning?

BUSH: Meaning that there are people that are hurting in our country that aren't getting a fair shake and there are politicians that say, hey, you know, I'm just the big guy in the room. I'm the personality. Trust me. And then there are people that have a servant's heart that work each and every day on behalf of people to give them a chance to have prosperity, for their children to live a life of purpose and meaning. And this book, through my e-mails, is an example of servant leadership where I moved the needle. I fixed things that were broken in my state and I'm proud of it.

[08:35:02] GANGEL: There are e-mails in there. In one e-mail you talk about a word the Bush family hates, the "d" word, dynasties. And you talk about your dad sky diving, which you say you would not do, for the record. And you talk about how much you love him. How are your parents handling this campaign?

BUSH: Well, I'm making a contribution for my dad. I think he's - he's stopped watching reruns of "C.S.I." He's back watching the cable, you know, news shows so that he can get - get his - he gets - he gets fired up. He wants his son - he loves his son. I love him more than he loves me, because he's the greatest man alive. But I think I'm - I'm taking credit for getting him back in the game a little bit. And mom, who you may remember was talking about being neutral, was kind of neutral on the subject of my candidacy, is fully on board. So they're all in for Jeb and -

GANGEL: Is your dad still throwing things at the TV?

BUSH: Yes, I think he is. He's - you know him. I mean he's just - he's the most loving guy in the world but he - he's - this isn't about policy for him. This is about his boy who he loves.

GANGEL: When they see you struggling, is that hard, or do they keep that away from you?

BUSH: I don't know. I feel - I would never want to let them down for sure. They don't - I don't get a sense that they're disappointed in me in any way. They know - if anybody knows about the long haul nature of primary campaigns and campaigns in general, it's George and Barbara Bush. So they've got - they've got the right perspective on this.

And so does my brother. I mean he, of all people, knows about this because he's, by the way, the last Republican and the second to last Republican to win elections. So he - he knows how it - how it's done.

GANGEL: So let me ask you about your brother because I'm guessing that somewhere along the line he said to you, don't worry about me, go out there, say whatever you need to say, do whatever you need to do. And he does understand this better than anyone else.

BUSH: Yes, he does.

GANGEL: You were just with him in Houston. Does he give you any advice?

BUSH: Yes. First of all, I've struggled with this because I don't want to - I don't want to say anything bad about my brother. He's my brother. And, you know, the blood sport is, oh, where do you differ, how you're this, blah, blah, blah, you know, so I stumbled in the beginning because I had a hard time saying - I spent, what, six years being governor of the state where I never was critical of my brother even when I was, you know, striving to get the best deal I could get for my state. It was a discipline I was quite proud of. I haven't just cast it aside. So, my bad, not his, because, you're right, he - he said, do what you need to do.

His advice is be patient. Stick with it. At the end of the day, they're going to - people are going to start figuring out who's going to be president. Who's going to sit behind the big desk, to use his terminology. And it's encouraging to hear him say that because he knows. He's been through ups and downs. You know, that's just the way it is.

GANGEL: In the Bush family, there is a great sense of responsibility about public service.

BUSH: Yes.

GANGEL: So when you took this on, that goes with the last name. Do you worry about letting your parents down?

BUSH: I - I have thousands and thousands of people that I want to do well. I want to win though too. I mean this is not about disappointing people. This is about fixing some really complex things that I know I can do. I just know it in my heart that I could draw people together to unify the country around a few really big things. And if we did it, income would grow for the middle class, people would be lifted out of poverty and we'd be safe and secure. And that's what I focus on. So the hardest critic of Jeb Bush is Jeb bush.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PEREIRA: So interesting to hear him speak so much about his family, isn't it?

CAMEROTA: Yes.

PEREIRA: I mean that's - that's fascinating. We haven't seen him talk that way so, I don't know, fluidly with you.

GANGEL: Right. So I think that's Jeb Bush unvarnished. I think he's not talking about the campaign. He's talking about something personal. So you're seeing a very different side of him. I also think you're seeing what it does mean to be a Bush, the name. He doesn't - look, George W. Bush once said to me, my father is a great man. He gives us unconditional love. But he also casts a great shadow. And I think that's true. There's a lot to live up to.

CHRIS CUOMO, CNN ANCHOR: He's got to go one of two ways. And everyone has known this from the beginning. Either he's going to be tight because there's so much weight of that legacy on his shoulders, or he's going to be a warrior because he wants to vindicate the family. You know, people are waiting for that second one.

GANGEL: Right.

PEREIRA: Jamie, really a delight. Thank you for bringing that to us.

GANGEL: Thank you. Thanks.

CAMEROTA: Thanks, Jamie.

CUOMO: All right, so there was a bill to permanently provide compensation for 9/11 first responders, but it's getting held up in Congress. Why? We're talking to one senator who will tell us what she says is going on.

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[08:42:09] ALISON KOSIK, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: I'm Alison Kosik for "CNN Money Now."

Regulators slapped (ph) to cut a corporation with huge fines for selling faulty air bags. $70 million for selling the defective airbags, plus an extra $130 million if Takata fails to follow safety measures going forward. It's at the root of a massive recall tied to seven deaths in the U.S.

Another stunner in the Volkswagen scandal as VW deals with the fallout from the diesel emissions mess. The German car company now saying it understated carbon dioxide emissions and fuel consumption figures when certifying some models. It's yet another hit to the company's credibility.

NEW DAY back in a moment.

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PEREIRA: All right, here we go with the five things to know for your new day.

At number one, an election night surprise in Kentucky. Matt Bevin becoming just the second Republican governor there in some 44 years.

[08:45:01] PEREIRA: Voters in Houston, meanwhile, rejected a measure to protect gays and transgender people from discrimination.

Donald Trump has a one-point lead over Ben Carson in a brand new post- debate Quinnipiac poll. Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz rounding out to top four. Jeb Bush plunging to fifth with just 4 percent of the vote.

Investigators are expanding the search area in the deadly metrojet plane crash in Egypt to 15 square miles. We're also learning that that flight slowed dramatically in midair before crashing to the ground.

Stunning revelations in the shooting death of an Illinois officer that sparked a massive man hunt. In just hours from now, officials are expected to provide evidence suggesting that Fox Lake Lt. Joe Gliniewicz committed suicide.

There are now more than three dozen cases of E. coli linked to Chipotle restaurants in Oregon and Washington state. Experts are pointing to a food distribution problem, but they still have no source identified.

For more on the five things, you can always visit newdayCNN.com.

Chris?

CUOMO: All right, Mick. Both side of the aisle think that the bill to permanently provide compensation for 9/11 first responders is important. But some Congress members are stalling the process. How and why would this be? We have a senator on to explain. Please watch.

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CUOMO: Congress doesn't agree on much these days, we know that. But we believe there is a chance to unite when it seems like an obvious cause. Let's say those who responded in the days after the 9/11 attacks. Everybody believes they need support. However at the end of September, the Zadroga Act - now this is something that provides healthcare and support to the first responders - well, it expired.

[08:50:06] So now there is a bill to permanently extend the program and it's been drafted but now it is stalled by another bill which would continue funds, but only for the next five years.

Are people playing politics with the 9/11 first responders? We have New York Senator Kirsten Gillibrand is here. Senator, Democrat from New York. What is going on here? What am I missing in this? Is this just about how much money people want to spend on the 9/11 responders?

SEN. KIRSTEN GILLIBRAND (D), NEW YORK: I think it is callousness and an unwillingness to meet the needs of these heroes. They are men and women who raced up the towers when they were coming down and they did the hard work of first looking for survivors and then looking for remains and doing the clean up. But unfortunately because of all the toxins that were released at 9/11 and afterwards, they are dying of the horrible cancers. Over 200 police officers and firefighters have died since 9/11 and there's 33,000 people that are sick with 9/11- related diseases. These men and women deserve basic healthcare and they deserve compensation and for House chairmen to stand in the way with a callous bill that doesn't meet their needs, I think is outrageous.

CUOMO: Now House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte of Virginia, he's saying five years of funding. Let's cut the amount. Okay for compensation. He's making a constructive argument in that he's saying I'm not against the 9/11 responders, I just don't want to throw money at them that isn't warranted. Is there too much excess in this?

GILLIBRAND: There is no excess and when you are talking about 30-year- olds and 40-year-olds dying with young children as the primary wage earners, they need compensation. And they need to be able to pay their bills and feed their kids. When you have someone suffering from cancer you can't pay for half their cancer treatment. These are cancers that don't expire. Their healthcare program shouldn't expire either. CUOMO: So do you think that House Speaker Ryan, he has made a change to what he wants to happen in terms of procedure and situations like this, what he calls regular order, the committee's work on legislation before it goes to the floor. Will that help this situation?

GILLIBRAND: All I know is there are 244 cosponsors in the House. And Speaker Ryan is speaker of the entire House of Representatives for the entire country. He should not put partisan politics over something as important as this and something that really defines who we are as a nation. We have 63 cosponsors in the Senate. Well beyond the majority we need to pass it there.

So this is a consensus bill that is nonpartisan, that represents who we are as a nation. It is our moral obligation to be there for these first responders when they need us. I think it is outrageous that in the 11th hour, without checking for the first responders, without checking with the experts who run these funds, and without checking the man authors of this bill, to put forward two bills that cut arbitrarily they amount of money these first responders are going to have for their healthcare? It's absurd.

CUOMO: Now the reason -- you can't see -- but I keep looking down because I want to read everything very carefully that I'm saying because this is a very powerful political device that we're talking about here. 9/11 responders matter. They matter as people, some -- What? 72,000 across the nation are covered by this bill? 33,000 first responders specifically getting treatment under it. They matter metaphorically as well and as people because of that moment. And the Republican side of this, Goodlatte's side is I want to help them, but the Democrats are playing politics because they're just throwing money at this in excess.

GILLIBRAND: It is not a partisan bill and it's not a partisan issue. Our cosponsors range from the most conservative in the Senate to the most liberal in the Senate. So I reject the notion that anyone is playing politics with this. I think what the chairmen have done is shortsighted and callous and disregards facts. I think they are making up random numbers that are irrelevant to the care that these men and women actually need. You can't say I'm going to pay for half your cancer treatment. You can't say that I don't care if you die at 40 after you have given a life of service and answered the call when we needed you, when the government said it was safe and you could work in that area. They are dying of the horrible diseases, Chris. Diseases that people don't get until they're 80 or 90, at the end of their life. They are getting these diseases and dying of them in their 30s and 40s and 50s and it is heartbreaking.

CUOMO: Listen, Senator -- I remember in the days after 9/11, let's be fair. The weeks after 9/11, I remember the creosote that still seemed to be in the air and the first responders talking about it. It took them a lot of time to get help. I remember New York City saying that the air was fine, the air was fine when common sense told otherwise.

I know we brought you on here to talk about politics as well, but it doesn't matter as much as this bill does. We have plenty of time to talk about the election. We'll be monitoring what happens with this bill. The 9/11 first responders, some 72,000 people across the country in total covered by this, matter too much just to talk politics. We'll have you back on to talk about the election, but we're going to follow this bill.

Senator Gillibrand, thank you very much.

GILLIBRAND: Thank you, Chris. Thank you so much.

[08:55:01] CUOMO: Appreciate it. All right. We got some "Good Stuff" for you coming up. It's going to get you right here. Guarantee it.

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CUOMO: You always say I don't give you the warning. This is your warning.

PEREIRA: Oh...

CAMEROTA: Tissues, please. Tissues.

CUOMO: Veterans Day is coming up. Do you remember this? Here is a little taste of something. All right. Now here is the moment. Daddy is coming home from the service. His son, six-year-old Michael, has cerebral palsy. He was in the wheel chair. That is what the father, Staff Sergeant Jeremy Cooney, thinks he's going to see. Instead he sees this. The son has been working with the mom to surprise the dad and walk again.

CAMEROTA: Oh my god.

CUOMO: Dad was in Afghanistan for seven months. Michael couldn't walk when he came home and now there he is. He worked and practiced. He wanted to do it for daddy.

I want to show it to you because Veterans Day is coming up. I want to remind you what these men and women who go away for us give up and what they miss and I felt that this was a way to tell it in a positive way. Imagine coming home to this.

PEREIRA: Oh wow. Beautiful. Beautiful gift.

CUOMO: Look at him walking towards his daddy.

PEREIRA: So proud, too.

CAMEROTA: So beautiful, Chris.

PEREIRA: You warned us. You did warn us.

CAMEROTA: You did warn us. Thank you for showing us that.