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New Day

Discussion of New Hampshire Primary; Sen. Tim Scott Endorses Marco Rubio; Virginia Tech Murder Case. Aired 7:30-8a ET

Aired February 04, 2016 - 07:30   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[07:33:11] ALISYN CAMEROTA, CNN ANCHOR: Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders, trying to win over New Hampshire voters before next week's Primary. During last night's CNN Town Hall, they both showed more of a personal side.

So let's bring in CNN Political Commentator and Democratic Strategist Hilary Rosen. We also have Jonathan Tasini, he's the author of "The Essential Bernie Sanders and His Vision for America", great to have both of you here.

Wow, these Town Halls, guys, are so great because people do ask unexpected questions and you do see a more unvarnished candidate. So let's start with how they were both trying to define themselves as progressives. Watch both of the candidates attempt to do that.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BERNIE SANDERS, (D) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Secretary Clinton said some people call me -- I'm paraphrasing, some people call me a moderate. And I proudly, you know, say that I am a moderate.

That's what she said. So all I say is, you can't go and say you're a moderate on one day and be a progressive on another day.

HILARY CLINTON, (D) PRESIDENTIIAL CANDIDATE: I was somewhat amused today that Senator Sanders has set himself up to be the gatekeeper on who is a progressive because under the definition that was flying around on Twitter and statements by the campaign, Barack Obama would not be a progressive.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CAMEROTA: Hilary, let me start with you. So Hilary, Hillary Clinton had said in September that she sort of was proud to be a moderate, meaning, she could work on both sides of the aisle.

But now, that's being used against her. Does Bernie Sanders win this point?

HILARY ROSEN, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Nobody wins this point, really, because it's a test that is irrelevant to voters.

Voters care about where you are on the issues. And you know, here's the reason why this format was so great last night. Because both of these candidates just got to be themselves.

And people that, you know, I do a lot of media training on -- for people who go on T.V. The truth is, you know, nobody likes o hear it, but 50 to 60 percent is all about how you look.

[07:35:03] Not whether you're classically handsome or pretty but whether you are approachable, whether you seem authentic, whether you're natural, those sorts of things.

Another 25 percent is your tone. A re you saying things in a way that people can hear them? Are you -- are they accepting what, you know, how you are talking to them.

And about 25 percent of the actual work, which is crazy, but that's why this format means, who do we get to know? When Hillary Clinton answers a question like that and says with a smile, yeah, you can attack me Bernie Sanders.

But, you know, Barack Obama and Joe Biden and I, we're all the same. So you can attack us all. And she says it with a smile. It makes the whole debate irrelevant.

CHRIS CUOMO, CNN ANCHOR: But Jonathan, let's play off that point that Hilary is making in an election that seems more and more about finding a remedy to the status quo.

Is that dicey territory for Hillary Clinton if not now against Bernie Sanders if she becomes the eventual nominee against a GOP person who is screaming the word outside of her the whole time?

JONATHAN TASINI, AUTHOR "THE ESSENTIAL BERNIE SANDERS": Well, i think the victory last night, Chris, and over the last few months is that to be a progressive is to be a real Democrat.

And the progressive message which Bernie Sanders is promoting, the political revolution that he's talking about, is what voters want.

And it's a very specific thing, breaking up the big banks, expanding social security, racing wages, defeating these bad trade agreements.

And with last night, we saw, was a complete fraudulent attempt by Hilary Clinton to say she's a progressive. Now I eminent progressive and I was texting and e-mailing back with lots of my friends.

When millions of people were marching in the streets against the Iraq war, Hillary Clinton was standing with George Bush, Dick Cheney and Donald Rumsfeld and -- supporting that war which killed hundreds of thousands of people.

Cost taxpayers of New Hampshire and taxpayers all across the country about $3 trillion and led to the rise of ISIS.

When millions of us were marching in the streets for marriage equality, Hillary Clinton was standing on the senate floor defending the defense of Marriage Act and saying that marriage is between a man and a woman. And I can go on and on. Hillary Clinton is not a progressive, as i know it, and as millions of people who have marched in the progressive movement know it.

CAMEROTA: OK. Hilary, do those things disqualify her?

ROSEN: Well, of course not, and two quick things. First, on the Iraq war, as a senator, you're given the information you get from the administration, right?

So there was misleading information given to a lot of people. Now, some members of congress would vote against any war.

Hillary Clinton is not that person. She has a belief in a strong military. That does not make you somebody who is not a progressive. On marriage, nobody was a bigger marriage advocate and gay activist than I am.

And I'm totally comfortable with Hillary Clinton's ...

(CROSSTALK)

ROSEN: Bernie Sanders, you know, Vermont was an early state for civil unions rather than marriage. It was a very trying time.

Just because you said things doesn't mean you did anything. Bernie Sanders has never, ever, I don't care what Jonathan says, been an advocate for -- an activist for marriage. But here's the thing.

CAMEROTA: This is not a debate we had to have.

TASINI: That's none sense here in a second.

CUOMO: Let's call Jonathan.

ROSEN: This is not a debate we have to have.

CUOMO: All right, well ...

ROSEN: We don't need to out ...

TISINI: We have to have that debate.

ROSEN: No we don't.

TASINI: We have to have the debate because we want to know.

ROSEN: ... he's going to be a better president.

TASINI: Hilary, we want to know when we're electing someone what they are actually going to stand for.

And actually, I think that if we want to talk about another moment, Hillary Clinton did not stumble when she was asked about the money she got from Goldman Sachs She gave, actually, a genuine answer which is she was perplexed why it would be an issue that she would accept legalized bribery, $225,000 per speech. Every single American out there knows that that's legalized bribery.

CAMEROTA: OK, hold on Jonathan. Go ahead. What the answer for that Hilary?

(CROSSTALK)

ROSEN: Stop shouting. What she said was ...

TASINI: It's loud out here. I'm sorry. I'm near traffic.

ROSEN: ... that she cannot be bought. She said name one thing that any of these people did that may -- that showed that i took money from them that it mattered.

TASINI: But perception is the reality.

ROSEN: What I did was -- might be the reality. And she is dealing with that. Listen, I though both candidates did a great job last night. I thought they both were honest, I thought they both, you know, conveyed their strengths and people saw weaknesses.

This is going to be an exciting couple of weeks. But I -- my point is, I think this debate over who the real progressive is, is sort of irrelevant to who is going to be a better president.

TASINI: No, it's not irrelevant at all. I'm sorry.

ROSEN: And that's where we need to, that's what we're looking for.

CAMEROTA: Guys, we have to leave -- quickly Jonathan.

TASINI: No, it's not irrelevant. It's really about what people stand for and what voters can expect from their president.

CAMEROTA: Jonathan, Hilary, thank you for the debate. Obviously, we'll see what happens over the next few days.

Next week, we're taking the show on the road again for the New Hampshire Primary. New Day will be live next Monday and Tuesday from the Waterworks cafe in Manchester.

[07:40:05] If you're in the area, be sure to stop by for some great coffee there, Michaela.

MICHAELA PEREIRA, CNN ANCHOR: All right. The murder of a teenage girl in Virginia has not only broken our collective hearts but is also string up concerns about teens on social media. How can parents help protect their children online.

We're going to ask a social media expert who join us next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) PEREIRA: A bond hearing this morning for one of two Virginia Tech students charged in connection with the murder of a 13-year-old girl, Nicole Lovell.

Natalie Keepers is charged with being an accessory to murder and helping dispose of the body. David Eisenhower is accused of abducting and killing the teen.

The FBI said they were able to link the suspect through Kik, a social media messaging app, that the slain teen's parent had no idea she was even using.

Joining us now, a social media expert, Carrie Goldman, she's author of "Bullied." Whenever teacher - every teacher and kid needs to know about ending the cycle of fear. And there is an element of bullying in this case we're learning. There are so many new details coming forward.

Carrie, I'm so glad you could walk us through this. First of all, I want to maybe see if you can give us a bit of a premiere for parents that are watching what Kik is.

There are so many of these apps that are popping up. And parents might think, oh, I've got to handle on Instagram and Facebook. But there's all these ones that we don't maybe know about.

CARRIE GOLDMAN, SOCIAL MEDIA EXPERT: There are so many. There's no doubt about that. And Kik is -- it's a messaging app. So, it's actually called Kik messenger.

PEREIRA: OK.

GOLDMAN: And it allows people to -- in a free and easy and instant format connect with other Kik users. So you can start up a conversation with someone else on Kik.

[07:45:04] And if they open the conversation or accept it, it moves from being sort of a blurred out conversation into being an in-focus conversation

PEREIRA: OK.

GOLDMAN: And you can share pictures, videos, you can do it as a one- on-one or you can do it in a group messaging. So for kids, it's a lot of fun because it's a way for them to have communication with other kids.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Right. Harmless enough when its kids talking to kids about, you know, assignments that are due or what they're going to be doing that weekend, but we now that there's another element that can come into it, so, you know, as I mentioned, there's all of these other ...

GOLDMAN: There absolutely is.

PEREIRA: There's all of these other apps and technology websites and social media sites that people are using. We've got a list of them. Things like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat, Vine, Weebly, Wanelo, Tumblr, Pheed, Google+, but then there's other list of ones that you brought to our attention that you say parents need to be concerned if you find these on your phones ask.fm, Kik, Tinder, Redtube which is essentially teen Porn from what I can understand, Yik Yak, Whatsgoodly and whisper. Explain why these in general are so problematic.

GOLDMAN: OK. So as you have social media, there are different steps of how much accountability someone has. So with Facebook and Instagram, There's more Accountability. They are tracked to, you know, a phone number and a user e-mail and there's a way to know who is on the other end.

The more steps you take away from that accountability, the more problematic it becomes.

PEREIRA: Yeah

GOLDMAN: So Kik, for example, is an app that all that users have to do is create and invent a username and that's how they are known. They aren't tied to a phone number they aren't tied to anything else. Whereas for example, on the app what's app which is also a messaging app, that one is tied to a phone number.

PEREIRA: Right.

GOLDMAN: Which makes it a little more accountable.

PEREIRA: Well, and that's made a different hope for the -- that's why it's been difficult for authorities because they were able to pinpoint the time stamp and the location of these phones that were used, but they can actually get the screen capture, what those conversations were.

Now there is an element of bullying in here because we know this young girl, who already had been through so much. She went through a liver transplant, she survived that. She had all of these medical Issues. This was not a troubled kid, but she apparently had been bullied and you say kids that are bullied often can fall prey to predators online. Why is that?

GOLDMAN: Absolutely. Well, because she's more vulnerable and someone who has been bullied is already questioning their validity.

PEREIRA: Right.

GOLDMAN: Wanting to be liked, seeking out that type of positive reinforcement. So going back to why an app like Kik would be more dangerous, because anyone can use it and because it's an anonymous forum, one group of people that does use this are predators.

PEREIRA: Yeah

GOLDMAN: It is just a fact that they can seek out interactions with people who are vulnerable. One thing that parents should know is that if your child is on Kik, they should have a very complex username because if your username you put out there is pretty girl or, you know, hot young thing ...

PEREIRA: Yeah it's easier to track, right.

GOLDMAN: Yeah.

PEREIRA: And its also going to grabs attention. I want to give parents ...

GOLDMAN: Absolutely.

PEREIRA: ... a quick thing here. Pull up this last (inaudible) because I think this is important for parents.

How parents can protect your teens online. Implement a family technology, use contract. Make an agreement among your family. Don't let your kids sleep with their phones in a room and monitor lightly if you are concerned.

All right. Thank you so much for this, Carrie Goldman. We're going to probably be talking about this for days to come. Thanks for joining us taking us a little bit of insight and all of that.

GOLDMAN: Thank you.

PEREIRA: Alisyn.

CAMEROTA: Hey Michaela, Marco Rubio snagging a critical endorsement following his strong showing in Iowa. Why is South Carolina Senator Tim Scott supporting Rubio? We'll ask him when he joins us live.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

[07:52:36] SEN. TIM SCOTT: Join me. Vote for Marco Rubio. Let's see the next American century unfold before our eyes. Because of Marco Rubio America's future is very bright.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CAMEROTA: Marco Rubio snagging a big endorsement from South Carolina Senator Tim Scott. This is key for Rubio before both the New Hampshire and, more importantly, the South Carolina primary.

Joing us to discuss the decision is Republican senator from South Carolina, Tim Scott. Senator, thanks so much for being here on "New Day."

SEN. TIM SCOTT, (R) SOUTH CAROLINA: It's good to be with you. Good morning Alisyn.

CAMEROTA: Everybody wanted your endorsements. And I mean, when I read the reports of the courting NEVILLE: at went on, it sounds like, you know, you were on the Bachelor or something. SCOTT: Well my candidates were not that pretty to tell you the truth,

only Carly Fiorina, the rest of them? Whew.

CAMEROTA: So why did you decide on Marco Rubio.

SCOTT: The number one reason, I think I was decided on Marco is because he's a rock solid Conservative. Undeniably he's got frankly fantastic ratings on Conservative's score cards. But at the same time he inspires a new generation of voters.

Here a guy who has that wonderful, wonderful life story. But he also understands how to create a political agenda based on the reality that so many people are suffering through. Folks who are stuck, and mired in poverty can look to the leadership of Marco Rubio to help solve some of the challenges that we haven't been able to solve in 50 years.

And as a kid who grew up in poverty I can tell you that Marco Rubio has real ideas to help attain college education, finish vocational school or end up at Harvard. The reality of it is the American dream is still alive. It is still healthy. We need a president who helps us get there. And that guy is Marco Rubio.

CAMEROTA: Senator, just so that people know this was not an impetuous decision on your part.

SCOTT: Oh, no.

CAMEROTA: You had a laborious process. You hosted 12 town halls with the presidential candidates. I understand you took explicit notes, sort of pros and cons.

SCOTT: I do.

CAMEROTA: About each one of them. Can you let us in on your process, how long this took you and what you wrote down?

SCOTT: Sure, several months, Alisyn, to be honest you. I hosted 12 candidates as you just said throughout South Carolina because I felt like it was very important for my voters to hear real comment, not sound bites but thorough answers to very specific questions and they did a really good job. The key for me was I had very, very good highly talented people talking about the issues that are important to the future.

[17:55:06] I was looking for one person head and shoulders above the rest. And the only way to do right to take notes. It's -- the pros on one side, you flip the page over, you put the cons on the other side and if I can not come to a clear decision I was not going to endorse at all.

It was very easy at the end to endorse Marco Rubio because he was very strong. I've got a brother who serves in the air force. I thought to myself, who do I want to be commander in chief. Who can handle foreign affairs and who can restore economic hope to those mired in poverty? The person who has had A plus on each of those was Marco Rubio. So as difficult as the process, in the end the one person, I believe,

that will not only beat Hillary Clinton but will beat her using conservative principles is without question Marco Rubio.

CAMEROTA: Senator, I want to ask about what went on in Iowa. As I'm sure you are aware Donald Trump is now saying that there was voter fraud committed. He is questioning the legitimacy of Ted Cruz's win. Do you think that Ted Cruz won Iowa fair and square?

SCOTT: It appears to me that the voters of the caucus said without question that Ted Cruz was a winner. I have no reasons to doubt that. The good news from my perspective is my candidate, Marco Rubio, surged to a very, very strong finish. And I think he's going to finish at least second in New Hampshire. And then the race comes to my home state of South Carolina.

CAMEROTA: Let's look at the South Carolina poll, because Trump at the moment is leading by a long shot. He has 36 percent ahead of Ted Cruz at 20 percent, and your candidate Marco Rubio at 14 percent. What do you think these South Carolina voters are looking for most?

Well I think they are looking for a commander in chief first and foremost, they're looking for someone who can restore hope in our economy and then finally, they're looking for a candidate who can win.

Ultimately we don't want to sacrifice conservative principles in order to win the presidency. We want to make sure our conservative principles is why we win the presidency. Marco Rubio will be that person.

I'm looking forward to the next 16 days as we head towards the South Carolina primary. My hope is that Marco will do very well in the debate Saturday and then the following Saturday, another debate. I believe his performance will help others folks through out South Carolina understand why myself Trey Gowdy and so many others are supporting Marco Rubio..

CAMEROTA: Rick Santorum, who just dropped out of the race himself is also supporting Marco Rubio. But one of your fellow senators Lindsey Graham is not. He's going for Jeb Bush. Have you had conversations with them?

SCOTT: I have. I certainly have spoken to Lindsey recently. And we have a lot of good candidates running for president without any question. I have simply decided to be for someone without running against others.

CAMEROTA: So, when you added up the pros and cons. And the pros outweighed the cons for Marco Rubio, what were some of the notes that you had on there about Donald Trump?

SCOTT: Every candidate has -- there's no doubt about Donald Trump is a great salesman and frankly he has done very well in business. He's a billionaire and that's pretty good for business owners. The reality of it is, why I came -- what I conclude was simply, that who's best fitted or suited to lead today? On day one, as a new president of the United States, who will get us to the new American century? And without any question, commander in chief is a primary responsibility of our president. I said Marco Rubio.

When I thought about how do we fix this economy? Most people living in the middle income, they are not seeing these wage increases, this economic recovery that we keep hearing about. They are not experiencing that. Who can empathize and create solutions by redoing our tax system, by understanding the challenges of this regulatory environment that's taking over our country. Marco Rubio.

And then finally who inspires a new generation of voters using conservative principles? Conservative, Marco Rubio.

CAMEROTA: There you go. Senator Tim Scott. We sure appreciate your sharing your thought process with us here on "New Day." great to see you.

SCOTT: Thank you Alisyn. Great day.

CAMEROTA: We're following lot of news this morning including how the candidates did during last night's CNN town hall, so let's get right to it. We have to understand attack on one faith is an attack on all our faiths.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CLINTON: Senator Sanders has set himself up to be the gatekeeper on who's the progressive.

SANDERS : You can't go and say, you're moderate on one day, and be a progressive on the other day. I am moderate.

That's what she said.

CLINTON: I have an uphill climb and I'm going to climb as high and hard as I can.

DONALD TRUMP (R) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Oh, that voter fraud. You know these politicians are brutal.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yet another Trump (inaudible).

TRUMP: Ted Cruz gave us, Obama care.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Not all finds it hard to lose.

PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA (D), CURRENT PRISIDENT OF UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: First thing I want to say is two words that Muslim Americans don't hear often enough. And that is, thank you.

We have to understand the attack on one faith is an attack on all our faiths.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

This is "New Day" with Chris Cuomo, Alisyn Camerota and Michael Pereira.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And whatever that is, you're going to nee it.

[08:0016] CUOMO: It's green tea. Good morning, welcome to your "New Day" this Thursday February 4th, 8:00 in the East. Five days to New Hampshire.