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Glenn Beck Endorses Cruz; Bernie Sanders' Brother Weighs in on Campaign; Democratic Rivals to Take Part in CNN Town Hall. Aired 8:30- 9a ET
Aired January 25, 2016 - 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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[08:33:16] CHRIS CUOMO, CNN ANCHOR: Just one week to the Iowa caucuses. The latest polling shows Donald Trump 11 points plus in just the last two weeks, up on Ted Cruz, surging in Iowa. He's hoping, Ted Cruz, that a big endorsement he just got from a major conservative can help him regain traction. That major conservative, Glenn Beck, joins us now. You know him, nationally syndicated conservative radio host, founder of "The Blaze," officially endorsed Ted Cruz, the senator from Texas, in Iowa this weekend.
Glenn, good to see you, as always.
GLENN BECK, FOUNDER, THEBLAZE.COM: Thank you. This is the first time in almost 40 years of broadcast I've ever been willing to put my name on any weasel in Washington because I - I don't like really any politician. But this is the first time that I've done that because I believe that Ted Cruz is who he says he is and I've watched him over the last couple of years. I'm sorry, Chris. I've watched him over the last couple of years and I have seen that he - he does exactly what he says he's going to do.
CUOMO: No, I'm with you. I've got the same thing in my throat right now.
BECK: Sorry.
CUOMO: If you were here, I'd give you a Riccola, but I can't throw it through the screen.
BECK: Thank you.
CUOMO: No, not at all. Not at all.
So there was a big moment yesterday that I think kind of crystallizes where your head and your heart is on this. Let's play the video of Glenn administering the oath of office to Senator Cruz, obviously a metaphor moment for you. What makes you so sure that Ted Cruz is the right guy for the GOP, and that Donald Trump is so wrong? I mean you have gone out of your way to say it's not just that I'm pro-Cruz, I am decidedly anti-Trump. Why?
BECK: Well, there's two things here. First of all, I wasn't administering, I was asking him, what is the oath of office? And the oath of office is to protect and defend the Constitution of the United States.
CUOMO: Right.
[08:35:03] BECK: And that's why am for Ted Cruz. He is a constitutionalist. He, at 13 years old, he had memorized the Constitution and was going around the state doing this amazing memory thing on the Constitution. He was raised by a father who escaped from Cuba, actually fought for Fidel, came to America, realized the difference, became an American citizen, raised Ted on the Constitution and so it is - it's in his bones. And what I've warned about for so long, you know, people only focus - when I was at Fox, they only focused on what I was saying about Barack Obama. But when I was at CNN, I was saying much of the same stuff about George W. Bush and nobody paid attention. And when I was at Fox, I warned, look, Democrats, please understand, if you let the balance of power go out of whack, the next guy who could get in could be called -- calling himself a Republican. And he will either take that same power and either use it at the same level or expand it. And that's a very bad thing. We need a constitutional restraint on the executive branch. And Donald Trump, I really truly believe, is a very dangerous man. If you listen to, Chris, some of the things he said this weekend, I could go out and -
CUOMO: Dangerous, why? Obviously - go ahead, please.
BECK: I could go out on 5th Avenue and I could shoot people and I wouldn't lose a single vote. He's joked about killing reporters like Putin. Actually, he's joked about not killing reporters like Putin does. He's a very dangerous man.
CUOMO: He says he's joking. He put out a tweet this weekend about you. You know what happens when you go at Trump. He is not one to take a punch passively. You obviously don't care about that. But in terms of - you know, here he is, "is a sad answer to the Sarah Palin endorsement," you know, is the best Cruz could do. "Glenn is a failing crying lost soul." I know you well enough to know that the personal attack isn't going to bother you -
BECK: Yes.
CUOMO: But do you think that you may by mistaking the mood of the country? Because, obviously, that is seen ask the fuel of Trump's success thus far.
BECK: Oh, Chris, no, I'm - I'm not here to talk to you about the mood of the country. I'm here - I'm here to talk to you about the Constitution and what I believe is an absolute right or wrong. We don't change with the mood of the country. That's the problem with our country right now. The Constitution is to anchor us in principles that - that help temper the mood of the country.
The mood of the country is very angry, but you never make a good decision when you're angry. The worst thing we can do is to now start looking at, well, who is going to get revenge? One of the things that Donald Trump does and, look, if you want to take a shot at me, I mean, look at me, Chris. You can take - there's lots of jokes to be made. So it doesn't bother me.
But when you have a guy who is angry and then has an enemy's list and starts just to take people down over and over and over again, if you disagree with him, he destroys you. That - that - if that's the mood of the country, we're in more trouble than I thought.
CUOMO: Well, let me - is it - is it - well, but here's the thing. Is there a little bit of reap what you sow in some of this for the GOP that engendering an oppositional mode towards government in rationing up negativity as a main line discourse, you wound up somewhat birthing Donald Trump and now all - some of those people who were angry about what was going on and telling people to be angry, now they've got somebody who's harnessing the power of exactly that and you're disappointed.
BECK: Well, I'm not disappointed, I've warned against this. I mean you go back on my Fox - my shows on Fox and I warned the progressive movement. And that's what this is. This is - Donald Trump is a progressive. Make no mistake. He believes in the power of the pen. I don't. Those who stood for the Tea Party and actually really believed in it were standing for constitutional principles.
Now, are there - are there those in the Republican Party that believe in the executive power more than the constitutional power? Yes. The progressive party was started by Theodore Roosevelt. It was started by a Republican. So this - this idea of an ever expanding power inside the presidency is something that both parties have. It's why - you know, Donald Trump said that I would vote for Bernie Sanders over Donald Trump. Absolutely not what I said.
CUOMO: Right.
BECK: Here's what I - here's what I did say this weekend.
CUOMO: What did you say?
BECK: I said that Bernie Sanders is at least honest about who he is. And I've said this for years. I actually have respect for Bernie Sanders because he's not afraid to say, I'm a socialist and I think we should be more like Denmark. Now, I disagree with that, vehemently disagree with that, but I respect Bernie Sanders for having the guts to tell the truth. So I really truly believe where America really is, is not with Hillary Clinton and - and the soft - I don't even know what she is - not with the anger of - of Donald Trump. What the real question that is before America is this, do we believe in socialism or constitutionalism? Those should be the two candidates in the United States of America and let the people decide. Are we going socialist or back to the Constitution? That's a fair and honest debate.
[08:40:35] CUOMO: Right, and your - there everybody's going to have to make a decision as they believe. Are you bothered at all by Senator Cruz's movements on some key issues that he's migrated, you know, excuse the pun, but on immigration, that he has moved from one stance to another?
BECK: You mean the stance that he's - CUOMO: As you know, the governor of Iowa criticized him for doing the same ethanol, you know, subsidies that the senator says he's been straight on ethanol subsidies all along.
BECK: Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait.
CUOMO: Go ahead.
BECK: He has absolutely been straight on ethanol. I mean I've heard him about a year ago say to the people in Iowa, I am not for ethanol subsidies. The reason why the - the governor of Iowa doesn't like him is because he's not for ethanol subsidies. I think that takes great courage. What people in Iowa need to understand is that the - one of the things that would be on the top of Ted Cruz's list to take care of would be to put the power of the EPA back into check and for farmers the biggest problem for farmers is the EPA. So while the government may not be giving you free money, at least it puts the government back in check where you can actually have your kids help you on the farmland and have some sensible regulation.
When it comes to the border, I, again, I'm not sure where you see him migrating. I have not seen Ted Cruz change his position on anything.
CUOMO: Well, but over time what he said on immigration early on has been different than as he's made his way through this process and starting a little bit before.
BECK: Tell me, can you -
CUOMO: But, I mean, you've heard it in the debates as well. I'm not here to criticize Senator Cruz, but I'm saying that you certainly have heard that this is a concern.
BECK: No, what I've heard in the debate - no, no, what I've heard in the - no, what I've heard in the debate is others making those charges, but I have not heard - I have not heard anything that is actually real on that, Chris. If you could give me - if you could give me something that is - that's factually based and - then I could argue that. But - but the idea that he's changed without telling me, because I haven't seen it at all. I've heard Marco Rubio, who has changed his position, he has made the case that, OK, well, yes, I was for the gang of eight and now I'm not. He - Ted Cruz has not made those changes that I'm aware of. And I don't mean to be argumentative with you, I just don't know what you're talking about.
CUOMO: Well - no, no, listen, it's - look, it's always a good discussion to have, right? We need more of this, not less.
BECK: Yes.
CUOMO: You need more people comparing ideas, not less. But with - I think the point of contrast would be, not to belabor it, is that Senator Rubio says, look, I'm trying to do something to get it done. We're not going to do comprehensive immigration reform so you can say you cling to that all you want and say it's because of the Constitution, but you're not going to get anything done. I want progress on this issue. That's the difference between me and Cruz. Is that a fair comparison?
BECK: No, and I will tell you this and that's a really good point. There's a difference between progress and honest progress. What Ted Cruz is for is - and this is what I'm for. Like with Bernie Sanders, tell me what you're really for. Let's not build these bills that, you know, like the Patriot Act. You're not a patriot if you don't vote for the Patriot Act. That's ridiculous. Tell me what's really in the bill, what you're really going for and let's have an honest conversation. Too many times in these bills with Marco Rubio in - in case here on immigration, it's not an honest bill. Let's be honest about it and then we can have that debate.
CUOMO: So when you look at this going forward, there's nobody but Senator Cruz on the GOP slate right now that you believe could fit the bill.
BECK: Oh, no, no, no. I think that there - you know, if it comes down to other people, there are other people that I could consider. I like Rand Paul, but Rand Paul, I don't think, has a chance of winning. I like Ben Carson, but I think he's under prepared for it. I like Marco Rubio, but I think he is - he's too big of a government guy. He agrees with the NSA spying. I find that reprehensible on the Constitution. We've had many conversations with that. You know, so there are other people that I could consider. But Ted Cruz is the most qualified. I really, truly believe, Chris, he is - he was raised for this moment.
CUOMO: Glenn Beck, I hear you and I see you living your conviction on this and it's certainly caused a little bit of controversy with Trump, but that's not new. Let's see how it turns out here in Iowa. I look forward to continuing the conversation with you as we move from one major forum to the next.
[08:45:00] BECK: Thank you very much.
CUOMO: Appreciate you being on NEW DAY, Glenn. Glenn Beck.
BECK: Thanks a lot. You bet.
CUOMO: John, let me bring you guys in, in New York.
You know, very interesting. Glenn Beck, we've known him for a very long time. He has been somebody who believes that there is an assault on the Constitution, that what we see that some on the left and in the center would say is progress of an executive that reaches out to do more to help more. He is saying that that is an incursion on the way the system is supposed to work and that Ted Cruz is the only man who will protect that kind of straight definitional structure of what a Constitution-based republic should be.
JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: Look, he's picking sides this time and as he said, he hasn't picked sides this way before. And in a manner of speaking, that is what is happening this week. We saw Sarah Palin do it last week. We've seen some of these senators, Chuck Grassley and Joni Ernst in Iowa, not officially endorsing but appearing on stage with the candidates. Rick Perry officially endorsing Ted Cruz. It's a time for choosing. ALISYN CAMEROTA, CNN ANCHOR: Yeah, it is interesting to hear from Glenn Beck. He kept invoking his time on Fox and CNN because he is on cable news right now so that is what the audience listens to. But he has hundreds of thousands of followers online, on the radio. He goes and gives his big speeches in these megadomes. So he is an influencer.
BERMAN: We shall see.
CAMEROTA: Yes. All right, Chris. Thanks.
BERMAN: All right. Thanks, Chris.
Bernie Sanders, he is in Iowa making his final full-court press for the White House. But what does his family think about this run? Do they think he can actually be the nominee?
CNN's Hala Gorani spoke with Larry Sanders, the brother of the Vermont senator. She joins us with that conversation. Good morning, Hala.
HALA GORANI, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Good morning, John. Larry Sanders is six years older than Bernie. He's lived in the United Kingdom not far from London in Oxford for a decade. I asked him about his brother's stellar performance in the polls, really, about a year ago. I don't think many people would have predicted this, even Larry Sanders himself. And I asked him what he thought his chances were at the Democratic nomination. Take a listen.
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GORANI (voice-over): Thousands of miles from the U.S. campaign trail where Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders is riding high in the polls, lives a man who knows him better than almost anyone.
In picturesque Oxford, England, older brother Larry Sanders says he is not surprised the man he calls "Bernard" is doing so well.
GORANI (on camera): Do you think he can beat Hillary Clinton?
LARRY SANDERS, BROTHER OF BERNIE SANDERS: Oh, yes. I think he can beat Hillary Clinton.
GORANI: And do you think he will become the Democratic nominee?
SANDERS: He will not only become the Democratic nominee, but given the state of the Republican Party, he will be the president.
GORANI (voice-over): Larry, a retired social worker, moved to England in the '60s with his first wife. But both brothers grew up in Brooklyn, New York. The children of Jewish immigrants from Poland.
GORANI (on camera): What was Bernie Sanders like as a kid brother?
SANDERS: Well, he was a quiet kid. He was fairly shy. His great gift was he is a very good athlete, a very determined athlete. He was always very kind. He was very truthful. I guess he still is very truthful.
GORANI (voice-over): The Sanders' parents had it rough. They were poor and both died relatively young. But 80-year-old Larry says he still thinks about them often.
SANDERS: This is the point at which previous interviews I've cried. I've learned to control myself. But it is exactly that thought of how happy and how proud they both would be.
GORANI (on camera): When did your father pass away? Was he able to see any of --
SANDERS: No, no. He died just two years after my mother. He couldn't really cope on his own.
GORANI: And so he never saw Bernie Sanders achieve do -- any of his political career?
SANDERS: No. None of it.
GORANI: Is that something you wished?
SANDERS: Well, that is part of why I break into tears, yes. I remember when he was first elected mayor, practically the first thing that came to my mind was how nice it would have been.
GORANI (voice-over): Larry also ran for parliament in the U.K. last year, unsuccessfully. All these years later, he says, there is still a playful sibling rivalry.
SANDERS: There's a certain amount of competition. I'm a politician and he is a politician. He is doing a little bit better than me. And I think if we were living next door to each other it would be a problem.
GORANI: You must be -- I mean, even though there is competition and I know there is competition between brothers, you must be really proud.
SANDERS: Oh, I'm incredibly proud. Of course I am. Yes.
GORANI (voice-over): Larry predicts his brother will face Donald Trump in November's general election. He says the two candidates have only one thing in common: their appeal to people who feel disgruntled.
[08:50:05] SANDERS: Donald Trump is an obnoxious person, regardless of his policies. But Bernard's great strength is he talks directly to people and isn't put off by the fact that they have got particular opinions that are different from his. I think that the Trumps do get strength from people feeling they've been ripped off. Bernard agrees with that. But instead of saying one of the things to do is to hate Mexicans and hate Muslims, the thing to do is to create a better society.
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GORANI: There you have it. Larry Sanders on his brother, Bernie, or "Bernard," as he called him. He says they speak usually about every two weeks on a Sunday, but haven't been able to keep their phone appointments as often since Bernie Sanders has been a little busy lately. Back to you guys.
BERMAN: I'll say. Thanks, Hala. Such an interesting perspective. Chris, let's go back to you in Des Moines.
CUOMO: Yeah. I agree with you, John. I think is so helpful to hear where these candidates come from, to hear what they are about on a personal level. Because no matter how old you get, no matter how much experience you have, very often you are where you come from. So that was really interesting to see.
All right. So tonight, trying to give the candidates their last best shot to get directly to voters and make their pitch to specific concerns and problems. We're going to ask two Iowa insiders what to expect from tonight and what it means, coming up.
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CUOMO: We are just 12 hours from our CNN Democratic Presidential Town Hall (inaudible) banking on experience. Senator Bernie Sanders trying to rally younger voters. So who has the right strategy? Let's ask the chair of the Iowa Democratic Party, Andy McGuire, and political columnist for "The Des Moines Register," Kathie Obradovich. It's good to have you both here.
Now, let's deal with a little bit of huff and puff that's been going on surrounding you. When we were doing the Town Hall, there was a concern that the Iowa State Party, they're already in the bag for Hillary Clinton. They talk about a license plate that you used to have saying "Hillary 2016" on it. Is that true?
ANDY MCGUIRE, CHAIR, IOWA DEMOCRATIC PARTY: Absolutely not. When I ran for chair of the Democratic Party, I -- you know, previously, I had been with Hillary Clinton in previous elections. All of us that are involved in politics in Iowa, we usually have people -- (inaudible) Iowans for Howard Dean, too, so if someone wants to know that. But when I ran for chair, I said I would absolutely be neutral and I think if you ask any of the candidates, I have absolutely been fair and neutral throughout this whole process.
[08:55:06] CUOMO: Obradovich, I have been reading you with hungry eyes here from the beginning of this process. What do you see out there in the hustings? Does it seem like the state party is doing this the right way?
KATHIE OBRADOVICH, POLITICAL COLUMNIST, THE DES MOINES REGISTER: Yes. I do think -- I take -- I take McGuire to word that the party is being neutral. That is really, really important in Iowa. You have to have a level playing field. I think that there will be consequences, even for Governor Branstad kind of putting his thumb on the scale against Ted Cruz.
CUOMO: His thumb?
OBRADOVICH: Yes, well --
CUOMO: It's almost like a whole fist -- (inaudible) a knee he put up.
(CROSSTALK)
OBRADOVICH: Yes, yes. Exactly. And so the way the party has conducted the caucuses, I don't see any quibbles with that so far. We'll have to see how things turn out at the end. But right now it's been -- I think it has been very orderly and exactly what you would expect.
CUOMO: Sometimes there is a banality to talking about turnout. It's like I know, everybody's got to vote. No, no. This is real here, especially for Senator Sanders because he is motivating and targeting this younger base. Do you have any indication that we may see something Obama-esque in terms of the young turnout here, which was anomalous in terms of how strong it was?
MCGUIRE: It really was. 2008 was a very unique year. So I don't know that we will get that high, but we will have a very good turnout. A very good turnout. And it's because of what you talked about. But it is not just Senator Sanders. It is Secretary Clinton and O'Malley. They all have really good organizations. They have been motivating people. They've been all over Iowa talking to everybody. This is how we get turnout. And I'm really excited about that because that is how we win in November is by party building through our turnout in caucuses.
CUOMO: Kath, what is the bar for tonight? You know, we are very happy to be providing this opportunity for them. But what is the line for you in terms of whether this is worthwhile or not? What do we have to get done?
OBRADOVICH: Well, the Town Hall, I think, is -- First of all, it's a last chance, I think, that Iowa caucus goers have to see all three of these candidates together. So they have to stand out. They have to underscore their core arguments and I hope that we will see some crowd enthusiasm for these candidates, as well. So I think a big thing, though, is just not to make big mistakes because at this stage any little slip is critical. You can't afford to have --
CUOMO: You have a better chance of slipping back than you do jumping forward.
OBRADOVICH: Yes. You can't afford to have a bad news cycle at this stage.
CUOMO: If you were going to bang on one issue hardest tonight, what would it be?
MCGUIRE: You know, I'm not sure there is one issue ever.
CUOMO: But there must be because that is the question.
MCGUIRE: That's the question. Exactly. Well you know, they are talking about a lot of things. I think the most important thing is to talk about issues that really are about what Iowa families are talking about. College affordability and health care and income equality. These are all issues they're talking about every day. I mean, I don't know if you know, but we have more of a college affordability and debt problem in Iowa than a lot of places. We have been talking about education and health care here because they're local issues. So I think those issues that are really important to Iowa families are the most important thing they need to hit.
CUOMO: Well, I look forward to seeing what you think of tonight. You two, as well. I'm sure I'll be reading about it tomorrow. Appreciate it.
MCGUIRE: Thank you.
OBRADOVICH: Absolutely. Thanks, Chris.
CUOMO: All right. Tonight is the night. The Democratic Presidential Town Hall live here from Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa, 9:00 Eastern right here on CNN.
There is a lot of news going on right now with the election, the blizzard and a lot more. So "NEWSROOM" with Carol Costello begins right after the break. Thanks for being with us.
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