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New Day

Trump & Cruz 5 Points Apart in New National Poll; Obama to Review ISIS Strategy at the Pentagon; NYT: Malik Wrote about 'Violent Jihad' on Social Media. Aired 7-7:30a ET

Aired December 14, 2015 - 07:00   ET

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

ALISYN CAMEROTA, CNN ANCHOR: John Avlon, thanks so much for the history lesson. Great to talk to you. We'll bring you in for the next 48 hours, as you know.

[07:00:07] We're following a lot of news, though, this morning, so let's get right to it.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CAMEROTA: Donald Trump and Senator Ted Cruz just five points apart.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: His frontrunner status is being challenged by Cruz in the state of Iowa.

CHRIS WALLACE, FOX NEWS ANCHOR: What's wrong with this temperament?

DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: When you look at the way he's dealt with the Senate, frankly like a little bit of a maniac, you're never going to get things done that way.

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We're going to hunt down these terrorists wherever they try to hide.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The president's meeting with his national security team on ISIS strategy at the Pentagon today.

MICHAELA PEREIRA, CNN ANCHOR: Could a change in strategy be brewing?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: An exhaustive three-day FBI search of that lake in San Bernardino, California, has recovered no items.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Not only did she support violent jihad, but she wanted to be a part of it.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They didn't check her social media accounts, simply it was not part of the screening process.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

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

CAMEROTA: Look at that. Does it get any more exciting?

PEREIRA: Maybe if the podiums were made of chocolate.

CAMEROTA: Yes, maybe. Or made of gold.

Good morning. Welcome back to your NEW DAY. That was a look inside the Venetian Hotel where the countdown is on. Nine Republicans are set to take that stage. That's the main stage tomorrow night in Los Angeles for the final GOP debate of 2015. The stakes could actually not be higher.

CHRIS CUOMO, CNN ANCHOR: And one reason is you don't often hear this, but Donald Trump could use a boost. His lead is waning in the latest national polls. Just five points separate him from erstwhile pal Senator Ted Cruz. The Texas senator now the frontrunner in Iowa. This makes the debate even more important, and Trump says he is ready to get it on.

Our debate coverage kicks off with Athena Jones, live in Vegas -- Athena.

ATHENA JONES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Chris.

The countdown has begun here in the Venetian Theater. You can see the stage is all set up, right here behind me. National front-runner Donald Trump is smack dab in the middle once again. But he's not going to be the only target as the candidates battle to stand out here tomorrow night.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JONES (voice-over): Only one day away from the last GOP debate of the year in Las Vegas. And for these 13 candidates, one last chance to make an impression, heading into the holiday season.

The main debate lineup: seeing most of the same players as last time. And no surprise here: frontrunner Donald Trump again taking center stage. Chris Christie moving up to the main stage. Trump will be flanked by Dr. Ben Carson and Texas Senator Ted Cruz, who's now surging in Iowa, according to this FOX News poll released Sunday.

On Saturday, "The Des Moines Register" and Bloomberg Politics releasing their own poll, showing Cruz ahead of Trump by 10 percentage points in the state.

SEN. TED CRUZ (R-TX), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I'm very glad Donald Trump is in this election.

TRUMP: Well, that is a little bit of a romance. I like him.

JONES: Their bromance beginning to wane after audio from a private fundraiser captured Cruz questioning Trump's judgment.

TRUMP: Well, I'll tell you what: my judgment's great. I built a multi, multi, multibillion-dollar company. Some of the greatest assets in the world. I have good judgment. I have great judgment. I would say I have far better judgment than Ted.

JONES: Trump later tweeting, "I was disappointed that Ted Cruz would speak behind my back, get caught and then deny it."

And after Trump said this about Cruz's temperament.

TRUMP: You look at the way he's dealt with the Senate, where he goes in there like a -- frankly, like a little bit of a maniac, you're never going to get things done that way.

JONES: Cruz tweeting, "In honor of my friend, Donald Trump," with a link to "Flashdance's" popular song, "Maniac."

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (singing): She's a maniac, maniac I sure know.

JONES: Carson, once Trump's nearest rival, now dropping in the polls.

DR. BEN CARSON (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Poll numbers go up and down. I wasn't excited when they were up. I'm not excited when they're down. People will make the correct choice.

JONES: Heightened fears of terrorism around the world and right here at home could make for fireworks on stage tomorrow night.

DAVID CHALIAN, CNN POLITICAL DIRECTOR: This is a new environment inside the campaign right now. And so that -- this will be the first time that the candidates take the stage in that new landscape.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CUOMO: All right. So let's bring in CNN political commentator and former White House political director for Ronald Reagan, Mr. Jeffrey Lord.

CAMEROTA: There he is.

CUOMO: Also a Trump supporter, looking august there.

Also, Amanda Carpenter, CNN political commentator and former communications director for Senator Ted Cruz.

CAMEROTA: Also looking august.

CUOMO: What beautiful bookings we have this morning.

Mr. Lord, I start with you. If we look at this national poll, Donald still strong, Donald Trump in first. But we do see a contraction. Even though his numbers are up, the margin is down. How do you read these numbers, sir?

JEFFREY LORD, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Right. Well, I think one of the important things, this is -- Iowa is a state where religious liberty is a very important thing, and Senator Cruz has a record on that. There's just no question about it.

[07:05:07] The thing that I'm interested in is Donald Trump is bringing in a lot of people to the process that were never involved before. And I'm not sure quite how you -- how you measure that. I mean, after all, polls or no polls, at the end of the day, you've got to show up on a cold winter night in Iowa in February and stay there for several hours while you go about this caucus process.

So the question is going to be, in some sense, although Donald has done very well with evangelicals, what is the role of all of these new folks? And that will be very interesting to see. Because there's an indication, I think, that they do like Donald Trump. Will they come out? That's what the work is all about.

CAMEROTA: Amanda, let's talk about how -- whatever gentlemen's agreement Cruz and Trump seem to have had up until now appears to be crumbling a bit.

First, Cruz talked about Donald Trump's judgment not being the best at this closed-door fundraising event. And then Donald Trump took it public. And he talked about Cruz being a bit of a maniac. This was on FOX yesterday. Listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: I don't think he's qualified to be president.

WALLACE: Why not?

TRUMP: Because I don't think he has the right temperament. I don't think he's got the right judgment.

WALLACE: What's wrong with his temperament?

TRUMP: Well, you look at the way he's dealt with the Senate where he goes in there like a -- frankly, like a little bit of a maniac. You're never going to get things done that way.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CUOMO: Can you be a little bit of a maniac?

There it is.

(MUSIC: "MANIAC" FROM THE "FLASHDANCE" SOUNDTRACK)

CAMEROTA: This is Chris's favorite part of this argument, by the way. He wanted us to play this moment, strangely, over and over again, which is the "Flashdance" reference.

Amanda, what's going on here?

AMANDA CARPENTER, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Well, you know, this all started -- what Cruz said about Donald Trump behind closed doors is so tame. I mean, this is really a cookie-cutter criticism you can make of any candidate, because they think they have the best judgment.

And of all the things you could say about Donald Trump, Ted Cruz really said the most benign.

And I'm really befuddled by Donald Trump's criticism of Ted Cruz saying, essentially, that he's a maniac in Washington and didn't make enough friends among the Washington establishment. I mean, Donald Trump is saying Ted Cruz is too brash? I mean, it's

really kind of hilarious.

But also, I think it's such a misstep for Trump, because he's essentially saying that Ted Cruz should have played nicer with the people who have run the Republican Party into the ground. I mean, this is the -- essentially what Ted Cruz is campaigning on. He came to D.C. to shake it up, to challenge the status quo. And so Ted Cruz comes out ahead in this battle so far.

CUOMO: Ted Cruz is prized, above all else, Jeffrey Lord, for his intelligence. Everyone you talk to about him, whether it's his law school professor, Dershowitz or anybody...

LORD: Yes.

CUOMO: ... says the guy is as smart as they come.

So in that context, how do you see what was confusing to some early on about his cozying up to Trump? What is the strategy here? Do you believe in the Overton window theory? That's right.

LORD: I think -- I think the two, up until now, have always liked one another. At an "American Spectator" dinner, where I write for "The American Spectator," three years ago they were both the guest of honor and said nice things about each other in front of a ballroom full of people. So there's nothing really new about this.

I will say this, though. You know, when you're running for president, heck, for that matter, if you're running for city council, you don't stand up and say, "The other guy is more qualified than I am." You're supposed to draw the line. You're supposed to draw the differences. You're supposed to get out there and do it. And that's what's going to happen.

CAMEROTA: So Amanda, is that your prediction, as well? I mean, what do you think is going to happen in this debate? Do you think that we'll see those two go directly at each other?

CARPENTER: Well, I think a lot of people are going to be going at Ted Cruz, because he's rising in the polls. You're going to see Donald Trump may be calling him a maniac again. Marco Rubio going after him on surveillance issues. Ben Carson talking about the big money. So a lot of Republicans are going to be going after Cruz on Tuesday. In other words, it's another Tuesday for Ted Cruz. He's used to this.

You know, I worked for him in the Senate when the entire, you know, D.C. media, Washington establishment, you name it, was attacking him upside-down, left, right and sideways. And he's still standing, thriving in the polls, despite everything that's been thrown at him so far. And so I think he'll be very comfortable handling those attacks on the stage and is looking forward to answering the questions that are thrown at him.

CAMEROTA: But Amanda, back to your original point, which is that you think that it's sort of strange that Trump would go after Cruz for not being more conciliatory in the Senate. But doesn't Trump have a point that, when you're president, you do need to be a dealmaker? You do need to be able to negotiate even with people on the other side of the aisle. And Donald Trump says, "That's my calling card."

CARPENTER: Sure. But if you look at the profile of attacks that Donald Trump is making of Cruz, this sort of started in Iowa, where he complained that Cruz wasn't for ethanol subsidies.

[07:10:06] And now Donald Trump is complaining that Cruz didn't make enough friends in Washington and essentially can't cajole people. This is adding up to a negative profile of Donald Trump as to being someone who, essentially, who will stand as a corporate shill who will hand out the corporate subsidies to big ethanol and then will also go rub elbows and grease the skids to get things done.

I don't think that's what people are looking for, but really, that is the essence of what Donald Trump is. Donald Trump is not conservative; never has been, never will be. He's a Trumpist. He is for Donald Trump at all times. And I think that will play out through the process and is a great contrast for Ted Cruz to make.

CUOMO: Jeffrey, you may respond to that, of course. And also then give us your take on whether or not you think Ted Cruz has the staying power past Iowa and if not, why?

LORD: Yes. Well, I do think Donald Trump is conservative. Like Ronald Reagan, he's evolved over the years. That's the question here, once you get beyond Iowa, then what?

I mean, we all remember -- or some of us at least do, not to date everybody else -- but that Ronald Reagan lost the Iowa caucuses and then came back and won in New Hampshire and South Carolina, et cetera. And even after that, he managed to lose my home state of Pennsylvania to George H.W. Bush.

So I think this battle is going to go on for some time to come. Iowa is not the ball game. It's only the beginning. And of course, we do remember that Senator Santorum and Governor Huckabee won in 2012 and 2008 respectively. That was it for them.

CAMEROTA: Amanda, Jeffrey...

CARPENTER: Yes, I agree with you.

CAMEROTA: We have to leave it there, but hold that thought, Amanda, because we will be seeing you in a few hours out there in Las Vegas. Great to see you guys.

And take a look at this time-lapsed video. This is from inside the Venetian Las Vegas. You can see it capture all the final preparations as they get the debate stage ready.

CUOMO: We have the same time lapse of Berman losing it at a craps table inside. He just turned into this puddle at the end of it.

PEREIRA: Can you imagine John Berman unleashed in Las Vegas? CUOMO: Sure. He's winning money. He's, like, you know, spitting out

all this weird trivia to the people on his left and right. Nobody likes him. Everybody...

CAMEROTA: Hair tousled.

CUOMO: Never.

CAMEROTA: No.

CUOMO: Tomorrow night's debate will focus on national security and terrorism. But remember, it can go wherever the men and women want to take it. The moderator, CNN's captain Wolf Blitzer.

This is the final GOP debate of the year. Coverage starts at 6 p.m. Eastern. That's the undercard. And then we have the main debate at 8:30 p.m. Eastern. NEW DAY will be live tomorrow and Wednesday morning, what Alisyn calls "SAME DAY," from the Venetian in Las Vegas.

PEREIRA: Don't worry. I will be here and sober to handle the morning for the rest.

CAMEROTA: Thank goodness for us.

CUOMO: At least half of that is true.

PEREIRA: All right. All right. More news for you now at 12 minutes past the hour.

The fight against ISIS, President Obama holding a strategy session today with his national security advisers at the Pentagon. It is his first visit since the terror attacks in San Bernardino and in Paris. What should we expect from that meeting?

Chris Frates might know. He's live in Washington for us. What should we expect today?

CHRIS FRATES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey, good morning, Michaela.

So the White House is only saying that Obama is getting an update on the strategy to defeat ISIS during his meeting with his national security team at the Pentagon today.

And later in week, the president is headed to the National Counterterrorism Center where he'll review efforts to prevent attacks on America.

But these public appearances are also The president and his team are hard at work destroying is. Here's how the president talked about his administration's efforts in his weekly media address.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

OBAMA: Our airstrikes are hitting ISIL harder than ever in Iraq and Syria. We're taking out more of their fighters and leaders, their weapons, their oil tankers. Our Special Operations forces are on the ground, because we're going to hunt down these terrorists wherever they try to hide.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FRATES: So Obama went on to say that, in recent weeks, U.S. strikes have killed two ISIS leaders. And when Obama speaks at the Pentagon later this morning, there's no indication that there will be a major shift of his ISIS strategy. But the president has ordered his team to constantly assess the performance of that strategy and turn up the heat if there's an opportunity to.

In the past, for instance, that has meant increasing assistance to Syrian opposition fighters or putting Special Forces on the ground in Iraq and Syria. So we might hear news about similar moves to intensify the fight against ISIS. But the White House says there's no major changes expected to be announced -- Alisyn.

CAMEROTA: OK, Chris, thanks so much.

In a related story, the FBI, the search of a lake outside of San Bernardino turning up no evidence linked to the couple behind that deadly terror attack.

Now, "The New York Times" reporting that Tashfeen Malik openly expressed support for jihad on social media before three background checks and two interviews failed to raise any red flags.

CNN correspondent Paul Vercammen is live in San Bernardino with the latest for us.

Good morning, Paul.

PAUL VERCAMMEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Alisyn.

And not only did they find out that Tashfeen Malik supported violent jihad, but she wanted to join it, as you pointed out, none of the background checks turned this up. That's because at that time, apparently government officials, according to "The Times," did not at all look into her social media posts, which were characterized as religious zealotry.

[07:15:20] Now also, that lake out there, they were scouring it, looking for the missing hard drive from the murderous couple. Apparently, some federal officials say they didn't find anything, but here on the ground, FBI officials saying that, when you do go ahead and look at a lake, quite often you turn up a number of things in a public lake. And they're saying if anything of evidentiary value is found, they will examine it.

Behind me, the memorial. And today, San Bernardino will remember yet another of the 14 killed. Bennetta Betbadal leaves behind three children. She was a county health inspector, and her husband. She had fled religious persecution from extremists in Iran and come to the United States. They will remember her at Rancho Cucamonga at 10:30 local time -- Chris.

CUOMO: Paul, thank you very much. We have word of another dust-up between Russia and Turkey, this time at sea. A Turkish fishing boat in the Aegean taking warning fire from a Russian warship. Moscow says the boat came within 1,600 feet of their ship and ignored repeated calls to change course. You'll remember Turkey shot down a Russian fighter jet last month, saying it ignored warnings.

PEREIRA: Surprising development out of Egypt this morning. The panel investigating the crash of the Russian jetliner in the Sinai says it has found no evidence of terrorism. A preliminary report say there's nothing indicating that crash was an act of terror, despite findings to the contrary by Russia and a claim of responsibility by ISIS. The incident, as you'll recall, killed 224 people. No comment so far this morning from the Kremlin.

CAMEROTA: An historical election in Saudi Arabia. At least 17 women winning their local elections across the country, according to a Saudi report. This is the first time that women were allowed to vote or run for office, though the female candidates were not allowed to talk with male voters. Most of the campaigning was done online.

CUOMO: For the first time in this Republican debate cycle, Donald Trump may not be the biggest target. Why? Well, Ted Cruz. He's surging. That means he's going to take some hits. We'll break down the biggest Republican rivalries and what everyone stands to gain and to lose, coming up. That's Vegas, baby.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[07:21:26] CAMEROTA: A lot at stake for the GOP candidates as they take the stage tomorrow night for the final debate of 2015. Clear rivalries starting to emerge among the White House hopefuls. So what can we expect?

Michael Smerconish is a CNN political commentator and host of CNN's "SMERCONISH," as well as Sirius XM radio host. Michael, great to see you out there already. We know you're getting your front-row seat.

So let's talk about how interesting these past few days have become. Just 36 hours before the debate starts, and Trump and Cruz seem to have taken off the gloves. What's going on with these two?

MICHAEL SMERCONISH, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: So, I think that you'd rather be Ted Cruz than Donald Trump, given the current state of affairs. Timing is everything. And as that vote draws near, the first vote in Iowa, that's the state you most want to win.

These national polls tend to garner all of our attention, but as you well know, Alisyn, it's a state-by-state nomination process. So I'd rather be Ted Cruz leading in two surveys in Iowa, even if Donald Trump continues to dominate in the national surveys. Because that's not the way the party nominates its candidates.

CAMEROTA: Well, yes, I guess so, except that Iowa doesn't really pick -- I mean, if you look at the last two winners, Governor Huckabee and Senator Santorum, they did not go on to be president. SMERCONISH: So true. And yet this year I think there's so much more

volatility. I believe the nation is just now paying attention. If Cruz were to win in Iowa, I think it will cause a lot of people to take a first look at that senator.

I think tomorrow night is a huge night for all of them, obviously. But some more than others. Cruz in particular. Because I think that there's such interest now in that contest. And people are not fully informed about exactly who is Ted Cruz. They've heard a little bit about him. They've seen a little bit about him. I don't mean the junkies; I don't mean the political class. I mean random most Americans. And so it's his opportunity, frankly, to make a first impression in many households across the country.

I also think the stakes are quite high for Ben Carson. He's on the descent. And that vote that I see Cruz now garnering is coming, probably, from both Trump and from Carson. It's not coming from Rubio. It's not coming from Jeb. It's not coming from the establishment types. And this is going to be a tough order for Ben Carson, because foreign policy, I think he's admitted, is not his strong suit.

So a lot of pressure on Carson. A lot of pressure, obviously, on Trump and on Cruz.

CAMEROTA: And I mean, this is also such a fascinating debate and so timely because of everything that's happening in the news. I mean, given all of the national security fears in the wake of San Bernardino and Paris, I mean, this issue has come to the fore. You know, it has leap-frogged the economy. Americans are scared.

So between Rubio and Trump and Cruz and all the other candidates, who do you think can grab the mantle of, "I will keep the country safest"?

SMERCONISH: I look at those establishment types on the stage behind me. I look at Jeb. I look at Kasich. I look at Christie and I look at Rubio, and I say to myself, regardless of what happens tomorrow night, they're probably not pulling votes from the maverick types, from the Carson, from the Cruz, from the Trump constituencies.

So I'm wondering do they look to their left and right and decide that, instead of going after Trump, which heretofore has not worked for any of them, do they instead try and go after some of those who are in that same strata of the GOP? Because they need a breakout moment.

You know, we're getting close now. We've been at this for quite some time. And if one of establishment types doesn't soon get a coalescing of that vote around him, then I think they're done.

[07:25:08] CAMEROTA: Here's another interesting poll that I want to show our viewers and you, Michael. This is just out this morning. It's a new NBC/"Wall Street Journal" poll. And it shows a head-to- head matchup between some of the leading Republicans and Hillary Clinton. It's so interesting.

Look at this: Hillary Clinton beats Donald Trump today, if the election were held, by 50 to 40 percent. Clinton, though, is neck and neck with Ben Carson, 46 percent to 47 percent. She beats Ted Cruz. So now, two leading Republicans, she -- Hillary Clinton beats. She beats him 48 to 45.

But then, Marco Rubio beats Hillary Clinton, his 48 percent to her 45 percent. What's going on in these numbers?

SMERCONISH: I think if you look at the internals of that survey, you're going to see that it's the independent vote that is the determining factor in how well Rubio is running.

And you know, this is the electability question. I took a look at a "New York Times" survey just last week, which came out and said that electability was of very low importance to GOP primary voters. I think by a margin of 7-1, when you said what's the quality or characteristic that's most important, being a strong, tough leader came in at No. 1, and way down on the list of choices was electability.

You wonder, Alisyn, if at some point, because the desire among all the people who will be in this hall come tomorrow night, is first and foremost, to beat Hillary Clinton. Will there be a practicality that will suit -- that will set in, where they'll look at Cruz and they'll look at Rubio and they'll say, "You know, I like either of them. Marco has a better chance of defeating Hillary Clinton than does Ted Cruz and, therefore, I'm going to give him that edge."

Thus far, that hasn't happened. But you would wonder if they'll look at that data before this is all said and done.

I'm floored by Ben Carson running as well as he runs against her.

Let's not lose sight of the fact that she has incredibly high negatives. That a majority of Americans in polls has said that they find her untrustworthy and dishonest. And so I guess a different way of looking at this is to say it's remarkable that she runs so well, given those high negatives.

OK, Michael Smerconish, we see you in position. We'll see you out there in a couple of hours. Thanks so much. Looking forward to it.

SMERCONISH: Look forward to it. Thank you.

CAMEROTA: Let's get over to Michaela.

PEREIRA: All right, Alisyn. The San Bernardino terror attack ramping up the urgency to destroy and defeat ISIS. The White House has called for a war authorization from Congress, but it's still not a done deal yet. What is the holdup? We'll have one lawmaker who has pushed for authorization for more than a year.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)