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Climate Change Meeting in Paris; First Trial in Death of Freddie Gray Set to Start. Aired 6:30-7:00a ET

Aired November 30, 2015 - 06:30   ET

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

[06:30:00]

CHRIS CUOMO, CNN ACNHOR: What's the enforcement?

JIM BITTERMANN, CNN SENIOR EUROPEAN CORRESPONDENT: Well that's

CUOMO: Skepticism is, OK, you get the commitment but what is the enforcement mechanism, especially when you get into the big shots, China, India. India especially saying, "We're having our industrial revolution right now. We need fossil fuels." What's the enforcement?

BITTERMANN: Well that's the problem. And in the next two weeks, I mean, after the leaders leave here on Tuesday, I mean, that's the big show. But after that, then all officials, the Sherpas (ph) as they call it, they're going to work over, as agreement that come up with some kind of mechanism.

Basically, they can't do much more the name and shame. You know they have to say, "You know, look here is somebody that filling an agreement. This as you promised, you weren't going to, you know, allow more than a certain amount of, you know, this gas emissions and you are.

So that's really about the only important mechanism that they have. There's no worldwide body to enforcement.

CUOMO: Now, when you were helping me get (inaudible) this morning. France has never put out this kind of security plan like they have now, some 120,000 police and military forces in effect. What is the mood now in terms of how much advantage they've gained over the risk of radical jihadis here?

BITTERMANN: Well I think, you know, I think they feel that it's secure. The defense minister just did an interview with Christiane Amanpour. And he said, "You know, we've got security situation nailed." I hope he's right.

In any case I have never seen it quite like this. I just came through Place de la Concorde, you know what a busy place that is, totally seal-off (ph), not a thing moving other than pedestrian and tourist who are taking pictures of each other and now totally empty glass. The government actually went so far as to recommend to people not to work today...

CUOMO: Right.

BITTERMANN: ... which -- you don't have to say that twice. I think a lot of people did stay at home. The streets are pretty empty. They rounded up 24 environmental activists who they thought might be a little bit too radical. They put them under house arrest. It's unbelievable the kind of powers they've used here to restrain things.

CUOMO: And yet, let's bring in John Sutter for this conversation, because it hasn't stopped everything.

In Place de la Republique, the place has become the memorial to the victims of the attacks. There were protests that wind up turning vial it. So we have the writer of the two degrees project, John Sutter, who is with us. He is the CNN Digital Opinion Columnist.

So, when you look at the situation John, how does it setup in terms of the goals but also in terms of what we're seeing with the protests?

JOHN SUTTER, CNN DIGITAL OPINION COLUMNIST: Yeah. I think a lot of people are disappointed that the protests and clashes with police are disrupting from what's, you know, happening here at COP21.

The demonstrators I've talked to are essentially, you know, they were trying to come out and show that they're not afraid, even given us security situation that they saw climate change as an emergency before the terror attacks. They've see it that way now. They'll see it that way, you know, and in future generations. And then, basically demanding like an end to fossil fuels.

Those demonstrations start out really, actually pretty somber in the morning. There were a bunch of shoes laid out on Place de la Republique because the marches were banned, that the people were saying that there shoes were marching for them. I'm going to be an incredibly moving site. But it did sort of devolved overtime in the protest did get heated. Like I said I think a lot of the climate activists were disappointed that happened and actually had dispersed at that point. There were a lot of groups that were very much wanting to sort of get along with the police and obey that ban on public demonstrations.

CUOMO: And it's not unusual to see some more leftist elements, anarchy elements come in and overtake what is a purposeful demonstration by those focused on the climate in this case.

You talked to somebody and have some sound from someone who wanted to speak to that, right?

SUTTER: Yes. I know I think that, you know, what's happening here is we've seen a number of heads of state giving speeches and sort of talking. I think there are a lot of activists who are, you know, sort of sick of all of the talk that goes around this. And like I said, they're looking for a very rapid advance out of the fossil fuel era.

Like if we're going to meet the 2 degrees Celsius goal, which is essentially, you know, what these talks are about, limiting warming below that amount since the industrial revolution. We're going to have to move very, very quickly off of fossil fuels.

And, so, you know, I heard Ban Ki-moon really hitting that point home today and saying, "You know, we have to do this faster than we have been."

So we'll see if this talk, you know, turns into action. But that's what people here were watching this closely. They are very nervously hoping that they do.

And I actually caught up with a 15-year-old here the other day who is a climate activist. He's been doing this since she was six years old. And he was telling me that, you know, talk is cheap and that he's looking for more from President Obama. Take a listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

XIUHTEZCATI TONATIUH, CLIMATE ACTIVIST, "KID WARRIOR": We're calling out our government. We're calling out the people that are supposedly representing us, representing the people, representing our voices, for their lack of action, the Obama administration, for their lack of action. They have failed to adequately protect the climate for our generation in those who follow. They have immensely failed at that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[06:35:00] SUTTER: So, he was telling me that basically he is from the generation that has the most at stake in climate change. And I think that was one of the most moving things about the demonstrations I saw yesterday in France too, all these shoes that were laid out on the Place de la Republique.

They had messages. And many said, "We're doing this for our children. We have to think about this now. Terrorist, you know, a very important subject and one we need to address as well. The climate change is the long-term disaster that is going to play out over the course and generations. And this really is the worlds best time to focus on this issue in all world leaders is here and to -- come up with some sort of deal that will actually cut emissions and get off of fossil fuels.

CUOMO: And John, as you know very well and as Jim Bitterman laid out, you do have a better chance than usual getting some type of consensus, something down that is a plan or agreement among all these parties because you do have the commitments in advance. But let see how it plays out.

John Sutter, thank you very much. I look forward to talking to you about what happens here at COP21. And for all of you, please be sure to catch all John's reporting from COP21 at cnn.com/2degrees.

Mich, let me bring it back to you. And as we said earlier Christiane Amanpour scored a big interview for us on new day with Bill Gates. A big part of the solution to climate change they believe here at the COP21 is public/private partnerships.

Bill Gates has a big announcement with the president this morning. We're getting ready for his address in a few minutes that we'll going to take live here on the show. It will be a big interview.

MICHAELA PEREIRA, CNN ANCHOR: All right. Lots of things to get to this morning, thank you so much we'll be back with you in a moment.

The first of six Baltimore Police Officers charged in the Freddie Gray case going to trial later this morning. Could those trials trigger more violence than the -- that the rioting we saw after Gray's death? It is a real fear in a city already dealing with it's higher murder -- highest murder rate in years.

We have more on that coming up, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:40:00]

PEREIRA: We are hours away from the start of the first trial for the Baltimore police officers involved in the death of Freddie Gray. Jury selection set to begin in Officer William Porter's trial. He is eventually expected to take the stand in his own defense. With us this morning to discuss this and many other things, Charles Blow, he is CNN political commentator and Op-Ed columnist for The New York Times, all right.

So we do know the first trial, today, Freddie Gray, it has been an emotional time in Baltimore and around the nation. Here's what we know about Officer Porter. I think we can pull up a sort of a card of the information we have on him, 26 years old, a native of Baltimore. He's been a member of the Baltimore Police Department since 2012. He's facing charges of manslaughter, second degree assault, misconduct in office, reckless endangerment. What do you expecting to see? Because we know there are six officers in total that will be trialed (ph)...

CHARLES BLOW, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR AND OP-ED COLUMNIST FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES: Right.

PEREIRA: ... what do you expecting to see happen in Baltimore in terms of the reaction of the community?

BLOW: Well, it may be muted just because these will not be public trials, right? So won't have the same access, you have cameras in my understanding . You will not have cameras in the police, I mean, in the courtroom. And that changes the dynamic. We don't get a chance to follow along and the public has a chance to weigh in on every detail as it comes out with the quality of the prosecution in the defense. I think that changes things a bit. You also already have a bit of a settlement with family in that city. And the fact that they are on trial at all changes the dynamic a bit. So, I think you could have a much more muted response than people might expect.

PEREIRA: We know that there were some conversations in some corners saying are these guys, these officers going to get a fair trial? In fact one of the lawyers angered the judge in seeking a change of venue, saying that he was citing a recent study that found Baltimore residents are more likely than those in the rest of Maryland to have a negative view of the police. Do you feel in your heart these officers can get a fair trial?

BLOW: Well, that goes both ways. The New York Times we have this week Op-Ed by a public defender who's also running to be a circuit judge in Baltimore that basically said that these officers are getting treatment that is not like any other defendants, right?

Everything from the way that they were arrested, allowed to turn themselves in, allowed to do it on a Friday so that they can post a post bail in a way that other defendants would not be able to, allowed to have a lower bail than other people, even people who were protesting, broke, you know, window in a police car. You have a higher bail set than for the killing of a person.

You know, all a long that track he was citing ways in which the officers were getting a better shake.

PEREIRA: Interesting.

BLOW: ...than send the...

PEREIRA: And suppose no matter which way you look at it you can find ways.

BLOW: Right. There are two sides to that.

PEREIRA: There are two sides to every story. We know -- it's interesting here because we know the judge in this case is African- American.

BLOW: Right.

PEREIRA: We also know that he in the past has investigated police misconduct cases across the nation for the Federal Government. In this case as well, three of the six officers are African-American. In fact, the officer that is going to trial today, Officer Porter, has said, "Isn't it really interesting odd." He said that if he had made different choices in his own life he, too, could have been Freddie Gray and then also makes the point that Freddie Gray could have also been him. Do you think that will resonate with the jurors?

BLOW: I mean it could. I mean the thing that we have to take out of this equation and I think that we keep overlaying on to all of the cases that people who are killed by police officers is making it into a situation of black people against white officers, right? I don't think that's exactly the way it works. I think it is really about the subjects which is the black people and police in general. And those police can be of any race. I think there's a police culture that creates an environment of antagonism with a particular community in those that will happen...

PEREIRA: Some people are saying what more do people want? The judge is black, the police officers are black.

BLOW: Right.

PEREIRA: And don't understand the concern about the institution. BLOW: Right. There's an institutional prejudice and a heritage issue in terms of these structures and how they are used and deployed.

[06:45:00] And so I think that once we understand that that -- that the institution becomes the issue and not necessarily the race of the officer. But it is the race of the person who is being interacted with because those people who are being killed who are unarmed are disproportionately black people.

PEREIRA: I want to pivot to Chicago a little bit.

BLOW: Right.

PEREIRA: Because, you know, that all of this is interconnected because we've seen the protests going on in Chicago. I know you were there covering them and getting a sense of what the feeling is on the ground there. How do you think what's going on in Baltimore is going to have an effect on Chicago and vice versa?

For example, we know in Baltimore the jury is not going to be sequestered. So they are going to be, you know, hearing and seeing and reading the social media posts and watching the headlines and seeing the coverage of what's going on in another city.

BLOW: So I don't know if it had, you know, that direct in impact. I do look at them as interconnected in this way which is that, you know, they are discreet in that Baltimore has a culture. Chicago has a culture, very specific culture. I mean the NAACP issue a statement and is going to have a press conference about this, citing a 2008 study in Chicago that said between 2002-2004 there were 10,000 civilian complaints but only 19 of those resulted in any sort of significant action. In over 30 years only one police officer, this police officer, has been charged with murder in the case of a police shooting.

That is a very specific Chicago thing. But in general, it is a national thing because every time that the Federal Government looks into one of these local municipalities, they find something that is kind of unpleasant about disparities.

PEREIRA: Yeah.

BLOW: Right.

PEREIRA: Charles, you've written a thoughtful Op-Ed in New York Times. I want to point people to that. Thank you so much for joining us. We need to get back to Paris to Chris. We know the president is set to speak soon.

CUOMO: We are waiting for him. We'll take a quick break. We do expect the president to come back on the other side of it. And this is a big deal.

For all the security concerns here, you cannot mitigate the situation in France right now with respect to the battle against terrorism, especially bringing all these heads of state. This is a big speech for President Obama. Many believe that helping the climate will cripple the U.S. Economy. What's he going to say? How does he make it sellable to the world leaders to get a consensus and back home in the U.S.? Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA, UNITED STATES AMERICA: Fellow leaders, we have come to Paris to show our resolve. We offer our condolences to the people of France for the barbaric attacks on this beautiful city. We stand united in solidarity, not only to deliver justice to the terrorist network responsible for those attacks but to protect our people and uphold the enduring values that keep us strong and keep us free. And we salute the people of Paris for insisting this crucial conference go on. An act of defiance that proves nothing will deter us from building the future we want for our children. What greater rejection of those who would tear down our world than Marshalling our best efforts to save it.

Nearly 200 nations have assembled here this week, a declaration that for all the challenges we face, the growing threat of climate change could define the contours of this century more dramatically than any other. And what should give us hope that this is a turning point, that this is the moment we finally determined we would save our planet is fact that our nations share a sense of urgency about this challenge and a growing realization that it is within our power to do something about it. Our understanding of the ways human beings disrupt the climate advances by the day. 14 of the 15 warmest years on record have occurred since the year 2000.

And 2015 is on pace to be the warmest year of all. No nation, large or small, wealthy or poor, is immune to what this means. This summer I saw the effects of climate change firsthand in our northern most state, Alaska, where the sea is already swallowing villages and eroding shorelines.

[06:50:00] Where permafrost thaws and the tundra burns, where glaciers are melting at a pace unprecedented in modern times. And it was a preview of one possible future, a glimpse of our children's fate if the climate keeps changing faster than our efforts to address it -- submerged countries, abandoned cities, fields that no longer grow. Political disruptions that trigger new conflict, and even more floods of desperate peoples seeking the sanctuary of nations not their own.

That future is not one of strong economies, nor is it one where fragile states can find their footing. That future is one that we have the power to change, right here, right now. But only if we rise to this moment, as one of America's governors has said, "We are the first generation to feel the impact of climate change, and the last generation that can do something about it."

I've come here personally, as the leader of the world's largest economy and the second-largest emitter, to say that the United States of America not only recognizes our role in creating this problem, we embrace our responsibility to do something about it. Over the last seven years, we've made ambitious investments in clean energy, and ambitious reductions in our carbon emissions. We've multiplied wind power three-fold and solar power more than twenty- fold, helping create parts of America where these clean power sources are finally cheaper than dirtier, conventional power.

We've invested in energy efficiency in every way imaginable. We've said no to infrastructure that would pull high-carbon fossil fuels from the ground, and we've said yes to the first-ever set of national standards limiting the amount of carbon pollution our power plants can release into the sky.

The advances we've made have helped drive our economic output to all- time highs, and drive our carbon pollution to its lowest levels in nearly two decades.

But the good news is this is not an American trend alone. Last year, the global economy grew while global carbon emissions from burning fossil fuels stayed flat. And what this means can't be overstated. We have broken the old arguments for inaction. We have proved that strong economic growth and a safer environment no longer have to conflict with one another; they can work in concert with one another, and that should give us hope.

One of the enemies that we'll be fighting at this conference is cynicism, the notion we can't do anything about climate change. Our progress should give us hope during these two weeks -- hope that is rooted in collective action.

Earlier this month in Dubai, after years of delay, the world agreed to work together to cut the super-pollutants known as HFCs. That's progress. Already, prior to Paris, more than 180 countries representing nearly 95 percent of global emissions have put forward their own climate targets. That is progress.

For our part, America is on track to reach the emissions targets that I set six years ago in Copenhagen. We will reduce our carbon emissions in the range of 17 percent below 2005 levels by 2020. And that's why, last year, I set a new target. America will reduce our emissions 26 percent to 28 percent below 2005 levels within 10 years from now.

So our task here in Paris is to turn these achievements into an enduring framework for human progress.

[06:55:00] Not a stopgap solution, but a long-term strategy that gives the world confidence in a low-carbon future.

Here, in Paris, let's secure an agreement that builds in ambition, where progress paves the way for regularly updated targets. Targets that are not set for each of us but by each of us, taking into account the differences that each nation is facing.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COUMO: All right. And there you have what's going to be the main message from President Obama of the United States, that progress can be made. But then you heard that last phrase there which is the critical part of finding consensus, finding a balance with the individual needs of each of the nations.

That's the trick here at COP21, how do you create progress across the board? How do you find each country's middle ground of economic progress and responsibility for the environment?

Alisyn, I just want to give you some of the headlines, for those are tuning in right now. President Obama calling COP21 an act of defiance because of the attacks that just happened here a couple of weeks ago in and around paris, that having this conference shows that the people of goodwill will not be deterred in their desire to make the world a better place. And obviously as headline as the world is hot, that this 2 degree celsius increase in temperature is a critical standard, since 1980 you've had the world, most scientists will tell you, heat up and maybe by as much as 0.85 of a degree. So you're getting close to 2 degrees already.

But the president's message is that change in is in reach. He quoted a U.S. governor saying this generation is the first to feel the effects of global warming and the last generation who can do something about it. He also said that the United States is going to set a new goal for emissions reductions because we're ahead of schedule. So those are big themes but the big question is, Alisyn, how do they get consensus and does everything stay safe here for the duration of the summit?

CAMEROTA: Absolutely. You've given us a lot of material to work with, Chris, so will be back with you shortly because we do want to get analysis from our CNN political commentator and political anchor of Time Warner Cable News, Errol Louis, also CNN political analyst and political campaign correspondent for the New York Times, Maggie Haberman.

Great to see you guys, hope you had a great Holliday.

ERROL LOUIS, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR AND POLITICAL ANCHOR OF TIME WARNER CABLE NEWS: Good morning. Good morning.

CAMEROTA: So everything, let's just -- everything is happening in Paris, against the presidential race, back here at home. The Republicans don't agree, necessarily with President Obama that climate change is as big of a threat and that it is human cause. So how much hate for Republicans over campaign to make of what (ph) President Obama is saying in Paris.

LOUIS: Well, that there are the candidates who will going to just sort of dismiss the facts out of hand and say that, "I don't accept the premise of the entire summit." And so, they'll write themselves out of the conversation.

Among the others though, that there are some important questions like the Keystone XL pipeline that the Republicans have all sort of said, "I promise to sort of reawaken that conversation. I promise to do what I can to get fossil fuel out of the ground and into the economy. This is going to be sort of an important question for both Democrats and the Republicans to sort of come up with.

If it becomes a major campaign issue, it will be part of not just the president's legacy but also a part of the next election.

CAMEROTA: Does this event make it higher up on the totem poll of campaign issues?

MAGGIE HABERMAN, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST AND POLITICAL CAMPAIGN CORRESPONDENT FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES: I think there's no question although I don't think at least in the short-term for the Republican primary are going to see a trump terrorism as Chris just said. That's really what you're seeing undermines of a lot of people when it comes to Paris right now.

But I think Errol is right, that I think (inaudible), if they're -- an accord is reached, it is going to have sweeping implications for what comes next in terms of the person who replaces President Obama. You were going to see a lot more from Republicans. You actually have heard the Democrats talking about climate change quite a bit, most notably, Bernie Sanders.

I think this is going to rise, especially in a general election for right now as the Republican primary is playing out, I think it will remain a secondary issue.

CAMEROTA: Let's talk about what happened over the weekend. All of the -- many of the candidates were on the Sunday shows. And Donald trump once again repeated his seemingly specious claim that there were thousands of extremists celebrating in New Jersey as the twin towers were falling. Here's what he said on "Meet the Press."

DONALD TRUMP, (R) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I've had hundreds of people call in and tweet in, on Twitter, saying that they saw it and I was 100 percent right. Now, the Washington Post also wrote about tailgate parties. We're looking for other articles and we're looking for other clips.

And I wouldn't be surprised if we found them, Chuck. But for some reason they're not that easy to come by. I saw it. So many people saw it, Chuck, and so why would I take it back? I'm not going to take it back.

CAMEROTA: Maggie, for some reason, the photographic evidence of this is not that easy to come by.

HABERMAN: For some reason these clips claiming these events that other people can't seem to remember aren't that easy to come by. The way that he has been citing my colleague Serge Kovaleski story from when Serge was at the Washington Post, September 18th, 2001, is not accurate.