Return to Transcripts main page
New Day
Testimony From Erin Andrews In Her $75 Million Stalker Trial; Donald Trump Has Been Saying Things Now That Are Being Examined Very Carefully; A 14-Year-Old Boy Is Charged With Attempted Murder, Assault, Making Terrorist Threats; Apple's General Counsel And The Director Of The FBI Squaring Off Before The House Judiciary Committee Today Over Encryption Of iPhones; NASA Astronaut Scott Kelly Returns Home To Earth; Melania Trump Opening Up to the Media About Her Husband. Aired 6:30-7a ET
Aired March 01, 2016 - 06:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[06:31:32] ALISYN CAMEROTA, CNN HOST OF "NEW DAY" PROGRAM: Testimony from Erin Andrews in her $75 million stalker trial. The Fox Sports reporter detailing how she still suffers from depression she says. Eight years after she was secretly videotaped naked in a Nashville hotel room. CNN's Polo Sandoval is live at the CNN center with more. Tell us about this trial, Polo.
POLO SANDOVAL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, I will tell you what, Alisyn, Erin Andrews' moment on the witness stand yesterday truly reflects this, which were emotional rollercoaster that she has been on the last several years.
Yesterday, she smiled and occasionally laughed when she recalled her early childhood and love for sideline reporting. Then things took a very emotional turn when she began discussing that video.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ERIN ANDREWS, FOX SPORTS REPORTER: It is so embarrassing. That was my private time.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANDOVAL (voice-over): This morning, sportscaster Erin Andrews $75 million civil trial against the Nashville Marriot continues. The reporter for Fox Sports summoned in court Monday to describe her distress of her the nude video taken by a stalker in 2008 and then posted online.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANDREWS: All I wanted to do is be the girl next door who loves sports and now I am the girl in the hotel scandal. Embarrassing.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANDOVAL (voice-over): Andrews contends the hotel was negligent to revealing to her stalker Michael David Barrett that she was a guest, giving him her room number and then giving him a room next door. He recorded her undressing through a peep hole.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANDREWS: I am still angry. It could have been stopped. The Nashville Marriott could have just called me and said, "We are putting this man that is requesting being next to you. Is this OK?" And, I would have called the cops.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANDOVAL (voice-over): Andrews shedding more tears as she recalled how the video is reviewed by someone as a publicity stunt.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANDREWS: The front page of the New York Post and ESPN scandal. The Fox News and CBS, everybody put up that I was doing it for publicity and attention, and that ripped me apart.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANDOVAL (voice-over): Barrett was convicted in 2010 and spent over two years in prison. Still, Andrews said that damage has been done, and now the hotel is to pay.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANDREWS: You cannot get it down. That is all I was so worried about is like, we got to get it off. We got to get it off. And, like we are never going to get it off.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SANDOVAL (on camera): And, Andrews also told jurors yesterday that in order for her to actually make it back on the air, her bosses at ESPN require her to do a sit-down interview. She eventually turned to Oprah Winfrey to be able to do that.
As for the hotel side of things, we understand that management company insists that they put the blame squarely on Michael Barrett the hotel staff to get what he wanted. Chris, we will be watching very closely as Erin Andrews heads back to witness stand later today.
CHRIS CUOMO, CNN HOST OF "NEW DAY" PROGRAM: Polo, appreciate the reporting. Thank you very much. So, in politics, there is a big headline. Donald Trump has been saying things now that are being examined very carefully.
He is in favor of torturing prisoners. He thinks that it works if you kill the family of terrorists. Military officials disagree. It also happens to be illegal. What does this mean for his prospects at commander in chief, next.
(MUSIC PLAYING)
[06:35:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CUOMO: Torture works, so do it more. And, killing the family of terrorists works too. Both opinions run contrary to military expert opinion. And, both are illegal under international law. Both are also what Donald Trump is saying he would do as commander in chief. So, what does this mean for his prospects?
Let us bring in former CIA and NSA director. By the way, that man, General Michael Hayden says that the commanders would not follow orders like this. Is that possible? Let us discuss with retired U.S. Navy Commander Kirk Lipppold. Commander, it is good to have you on the show.
KIRK LIPPOLD, COMMANDER, U.S. NAVY (RET.): Good morning, Chris.
CUOMO: Before we get to Michael Hayden, just to be clear so people do not think I am making it up. Here is Donald Trump saying how he feels about torture.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, (R) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Torture works, OK, folks. You know I have these guys, "Torture does not work." Believe me, it works. OK? And, waterboarding is your minor form. Some people say it is not torture. Let us assume it is. But they asked me the question of waterboarding? Absolutely fine, but we should go much stronger than waterboarding. That is the way I feel.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CUOMO: All right. His feelings, let us say they qualify him as an expert from the sake of this discussion. I have heard from CIA counter terrorism officials and reports that have come out that they do not think waterboarding was any more effective than anything else. They do not think torture works and they do not think that killing the families of terrorists would help. What is your take?
[06:40:00] LIPPOLD: I would have to agree with General Hayden. It is against U.S law. It is against international law and the law or armed conflict. And, the United States does not need to put ourselves in that position.
We have a whole range of interrogation techniques that are available, obviously, that we could use. I was on the joint staff interrogation techniques working group for Guantanamo Bay. And, ultimately, we decided on a very narrow range in keeping with the army field manual.
Quite honestly, Chris, when Donald Trump says things like this, it is once again an indicator that the American people want a commander in chief that truly exercises the temperament and judgment necessary to be the president and reflect our values as a society.
CUOMO: Well, Trump's argument would be one, "If being illegal, does not mean that it is really wrong. It is just that the laws are soft." And, that "Americans want a tough guy who will say tough things and do tough things." What is missing in that analysis?
LIPPOLD: Well, I think what Donald Trump fails to realize is that we have laws passed that are a reflection of who we are as a society by our representatives, signed into law by the President of the United States. So , they reflect who we are. The fact that he may find them inconvenient, well, he can try to get them changed and see what the American people have to say about that.
If he wants tougher laws or in a time of war as president, if he decides he wants to use certain interrogation techniques, there may be some techniques that are held at the commander and chief level. That if he feels for the nation's safety and security, must should be judiciously applied, they are his level. And, he can live with the risk and responsibility of doing so.
But, bringing to make this off-the-cuff remarks, again, temperament and judgment, it may make us sound good that we want to go after the terrorists. We may want to in fact use everything available. But the reality is, Chris, in the long run, we have to look at how it has impacted us as a nation so far.
CUOMO: General Michael Hayden, as you were referring to, said something that was really eye opening about what happens if you just tell the military to do things because it sounds good but contravenes principle of law. Here is what he said to Bill Maher in his show.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GEN. MICHAEL HAYDEN, FORMER NSA AND CIA DIRECTOR: If he were to order that once in government, the American Armed Forces would refuse to act.
BILL MAHER, HOST OF HBO'S "REAL TIME WITH BILL MAHER" SHOW: What? Well, that is quite a statement, sir. I thought the whole thing was you have to follow orders.
GEN. HAYDEN: We cannot. You are not committed. You are not required. In fact, you are required not to follow an unlawful order.
MAHER: OK.
GEN. HAYDEN: That would be in violation of all the international laws of armed conflict.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CUOMO: Could you foresee that happening if Donald Trump said, "Let us bring out the whole menu of torture, and waterboard is just the appetizer." Can you see a scenario where the joint chiefs or military command would say we are not going to do that? LIPPOLD: Well, given that Donald Trump loves to say things off
the cuff, and you have to remember, Chris, one of the great dangers is that words start wars. If he were to say something like that, then the military leadership does have the option of saying, "That order is illegal under law and we are not required to obey it."
They hold to a higher standard. The military is the guardian of our society. It is not just a tool for the commander in chief to use. And, the flip side, it is not just the torture debate. When you look at the fact that Donald Trump is also going to be the confirmation code for the release of nuclear weapons based upon the military giving that response, you have to be very careful that whether or not he possesses, again, that temperament and judgment.
If words start wars, what if he says something off the cuff in Russia, China, escalate and go into a nuclear stance. Do we respond in kind? Do we back down? He is not the kind of person that backs down. So, I am very concerned having written a thesis on command and control of nuclear weapons whether or not Donald Trump would want to do that.
So, on the debate of torture, handling nuclear weapons, there are bigger issues that the American people should take into account as they walk into that voting booth today for Super Tuesday and cast their ballots.
CUOMO: Commander Kirk Lippold, thank you very much. Appreciate you being on "New Day". Alisyn.
CAMEROTA: OK, Chris. She does not always agree with her husband. Melania Trump says she lets Donald know when he has gone too far. Ahead on New Day, a one on one with the woman who could be our next first lady.
(MUSIC PLAYING)
[06:45:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CAMEROTA: A 14-year-old boy is charged with attempted murder, assault, and making terrorist threats after opening fire inside his Ohio school cafeteria. Sheriff's deputies say the shooter shot two teenage boys during lunch on Monday. Another boy and girl were hit by shrapnel. Fortunately, all of the victims are expected to make a full recovery. No word on a motive for the attack.
CUOMO: Apple's general counsel and the director of the FBI squaring off before the house judiciary committee today over encryption of iPhones. This after the tech giant scores a major victory with the New York judge ruling that Apple did not have to unlock a phone in a drug case. The Justice Department maintains Apple should help unlock the phone of the San Bernardino terrorists, calling it a limited request
CAMEROTA: NASA Astronaut Scott Kelly returns home to earth tonight after spending nearly one year on the international space station. That is an American record. He is scheduled to touchdown in Kazakhstan just before midnight along with the Russian cosmonaut. Kelly's 340-day mission will allow researchers to study the effects of space on the human body. And, the data will be used to help Soyuz prepare for future missions to Mars.
CUOMO: A decent indication that Donald Trump is tasting the taste of victory. He is rolling out the potential next first lady. Melania Trump opening up to the media talking to CNN about her husband. How does she feel about some of his language on the campaign trail and being first lady. That is next.
(MUSIC PLAYING)
[06:50:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CUOMO: Well, you certainly heard plenty about Donald Trump, but what about the woman by his side. Our Anderson Cooper spoke with Melania Trump to find out what she thinks about the tone of her husband's campaign and why he is resonating with voters and the KKK controversy. Here it is.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON COOPER, CNN HOST OF "AC 360" SHOW: When you first came down that escalator, when your husband first announced, what was going through your mind? Were you excited?
MELANIA TRUMP, DONALD TRUMP'S WIFE: Yes, we were excited. I was excited. I was just looking forward to it. I did not know what he would say. I did not know the speech, but we were all excited. And, you know, it is an exciting time actually. And, it is a lot of on guts to have -- to do that kind of stuff.
COOPER: Has your opinion -- I read an interview you did, I think, back in -- with Talk Magazine, like 2000 or 1999. You said politics is a business. Has your opinion in politics changed in the last couple of months watching it so closely?
MELANIA TRUMP: Oh, yes, of course. I follow it from A to Z. I know exactly what is going on. And, of course, it changes. You know, it is many, many years ago. Like what? Twenty years ago almost. So, yes, it changed a lot.
COOPER: What do you think of the campaign so far? I mean, in the last couple of days, there has been all these fights between Rubio saying all of these things about your husband. What do you think is the tone of it?
MELANIA TRUMP: I think it is a more desperate tone because my husband is leading in the polls. So, he wants to attack in very low manner way. And, it is kind of -- We expected that.
[06:55:10] COOPER: You expected that?
MELANIA TRUMP: Yes. I have a thick skin.
COOPER: It does not bother me. MELANIA TRUMP: It does not bother me. And, It is very nasty,
but I have a thick skin. I can handle it.
COOPER: Your husband has been criticized for -- sometimes for his tone on the campaign trail. One of the things he said to me is as president, the campaigning is one thing. As president, he would have a different tone if he was actually in the White House. Do you think he can have a different tone?
MELANIA TRUMP: Yes. Yes. Yes, he can have a different tone. He really can have a different tone. To build an empire and the business that he built, you cannot always use that kind of a tone, and he can really change. I know him. And, he could really change the words and the tone, but you know he is who he is.
And, we could see his following and people agree with him because they are tired of Washington and politicians in Washington. They do not do much. And, he is a doer. He does things. He is not just talking it. He will have things done for the states, for the America, for the American people.
COOPER: You watch a lot of news.
MELANIA TRUMP: Yes.
COOPER: He watches a lot of news too.
MELANIA TRUMP: Yes.
COOPER: And, he is tweeting. Do you ever get bothered how much -- He must be up late at night tweeting and watching television. Do you get bothered by that?
MELANIA TRUMP: I do not get bothered by that. We are both independent. I let him be who he is and he let me be who I am. And --
COOPER: You do not try to change him.
MELANIA TRUMP: I do not try to change him. He is an adult. He knows the consequences. So, I let him be who he is. I give him my opinions many, many times.
COOPER: You do?
MELANIA TRUMP: Yes. And, I do not agree with everything that he says. But, you know, that is normal. I am my own person. I tell him what I think. I am standing very strong on the ground, on my two feet, and I am my own person. And, I think that is very important in the relationship.
COOPER: Can you say something where you disagreed with him on?
MELANIA TRUMP: Oh, many things. Some language of course.
COOPER: Language? MELANIA TRUMP: Yes. Some language, I did not approve.
COOPER: Language you hear him using on the campaign trail?
MELANIA TRUMP: Especially, I was in New Hampshire when the woman was shouting out the inappropriate word.
COOPER: Right.
MERLANIA TRUMP: And, I was there. And, I am thinking like, "Do not repeat it" in my head, just -- for him. Do not repeat it. Just do not say it. The next day, media, all they were talking is about that. But, he repeat it.
He goes with the momentum. He goes with the flow. He goes with the people. They are having fun. Everybody were cheering. And, you know, he said it. And, the next day, but he repeated the word. That was not his words.
COOPER: Right.
MELANIA TRUMP: So --
COOPER: So, he heard from you about that?
MELANIA TRUMP: Yes. I told him that, yes. And, you know, he did it. Otherwise, he is an adult and he can do what he wants to --
COOPER: "The Wall Street Journal" has a piece about how he makes decisions and the reporter kind of followed him around. And, I thought it was really interesting. I talked about him. He seems to make a lot of decisions from his gut, from his instincts.
MELANIA TRUMP: He does. He does. And, he is who he is. He speaks from the heart. And, I think it is very important. He does not lie. He is who he is. He does not hide anything. And people, they are connecting to that. They really connect with him.
And, they know what he will do for the country. He is self- founding. He is his own person. He will not listen people, donors, lobbyists. Nobody can buy him. And, American people, I guess they got smart and they know that he will work for him.
COOPER: When you see him on television, you watch interviews he does. Even if you are not with him, I assume you watch interviews he does. Do you give him comments about what you think of the interviews? How it went?
MELANIA TRUMP: Yes. After, we always talk. We talk many, many times a day. Yes, I do. I do.
COOPER: There was an interview he gave where Jake Tapper was asking him about David Duke disavowing him and the KKK. And, he did not disavow. He had done it previously, several days ago --
MELANIA TRUMP: But, he disavowed many times. He disavowed press conference on Friday. So, I do not know why media needs to ask him so many times because he disavowed.
COOPER: When you saw that interview, did you think that was going to be a problem?
MELANIA TRUMP: I do not think so, because they were asking him about the groups. And, he said I do not know about the groups, what you are talking about the groups. So, he disavowed many, many times. So, the media just bringing up, bringing up all the time.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CUOMO: You know, tough spot for her to be in. It is always tough for any spouse to defend the candidate.
CAMEROTA: Yes. She is cool and collected.
CUOMO: She is.
CAMEROTA: She seems to know him and be comfortable talking about him. It is interesting to get to know her. There are new polls that shows how few people think that they know anything about the possible future first lady. She has a 27 percent favorable at the moment, Melania Trump. Unfavorable, 30 percent. Unsure, which is much bigger, 43 percent.
