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New Day

Bleacher Report; San Bernardino Terrorist Friend Charged; Will "Star Wars" Smash Box Office Record? Aired 8:30-9a ET

Aired December 17, 2015 - 08:30   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[08:31:51] MICHAELA PEREIRA, CNN ANCHOR: Time now for the five things to know for your new day.

At number one, a hung jury in the trial of Officer William Porter. One of the six Baltimore officers facing charges in the death of Freddie Gray. Lawyers in court this morning to discuss a new trial date.

Republicans are back on the stump following Tuesday's debate. Donald Trump telling Jimmy Kimmel he hopes the GOP unifies, but still knocking Jeb Bush. Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio, meanwhile, both standing their ground after squaring off at Vegas' debate.

We're learning that a friend of the San Bernardino terrorists will be charged in connection with the rifles he purchased that were used in that terror attack. President Obama, meanwhile, prepares to meet with victims' families in San Bernardino tomorrow.

The CEO of that drug company that received intense backlash for gouging the price of a life-saving pill now reportedly facing security fraud charges. The federal charges are not in connection with the price hike, but linked to a biotech firm that he founded.

The force awakens tonight, but ticket sales are already out of this world. "Star Wars Episode VII" breaking pre-sale records, already earning more than $100 million. Screenings start at 7:00 p.m. tonight. Hope you'll be there.

For more on the five things to know, be sure to visit newdaycnn.com for the latest.

Chris.

CHRIS CUOMO, CNN ANCHOR: All right, Mic.

After 14 years on the U.S. Women's National Team, it's happened. Abby Wambach finishing her career as one of the greatest soccer players ever. Our man Coy Wire has more in this morning's "Bleacher Report."

Had to happen, still on stop of her game, but how big is this?

COY WIRE, "BLEACHER REPORT": It will be sad to see her go, Chris, but she finishes her career having scored more goals than any woman or man in the history of international soccer play. Abby Wambach's career is the stuff of which legends are made. Wambach was met with a sensational ovation in New Orleans yesterday for her final game as the U.S. took on China in a friendly. Now, the U.S. would lose to China, but that didn't slow the showing of love and respect for Wambach after the game. Even President Obama tweeted, "congratulations on an incredible career, Abby Wambach, for the goals you've scored and the kids you've inspired. You're the GOAT, greatest of all time, indeed."

Now, after seven straight road games, the NBA's player of the month for November, Steph Curry and his Warriors returned home and put on a clinic against the Sun. The no look pass from Clay (ph) Thompson - to Clay (ph) Thompson, rather, who drains the tray. Looking like the Harlem Globe Trotters out there. Between the league's pass from Andrew Bogut to Curry for the floater. The star of the show, though, Clay (ph) Thompson, 43 points on the night. The Warriors now 25-1. They'll be looking for revenge Friday when they play the Bucks, who broke their record win streak.

Now, questions about his friend, Donald Trump, seemed to put NFL star Tom Brady in a bit of a uncomfortable place yesterday. He laughed off a question and walked right off the stage. Take a look.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: How do you feel about people criticizing your relationship with Donald Trump?

TOM BRADY, NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS QUARTERBACK: I don't think about it much.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Do you regret opening the door when you do talk about it?

BRADY: Like I said, I'm just here to play football.

Thanks.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WIRE: Probably a smart move by Brady, dodging questions about the biz (ph) of Donald.

[08:35:02] Guys.

ALISYN CAMEROTA, CNN ANCHOR: No one rocks a pom pom hat as well as Tom Brady. How many times have I said that, Michaela.

WIRE: That's right.

CAMEROTA: Thanks so much, Coy.

PEREIRA: You do. I (INAUDIBLE).

WIRE: You're welcome, Alisyn.

PEREIRA: You do.

CAMEROTA: Thank you. Thank you. I do have one.

All right, meanwhile, the FBI director says ISIS is spreading its tentacles on social media in order to launch small scale attacks. So what challenges does this pose for law enforcement? How do they fix this? We talk about it with a CIA veteran, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CAMEROTA: We have breaking news. CNN has learned that that friend and former neighbor of the male San Bernardino terrorist will be charged today. Law enforcement officials say the charges against Enrique Marquez will partly concern the two military style rifles that he bought that were used in the terror attack.

Joining us now is Bruce Riedel. He is a 30 year veteran of the CIA and author of "JFK's Forgotten Crisis: Tibet, the CIA, and Sino-Indian War."

Mr. Riedel, great to have you here. Thanks so much for being on NEW DAY.

[08:40:01] BRUCE RIEDEL, SENIOR FELLOW & DIRECTOR, BROOKINGS INTELLIGENCE PROJECT: Thanks for inviting me.

CAMEROTA: Let's talk about that breaking news that we have that this neighbor in the San Bernardino case, he's the one believed to have supplied the weapons to the two terrorists, that he will be charged today. Now it's interesting, it's taken them many days of - more than weeks, I should say, to charge him, and that's because we've heard that he's been giving them a lot of information. So how do law enforcement agents deal with someone like this who's clearly guilty of supplying the weapons but is also a great source?

RIEDEL: It's a delicate bargaining process. You want to get as much information out of this information as possible. He may know whether they had contacts with foreign terrorist organizations. He may know whether there were other Islamic radical extremists in the United States that they were in contact with. In the process of getting that information out of him, you're going to have to coax him along. And I think that's what we've seen the FBI doing here.

CAMEROTA: We've heard from our reporter, Evan Perez, that he has apparently been a gold mine. He's been giving them a plethora of information, including how they made the pipe bombs, et cetera. But he also checked himself into a mental institution shortly after the crime. So they are - they can't tell how much of what he's saying is the truth. I mean you were in the CIA for 30 years. How do you figure that out?

RIEDEL: That's always a difficult problem. What you've got to do is come up with corroborating evidence. Perhaps they can find in e-mails, in laptops things that will confirm what he has to say. I'm sure they're looking at his laptops and at his e-mails, as well as those of the two shooters.

CAMEROTA: As I said, you were in the CIA for many years and but yet - correct me if I'm wrong, you say that you had never seen anything like the tactics that ISIS is using now. And the San Bernardino case is just a perfect example of it. That they can just send out a message, basically, if you feel so inspired, go and kill people. That seems to just be putting this on a whole new playing field.

RIEDEL: Both ISIS and al Qaeda have realized that it's harder and harder to do big complicated plots like 9/11 with lots of moving parts. It's much easier to simply appeal to their followers to carry out random acts of violence. Look at the impact San Bernardino has had on the United States of America. It has become the number one issue in our political debate about who's going to be president in 2016. What did it cost ISIS to bring this about? Nothing. All it had to do was put out some appeals and sooner or later they were going to find someone who was willing to respond to their appeals.

CAMEROTA: And, of course, they're exploiting social media. The director of the FBI, James Comey, talked about how effective they are in using it. Listen to what he said yesterday.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JAMES COMEY, FBI DIRECTOR: The threat came from ISIL through social media, which has revolutionized the way we of us connect to each other. And they made it revolutionize terrorism because they sent their twin-pronged message of come or kill out to the chaotic spider web especially of Twitter.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CAMEROTA: So that chaotic spider web, I mean, how does an agency like the CIA infiltrate that?

RIEDEL: It's very, very hard to do. That's why communications intercept, signals intelligence become so important. It's unlikely that we're going to be able to infiltrate every Muslim community in the United States. nor do we want to, nor should we do so. It's unlikely that we're going to be infiltrating the top echelons of the Islamic State hiding somewhere in Iraq. But we can listen to communications. And that's why it's so important to be able to have that capacity. With all the appropriate legal restrictions, court orders and everything, but to have that capacity.

The American intelligence community's biggest strength is its capacity to do signals intelligence. We've devoted decades of effort to this. And today about 90 percent of the signals intelligence we're collecting is being devoted to the counterterrorism problem. That's how important it is.

CAMEROTA: So, in tense times it's always interesting and instructive to look back at history, and you' just written this book called "JFK's Forgotten Crisis." What is the forgotten crisis?

RIEDEL: Well, we all remember, Alisyn, the Cuban Missile Crisis, the darkest moment of the Cold War, when the Soviet Union put intermediate range ballistic missiles with nuclear weapons in Cuba and threatened American cities. At the same time as that crisis in the Caribbean, China invaded India and almost destroyed the Indian army. John F. Kennedy confronted two great crises in the fall of 1962. One in the Caribbean, which we all remember well, and a second one in the Himalayas, which has been largely forgotten. But the one in the Himalayas has many more implications for today.

The border between China and India is still not agreed. It's the longest disputed border in the world. Both countries now have nuclear weapons. And a third partner, Pakistan, has nuclear weapons as well. John F. Kennedy, in the fall of 1962, multitasked at a level of decision-making that's hard to even begin to grapple with and he did it brilliantly. It was his finest hour. And if you realize he was dealing with two crises at once, you realize just how fine an hour it really was for American diplomacy and for American presidential leadership.

[08:45:15] CAMEROTA: Bruce Riedel, thanks so much for sharing the book and your expertise with us on NEW DAY.

RIEDEL: Thank you.

CAMEROTA: Michaela.

PEREIRA: Can I ask you a question, Ali?

CAMEROTA: Yeah.

PEREIRA: Are you bracing for the Force? In just a matter of hours "Star Wars" fans are heading to theaters in droves to hook up with their friends aboard the millennium falcon. A read on Hollywood's expectations on what could be giant weekend at the box office.

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("STAR WARS: THE FORCE AWAKENS" CLIP)

PEREIRA: I'm gripped, man. I just can't. This is awesome. "Star Wars: The Force Awakens" officially releases tomorrow but screenings are going to start tonight at 7:00 p.m. Eastern. Disney CEO sent a letter to employees saying that the film marks, quote, "one of the proudest and most exciting moments in our company's history." So the big question: Could "Star Wars" smash box office records?

Here to discuss, debate, and otherwise go over it all, former editor of "People" magazine, Larry Hackett. All the way from Las Vegas, Nischelle Turner, host of Entertainment Tonight and CNN contributor and friend and my curly-hair sister.

[08:50:07] All right. So far we know a few people have had a chance to see it. How are the reviews? Nischelle, what are we hearing?

NISCHELLE TURNER, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: They are actually very, very positive. Rotten Tomatoes gives it a 95 percent. All the reviews that I've read have been really kind of lauding the film, I mean they've been calling it the film that reinvigorates the franchise, that JJ Abrams makes this film masterfully. Some of the reviews, by the way, at home, if you read them, a lot of them have spoilers, plot lines, spoilers. So if you don't want to get spoiled, don't read the reviews. But they have been very positive so that may even drive ticket sales even more coming up this weekend.

PEREIRA: So Larry, are kids into the "Star Wars" franchise or just big kids like all of us?

LARRY HACKETT, FORMER EDITOR, PEOPLE MAGAZINE: Well I think big kids get the attention because, you know, seeing grown people going to the theaters wearing their masks and their costumes can be odd. But I think they are. Look, the power of this movie, whether it was the 1977 or now, is this good versus evil. Light versus dark. That is a kids theme. And I think it appeals to them. JJ Abrams deserves all kinds of credit for what he's done apparently with this film. Of course he came out of a place where the previous ones were not exactly worshipped by those who enjoyed the franchise.

PEREIRA: The prequels.

HACKETT: The prequels, right. So I think by resorting to the tried and true, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Mark Hammil, I mean he really was in a good spot. So I think a lot of kids are going to get in involved. These things have lived, right, on videotapes and discs. Unlike when we were kids, you couldn't watch this over and over and over again. Now you can. And the appeal there is primal. So I think they are.

CUOMO: Fun question. Who would you be if you were a "Star Wars" --

PEREIRA: Chewbacca.

CUOMO: Who would you be -- That is like so not you, by the way.

CAMEROTA: But it's hilarious.

(CROSSTALK)

PEREIRA: I love that.

CUOMO: Who would you be?

CAMEROTA: Well, don't I have to go with Princess Leia? I mean, do I have a choice?

CUOMO: Wouldn't have been my first choice.

CAMEROTA: No?

PEREIRA: What about you, Nischelle?

(CROSSTALK)

CUOMO: Two words. R2-D2.

PEREIRA: R2-D2.

CUOMO: Who would you be, Larry? (CROSSTALK)

HACKETT: Harrison Ford.

PEREIRA: Oh, yeah.

CUOMO: Nischelle?

TURNER: R2-D2.

CAMEROTA: And you? And you?

CUOMO: The emperor.

(LAUGHTER)

PEREIRA: No conflict there.

HACKETT: "Star Wars" the psychiatric tool right here at the table.

PEREIRA: This actually brings me to a big question. It has a serious aspect to it because we know that one of the things that people love about this is the fact that we get into it. We're all in. People come in costumes, they have their light sabers, the kids have their toys, their action figures. Going to a lot of these screenings, you often see people in costume but I know there are security concerns, Nischelle. What have you been hearing about what certain theaters are doing or not allowing for the screenings?

TURNER: Well three of the big chains here in the U.S., and that's Regal, Cinemark, and AMC, have put out a statement about this and saying they are welcoming fans to come dressed up because they do realize people love the experience of this. But they are putting some restrictions.

No. 1, you can't wear masks. So you can wear the costume, but you can't wear the mask. You can't have face paint and you can't bring weapons or weapon-like props. So that means light sabers are pretty much out, except for at AMC. They are being a little more lenient. They are saying you can bring your light saber but you have to turn it off, put it away while the film is on and then go on about your business.

But they are - They do want people to be calm and cautious. Oversees, you know, in Paris they've also got some restrictions on some of the movie going as well because there is still that fear. So they do want people to have a good time but they do recognize that we're in a different time and space in the country right now so they do want people to be safe.

CUOMO: Two things. Light saber, not real. Second --

CAMEROTA: Tell that to my son. We have millions of them at home.

CUOMO: Do you think "Star Wars" is the best morality play of the simple battle between good and evil? HACKETT: I think it is the clearest morality of play between good and

evil. I'm waiting for the tsunami of op-eds that are going to talk about the light and the dark and the political campaign. You know this is coming. The idea of the simple clean-cut world that is "Star Wars" versus the world we live in now. You know, is the empire ISIS, all of it's going on. And of course I'm also waiting for the appropriation of various characters, just like your question, by certain people in the campaign trail. You know it's going to be -- I would guess before lunchtime today, it's going to be (inaudible).

PEREIRA: Okay. Last question for you, Nischelle, before we go here. Most people got their tickets, a lot of places are sold out. If you don't have a ticket this weekend, are you just out of luck?

TURNER: Oh gosh. No is the short answer but it is a little more complicated than that because the next part of it is, well, where do you get a ticket? There are still tickets available. What they are saying to do is probably go online and try to get your tickets because if you just go to the theater you really may be out of luck. If you buy online, you get it in advanced, you know you have your ticket, you are in better shape. But I don't know because the presales are at a hundred million dollars now and that is a lot of tickets sold already.

[08:55:02] PEREIRA: All right. Nischelle, Larry, we appreciate it. The Force is strong with both of you.

CUOMO: What you should never do is buy a ticket for a different movie and then walk into "Star Wars," Alisyn Camerota.

CAMEROTA: Really? You sounded like you have some experience with that that you'd like to tell us about.

CUOMO: I'm lucky enough to get a Christmas gift every day because I get to sit between Mick and Alisyn. However for you, we have a very special story about a special Christmas gift for "The Good Stuff" coming up.

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CUOMO: Step one, step two, step three. This is a very special "Good Stuff." A little girl gets a very special dog. This is 10-year-old Tianna Johnson. She is legally blind. She has faced health problems her whole life. She wanted a dog for Christmas, but not just any dog.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TIANNA JOHNSON, WANTED DISABLED DOG FOR CHRISTMAS: I want a disabled dog.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CUOMO: She wanted a disabled dog. Enter Carmella. She is also a little different. She has two deformed legs from being jammed in a crate for most of her life.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: People would come in every day and comment on how gorgeous she was and as soon as they heard about her legs, her handicap, you know, they lost interest immediately.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CUOMO: Knowing it was a perfect match, the woman who rescued Carmella immediately gave the dog to Tianna and her sister.