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Trump Gains Momentum Heading Into Super Tuesday, Is He Unstoppable?; Kalamazoo Massacre, Warning Signs Missed; Can Sanders Win Over African-American Voters?. Aired 7:30-8a ET

Aired February 22, 2016 - 07:30   ET

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

[07:30:00] CHRIS CUOMO, CNN ANCHOR: Clinton and Sen. Sanders make their case directly to the people who matter most, voters in South Carolina. I'll be along to moderate the CNN town hall tomorrow night at 8:00 eastern, right here on CNN, of course. We're also going to take NEW DAY on the road to South Carolina tomorrow and Wednesday, and then we'll be there in Texas for the big Republican debate as well. Mic.

MICHAELA PEREIRA, CNN ANCHOR: Busy week. After back-to-back primary wins for Donald Trump, the GOP front runner is looking stronger for Super Tuesday. Can he build on his momentum to lock up that nomination? We will speak with a top Trump advisor just ahead.

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[07:34:33]

ALISYN CAMEROTA, CNN ANCHOR: On the heels of a big primary win in South Carolina, Donald Trump taking more shots at his rivals. Moments ago Trump tweeted this. "A number of months ago I was not expected to win South Carolina. Ted Cruz was. And yet, I won in a landslide -- every group and category. WIN!" So what's next? Sam Clovis is co- chairman and policy advisor for the Trump campaign. Hi, Sam.

SAM CLOVIS, TRUMP CAMPAIGN POLICY ADVISOR: How you doing today?

CAMEROTA: Doing well. So, Donald Trump is right. He had a decisive win in South Carolina and he is poised to win hugely, as he would say, in Nevada tomorrow.

[07:35:16] Let's pull up the latest. This is South Carolina. He won 32 to his rival's 22. Let's look at what's going to happen in Nevada. Now, this is the latest poll. It's from last week but it does show that he also has a huge lead, 45 percent to Marco Rubio's 19 percent. Do you now consider Donald Trump officially unstoppable?

CLOVIS: Well, I think we're cautiously optimistic that we're doing all the right things. I think we're working hard and we are not taking anything for granted. We don't have the 1,237th delegate, and when that occurs then we'll start celebrating the nomination and then we'll go from there. So, we have a long way to go. There are considerable issues that we have to deal with, of course, and I think there's a lot of dynamics inside the Republican Party that still have to be settled. So, I think that we're still a long ways from being finished and we're not taking anything for granted.

CAMEROTA: Let's talk about those dynamics, Sam. I hear you're taking a measured approach. Some in the GOP establishment, however, appear to be in panic mode. Some have said that they are freaking out. Do you see evidence of that?

CLOVIS: I do, indeed. It's funny you bring that up. Yes, I think so. I think that there are a lot of people who really are seeing a tectonic plate shift in the Republican Party. I think that we're going to see the -- I think this is the -- really what's interesting, Alisyn, is the dynamic that has occurred with the conservatism and the populous message that Mr. Trump has, and that's resonating with the American people in a way that we haven't seen in my lifetime.

I mean, I've been -- I've told you many times I've been following politics a long time and I've never seen anything like it. And I think what has happened is that the -- a lot of the establishment people inside the beltway on both sides of the aisle are very disturbed by this because --

CAMEROTA: But how do you see that?

CLOVIS: They don't have an answer.

CAMEROTA: Yes, Sam, sorry to interrupt but how do you see them freaking out?

CLOVIS: Well, I think what I see is they probably -- the scramble to get money behind a particular candidate to see them shifting, and I think money is a real thing to watch as you always know is tracking the -- follow the money and you're going to follow what's going on in politics. And I think that that's what we're really going to see, is a shift in money from one candidate to another.

The other is the amount of PAC money that's going to be mounting, and we'll see those in attack ads that will be coming our way. I think you're going to see a lot more scrutiny -- or, I shouldn't say scrutiny so much as the pointed attacks from the candidates themselves at Mr. Trump. And I have a feeling -- unfortunately, I think it's going to get personal and I think that's unfortunate for the discourse.

CAMEROTA: Let's talk about Donald Trump's strategy moving forward. This weekend, Donald Trump retweeted a link to a conservative Web site claiming that not only is Ted Cruz ineligible to be president because he was born in Canada, so too is Marco Rubio, it claims, because Rubio's father was born in Cuba, though Rubio was born in Florida. So, I read this retweet. It says, "Mr. Trump, BOTH Cruz AND Rubio are ineligible to be POTUS! It's a SLAM DUNK CASE!! Check it!" And there's the link to the conservative Web site. So is that Trump's strategy to now go after Rubio's eligibility?

CLOVIS: No, I think it's really -- what it is, is it just raises the issue of doubt. I mean, if there -- this is not necessarily subtle law. We saw what happened when he raised the issue with Ted Cruz. I think that these are things that should be settled if we're going to have nominees because you know -- you have to know that other people will be bringing these things up and it will raise that doubt over the campaign. So I think this is one of the things. Raise it now. This is really in the Party interest. It's not necessarily anything personal, but it is to say let's get it settled so we can move on.

CAMEROTA: Does this suggest that Donald Trump now sees Marco Rubio as his closest rival and competitor because it seems as though Mr. Trump trains his focus and attacks on whoever he is most threatened by. First, it was Jeb Bush then it Ben Carson. Then we saw Ted Cruz. Now Marco Rubio.

CLOVIS: Well, I think what we see is everybody sees, and I don't know -- even the most casual observer will notice that Marco Rubio has taken over the establishment lane. There's nobody left, I mean, if you want to look at it that way. And I think the squeeze has been put on Sen. Cruz. I think that's really where the squeeze has come, and so I think that Cruz has got figure out a way to deal with Marco Rubio, as well. So, I think that this is -- we're starting to see people settle into their lanes. It's a little bit like watching the Daytona 500 yesterday. You have that three or four cars that broke away from the pack and out they went. And even though that was one of the most exciting finishes I've ever seen --

[07:41:25:]

CAMEROTA: That's what you're predicting?

CLOVIS: -- I don't expect this one to be that exciting. What?

CAMEROTA: You're not predicting a hair-raising finish for Nevada?

CLOVIS: Well, no. I think we're going to have this settled long before Cleveland.

CAMEROTA: Sam Clovis, great to see you on NEW DAY. Thanks so much for being here.

CLOVIS: As always, Alisyn, thanks.

CAMEROTA: OK, let's get over to Chris.

CUOMO: All right. A very big crime story we're following this morning. The suspect in the Kalamazoo shooting rampage known by many as a family man and he had no criminal past. So, what happened here? A seemingly random attack? We're going to talk with the county prosecutor next.

[07:42:00]

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[07:43:54] PEREIRA: The suspect in the Kalamazoo shooting rampage not on the authority's radar. He was known by friends for laying low, spending time with his wife and kids. But with the benefit of hindsight, were warning signs missed? Kalamazoo county prosecutor Jeffrey Getting joins us this morning. Hoping to get some of the very latest from you in the case. Thanks for joining us. We know, obviously, this is a busy day early in the investigation.

[07:45:14] We understand the suspect is set to be arraigned today. Can you tell us about the charges that you're anticipating and what, perhaps, the maximum penalty could be?

JEFFREY GETTING, KALAMAZOO COUNTY PROSECUTOR: Well, we'll be reviewing police reports from the sheriff's department, the Kalamazoo Department of Public Safety, and the Michigan State Police this morning. I anticipate out of that review will come six counts of murder, two counts of assault with intent to commit murder, and eight charges what we call felony firearm -- using a firearm during the commission of a felony.

The murder charges carry with them a maximum penalty of life in prison without the possibility of parole. The assault with intent to murder charges carry with them a possibility of a life sentence with parole, and then the felony firearm charges are a two-year mandatorily consecutive term.

PEREIRA: We're learning that police say that he acted alone. We understand that it is not believed that this was an act of terror, of course the motive is unclear. We're also getting some accounts. Our affiliate was able to speak to the last passenger in this man's car before the shooting began. Apparently, a mile before the destination the driver got some sort of phone call, and after that became very erratic, driving over the median, driving over lawns, speeding up very fast. When the car finally came to a stop that passenger was able to flee. Is there any indication that phone call was a catalyst to all of this? Are you looking at the phone or are investigators sort of scrubbing those phone records?

GETTING: One of the pieces of evidence that was seized from the suspect was his phone. That phone is being gone through by the Kalamazoo Department of Public Safety's crime lab. I don't know what they've found or have not found yet. Motive remains unclear at this point in time. That's always a difficult thing to try and figure out when you're dealing with these kinds of random acts of violence. They appear suddenly, unprovoked. These were not targeted offenses. There isn't a connection that we've been able to establish between any of the three victim groups with each other. Any of the three victim groups with the defendant. It just is -- well, it was random, unprovoked violence.

PEREIRA: We also know, and really fully understand, sir, that it is early in the investigation, but we are getting sort or conflicting reports of whether this suspect was known to police. We're hearing that some people -- neighbors say he used guns in a little bit of an odd fashion, shooting guns into the air in the neighborhood, displaying some paranoia. We know he loved guns. But others say this guy was a family man. What can you tell us that you know unequivocally now?

GETTING: I can tell you that both of those things are true. The defendant was a family man. He was married. He has children. As soon as we identified the suspect, we also were able to put together his affiliation with weapons. That was already known. On the other hand, he didn't have any prior criminal history. There wasn't anything that would put him on the police's radar as someone who would be likely to do something like this. There was evidence seized during the execution of a search warrant of his home related to firearms. Some of that evidence may come out yet later today. Certainly it will come out over the course of the proceedings.

PEREIRA: What's particularly chilling to many people who use any sort of livery service is the fact that this passenger that was in the car when this man started to act erratically said that he tried to call 911 to get that driver and the car off the road. It makes one wonder if there's more that could have been done. What's your sense of that?

GETTING: I do know that the Kalamazoo Department of Public Safety received a call about erratic driving. To try and spin that into, well, the police should have done more because that is likely to lead to some of this kind of random, unprovoked violence, I think is a bit of a stretch. The police were aware of it. They did respond to it.

More about that 911 call that was made to the police about the erratic driving earlier in the day, I think will come out as the investigation unfolds. But I have talked to Chief Hadley about that and I'm very comfortable with the response from the Kalamazoo Department of Public Safety. There wasn't anything about that that would lead to a suspicion that something like this was going to happen.

[07:49:10]

PEREIRA: Jeff Getting, again, we don't mean to imply at all that the Kalamazoo department didn't act quickly because they did. They got to that shooter and stopped the shooting in a matter of moments. We're glad to know that could happen and they were able to preserve more life.

Jeff Getting, busy day for you. Thanks for joining us on NEW DAY.

Alisyn?

CAMEROTA: OK, Michaela, back to politics. Bernie Sanders looking to rebound in South Carolina after his loss in Nevada. How will he do with black voters who have long been in the Clinton camp? A prominent black Sanders supporter joins us next to discuss.

[07:49:59]

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[07:52:17]

CUOMO: So, let's just say this the way it should be said. Democrats need black voters. The African-American community is very important to that party. You could argue they're very important, period, but that's a discussion for a different day. So, what do we see in that voting block support that came out big in Nevada for Hillary Clinton? She is presumed to have an in with African-American voters in a way that the Vermont senator, Bernie Sanders, does not. Is that true? How can it be turned around? Let's discuss with someone who knows all of these issues better than I

ever will, professor emeritus at Princeton, author, and Bernie Sanders supporter, professional Cornel West.

Professor, always a pleasure. Always a pleasure. So let's look at the field and you make the case. The presumption from the Clinton campaign is this isn't just about likeability. This isn't just about familiarity. This is about what has been done. And while Bernie Sanders says the right things, he's had a lot of years in the senate. He has not done things for the African community the way Hillary Clinton has. Fair criticism?

[07:55:80] CORNEL WEST, PROFESSIONAL EMERITUS, PRINCETON UNIVERSITY: No, not at all. I mean, Bernie Sanders is one of the two white public officials who supported Jesse Jackson in the 80's. That took tremendous courage. Why did brother Jesse win the primary in Vermont? Bernie Sanders. My dear brother, Chris, sister Hillary Clinton is the Milli Vanilli of American politics. She lip syncs, she gives lip service, but when it comes to policy who supported crime bill?

Who supported not just the deregulating of banks, but also pulled the rug from under welfare? She talks about her work with the children's defense fund way back in the 70's. Doesn't say a word about being a Goldwater girl. Doesn't say a word about supporting a candidate who Martin Luther King called the -- there's no moral case for Goldwater. He's the most dangerous politician. She's vigorously campaigning. She shows up and gives these wonderful speeches, sounding like Bernie Sanders. Bernie Sanders on the ground getting arrested, marching with Martin.

The problem is black voters don't know its history in a way in which they know the symbolic language of Hillary Clinton. But on the ground she's calling black men super predators in the 1990's. That is the most demeaning, degrading language to our precious young folk. Sometimes do the wrong thing, yes. Acting gangsters, yes. We know they got gangsters on Wall Street. How many Wall Street executives go to jail? Zero. She's too tied to Wall Street with all that big Wall Street money flowing her way, my brother.

CUOMO: She says on the other side, I voted for the Brady bill. Bernie Sanders voted against it many times. He wanted to protect gun manufacturers. He hasn't done what I have done to address the actual problems.

WEST: Then why does he have a D minus when it comes to the NRA? She uses that one little element to take the subject matter somewhere else, and that's --

CUOMO: Brady bill is a little element to the African-American community?

WEST: One element in terms of jobs with a living wage. When it comes to education. When it comes to decent housing, and when it comes to Wall Street. You know and I know she and Bill received $151 million --

CUOMO: You're saying the money's a problem?

WEST: Unless she thinks we were born at night, but not last night. Good God almighty, we know the Wall Street influence on her has been intense. That's precisely why she and Bill repealed Glass-Steagall. These has direct connection with black folk. We got a male liberal black political class who's on the Clinton bandwagon and the gravy train, and they are trying to convince large numbers of black folk we won't do it. Now part of the problem is, my brother, corporate media hasn't been as fair to Bernie as it should. You all did encourage him and Iappreciate that, but when it comes to --

CUOMO: Nobody's had him on more than NEW DAY has.

WEST: No, no. This particular program has been -- I'm talking about corporate media as a whole because, I mean, we know Donald Trump, himself, was the Frankenstein of corporate media. They cover every Twitter, they cover every speech, every word. If Bernie had that kind of coverage people would know who he is.

CUOMO: He's got his own hashtag.

WEST: But look how much money he's saved because the corporate media follows him every second, every minute. But this is -- but when it comes to Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders, Bernie -- he got on this show, but now your show is not typical. He hasn't got the exposure to see one fundamental thing -- profound integrity, genuine conviction, and building on the legacy of Martin Luther King, Jr. What other higher standard do we have in American politics? How many politicians do we know have genuine integrity? You can count them on your hand, and Hillary Clinton's not one of them. She's not one of them, brother.

CUOMO: As pop used to say, you can count them on one hand if you've been playing with fireworks.

WEST: And I tell you one thing, your beloved father's one that we can count on one hand, but that's rare, that's rare, that's rare, my brother.

CUOMO: Professor Cornel West, thank you for being on NEW DAY to make the case.

WEST: Thank you so much.

CUOMO: I appreciate it. We are following a lot of news. We have a very big situation in Kalamazoo, Michigan to look at. We have very big events in the election upcoming in numbers to tell you about, so let's get right to it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: We won with everything. Tall people, short people, fat people, skinny people.

CRUZ: Donald sees our campaign as the only campaign that can beat him. TRUMP: I'll win states that the Republicans don't even think of.

SEN. MARCO RUBIO (R-FL), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: When it comes to our campaign, what happens in Vegas is not staying in Vegas.

CLINTON: I don't think we are a single issue country, and I am certainly not a single issue candidate.

SANDERS: We are talking about dozens of issues. I'm not quite sure where Sec. Clinton is coming from.

CLINTON: We want to make progress in our country.

BERMAN: This campaign has taken on the economic establishment, and let me tell you Wall Street is getting nervous.

PEREIRA: The Uber driver accused of going on a shooting spree in Michigan, even picking up fares between killings.

GETTING: This guy was not on anybody's radar. These were very deliberate killings.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

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

CUOMO: Good morning. Welcome to your NEW DAY.