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New Day

Sanders Turns up Attacks; Cruz Accused of Buying Delegates; Remembering a former NFL Star. Aired 8:30-9:00a ET

Aired April 11, 2016 - 08:30   ET

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

[08:30:00] JEFF WEAVER, BERNIE SANDERS' CAMPAIGN MANAGER: There's just this history of sort of convenient triangulation against venerable people throughout her career.

CHRIS CUOMO, CNN ANCHOR: What is victory for the Sanders campaign in New York state? What will you consider a victory short of victory?

WEAVER: Well, look, I think we have to do well here. I think the senator has to do well here. I don't think he has to necessarily win here. I mean, going forward, we have to win most of the states in the calendar coming up, but we don't have to win every single one. So we can come very close here in New York. Obliviously the secretary represented New York twice in the U.S. Senate, has a strong base here. There's no doubt about it. It's a closed Democratic primary. There's no independents voting. So it's a little bit less favorable terrain for us. But I think Senator Sanders is going to do very, very well here. It's possible he could win, but we don't need to win to win.

CUOMO: Jeff Weaver, thank you very much. Appreciate you being on NEW DAY.

WEAVER: Thank you.

CUOMO: Please, always let the senator know he's welcome here. Well, you as well.

WEAVER: You could have gone to Binghamton this morning.

CUOMO: Yes, I could have, but I didn't. Jeff Weaver, thank you very much.

We are just three days away from the big CNN Democratic showdown. The presidential debate in Brooklyn. That's where the campaign headquarters is for Clinton. That's where Sanders comes from. It's going to be the face-to-face first time in more than five weeks. The last time before this all important New York primary. That is Thursday 9:00 p.m. Eastern right here on CNN.

Mic.

MICHAELA PEREIRA, CNN ANCHOR: All right, former New Orleans Saints star Will Smith has been killed, apparently gunned down in a road rage accident. The - or incident, rather. The latest on the investigation. We'll also take a look at his legacy on and off the field, ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[08:35:34] PEREIRA: All right, Monday edition of the "Five Things to Know for Your New Day."

Republican frontrunner Donald Trump is back on the trail this morning after retooling his campaign. Trump blasting Cruz's win in Colorado and the state's delegate selection process as totally unfair. Meanwhile, Bernie Sanders questioning Hillary Clinton's judgment to be president three days ahead of that critical CNN debate in Brooklyn. Sanders won the Wyoming caucus Saturday, his eighth victory in the last nine contests.

President Obama revealing his worst mistake in office. He says his biggest failure he sees was not having a plan for the day after toppling Libya's Moammar Gadhafi.

Jury selection is underway today in the murder trial of a Georgia father accused of leaving his toddler to die in a hot car back in 2014. Justin Harris could face life in prison if convicted.

The Golden State Warriors, a single victory away from history. They got their 72nd win of the season last night. Now, if they beat Memphis Wednesday, they will set a new NBA record for wins in a season.

For more on the "Five Things," be sure to visit newdaycnn.com.

Chris.

CUOMO: Thank you, Michaela Pereira.

PEREIRA: You're welcome.

CUOMO: Donald Trump blasting the results in Colorado this weekend as totally unfair. Says people are very angry about it. Trump is accusing the Cruz campaign of buying delegates. Big mouth, is there big action and proof to support it, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[08:41:03] ALISYN CAMEROTA, CNN ANCHOR: Donald Trump making a bold claim this morning, accusing his rival, Ted Cruz, of buying delegates after the Texas senator's weekend sweep in Colorado.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE (voice-over): Now they're trying to pick off those delegates one by one. That's not the way democracy is supposed to work. And, you know, they get - they offer them trips. They offer them all sorts of things. And you're allowed to do that. I mean you're allowed to offer trips and you can buy all these votes. What kind of a system is this?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CAMEROTA: Here to discuss is Carl Paladino, Trump's honorary New York campaign co-chair and a former candidate for New York governor. Mr. Paladino, thanks for being here.

CARL PALADINO, TRUMP'S HONORARY N.Y. CAMPAIGN CO-CHAIRMAN: Thank you, Alisyn.

CAMEROTA: Is Donald Trump right, is Ted Cruz buying delegates?

PALADINO: Well, only, I guess, Donald and Ted have a little bit of a disagreement over the moral and ethical rules of this campaign.

CAMEROTA: Right, I mean, but what do you think?

PALADINO: If you're buying delegates, you're certainly violating -

CAMEROTA: Is he allowed to - is Ted Cruz - is he doing something that is not allowed? If he's, say, paying for trips, which is what Donald Trump has claimed this morning, is that allowed or not allowed?

PALADINO: It's - it shouldn't be allowed. Of course not. The American people expected that they'll be conducting themselves in a legal, moral and ethical sense. I don't see why we would accept, as a country, the fact that somebody can go buy off delegates. That's just not expected, certainly not expected, and I think it flies in the face of their - of the truth that they want to present to the public.

CAMEROTA: And do you think there's evidence that Donald -

PALADINO: It's deceitful. It's wrong.

CAMEROTA: That Ted Cruz is somehow paying for perks?

PALADINO: I don't know that. I - I don't - I'm not aware of it, no.

CAMEROTA: When Paul Manafort -

PALADINO: That's being handled by other people.

CAMEROTA: When Paul Manafort, which you know is Donald Trump's new delegate whisperer, tasked with getting delegates now on the ground and playing that chess game, when he said this weekend that Ted Cruz is not playing by the rules and that he's engaged in gestapo tactics, what do you think he means by that?

PALADINO: Well, I think the press gets excited over the use of the term "gestapo," but certainly it's descriptive that we're upset about it. And if that's - if that's what in fact is happening, it's wrong. And I think you want to point it out to the public and you want to use adjectives such as "gestapo" to illustrate that something in the minds of people, OK, that it's wrong.

CAMEROTA: I mean it -

PALADINO: I don't see why that's such a big deal.

CAMEROTA: Well, it is hard to think of a more incendiary term than "gestapo tactics." I mean what does it mean? What is it that the Cruz campaign is doing wrong?

PALADINO: Well, that's the - that's the press. That - that - that's the press, OK, focusing on a word rather than focusing on the major issues here. Do we have competency in these candidates? Who's the most competent person to be president of the United States? OK, the language, get over it. I mean it's - it's nonsense. The American people aren't listening to it.

CAMEROTA: Cruz's supporters say that all of this talk is just sour grapes and that Donald Trump is being outmaneuvered by Ted Cruz in this chess game that Cruz has been playing for months and Donald Trump is playing catch up.

PALADINO: We've watched Cruz time and again, OK, go out over the edge and play games. That's been pointed out. I think Donald Trump has every right to bring that up and illustrate to the American people that Cruz is not playing by the rules of the game.

CAMEROTA: But how so? What's he not playing -

PALADINO: You don't - you don't have a one mile race in the last 20 -

CAMEROTA: Mr. Paladino, what - but what are the rules that Cruz is breaking?

[08:45:03] PALADINO: I think the basic rules of engagement in any support, in any activity, in business activity, in sports, in whatever, people expect you to play by the rules that have bene known, the customary rules, known to the public. That's the expectation. If you're - if you're - if you're going off and you're paying out - paying off people, OK, you're buying their airplane ticket to Cleveland or whatever you're doing, that's not fair and it shouldn't be done. People expect you to be morally and ethically responsible. And if that's what Cruz is up to, well, that's wrong.

CAMEROTA: Carl Paladino, Trump supporter, thanks so much for being on NEW DAY this morning.

Let's get to Michaela.

PALADINO: Well, thank you, Alisyn. Bye-bye.

PEREIRA: All right, a former NFL star gunned down after what looks like a fatal case of road rage. Is through more to the death of Will Smith than meets the eye? We'll take a closer look next here on NEW DAY.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CUOMO: A flood of remembrances and tributes for former New Orleans Saints star Will Smith, whose life was very terribly cut short this weekend. Smith was shot and killed in what appears to be a road rage incident. Is there more to the story? We want to look at that, as well as the legacy of this man. CNN Sports analyst and "USA Today" columnist Christine Brennan and CNN Sports anchor Coy Wire joins us to talk about this. [08:50:03] Now, guys, before we talk about how his life ended, it is

certainly more important to tell people, introduce people to who this man was on and off the field and why his life mattered.

Coy, give us a beat on how he was on the field, what made him someone worthy of induction into the Saints Hall of Fame.

COY WIRE, CNN SPORTS ANCHOR: Chris, having to play the New Orleans Saints twice a year when I was an Atlanta Falcon, I know this guy was a dominant player on the field. He was a first round draft pick out of Ohio State University, where he was the national champion in 2002. A first round draft pick to the Saints. He spent all of his nine seasons in the NFL with that organization where he became a Super Bowl champion. He became a pro-bowler, fourth on the all-time sacks list for the New Orleans Saints. He was also a team captain.

I spoke with one of his fellow team captains, Curtis Lofton, yesterday and he said it's unimaginable what has happened to Will Smith. He, Curtis, was on his way back from a wedding. He said, Coy, that could have easily been me in that vehicle with Will Smith. He's going to be sorely missed by the New Orleans community.

CUOMO: All right, I'm trying to get Christine Brennan's shot back. Let me stay with you, Coy, until I do. This is one of those guys who was a rare commodity. Christine, if I have you right now and you can hear me, let me come to you with this. The idea that he was as much to the team and the community off the field as he was on it. True?

CHRISTINE BRENNAN, CNN SPORTS ANALYST: Absolutely, Chris. And when you think of what we've talked about, you and I and Coy, over the last couple of years, Ray Rice, that monster Greg Hardy, all the bad things in the NFL, the is another part of this tragedy, the fact that most people probably never even heard of him unless you're a big football fan or in New Orleans. And that this life, this man, the way he was living his life, he and his wife, Where There's a Will There's a Way, his charity that helped at risk kids and families, Christmastime dozens of families that he would host a Christmas dinner, take them to the Saints practice facility. He was involved in almost all of his teammates charities as well, Chris.

This was an exemplary human being. Not just a football player. And, again, when we talk over and over about all the bad things in the NFL, Will Smith was one of the great things about the NFL.

CUOMO: And these pictures we're showing right now, as you speak, Christine, really make people remember what was lost here. Forget about his stats. Look at that wife and her love. Look at those kids who are now left without a father. And, Christine, what do you make of this intrigue surrounding what kind of relationship may or may not have been present with the man who took his life?

BRENNAN: You know what, Chris, it doesn't take away the facts that he is gone and that he was gunned down, whether it was road rage, whether there was some premeditation. I think this is something we'll all - we'll find out, of course, as always, the facts come out. But he's still gone and a community grieves and a family grieves, as you said. It is incredibly intriguing and even, I think, more sad if, in fact,

there was some - some reason for this. If - if this whole issue with the alleged killer and his connection to someone who Will Smith had been spending time with that night, wow, that's just even makes it more awful.

Again, this will come out. Right now we don't know a lot about it. But - but the story, the intrigue will continue. The tragedy remains and will never change.

CUOMO: Will Smith is one of those guys, Coy, who, you know, most people won't know. Saints fans obviously will know him very, very well and everything about him. But defensive ends, you know, sometimes they get a lot of attention. Most often they don't. And that's what makes the wide ranging reaction of Saints and non-Saints, people in the NFL and the extended family, coming out about Will Smith and saying what he meant to them. What are you hearing?

WIRE: Yes, let's take a deeper look into some of that which Christine was mentioning. You talked about the organizations that he helped with give back to the community. I spoke to one former teammate of Will Smith last night. His name is Tutan Reyes. He had just spoken to Will the night before his death. And he said, Coy, of all of the things that you see, Christine mentioned the Christmas and that he gave to children, he - he said, Coy, of all those things, there was so much more that he did that he didn't even talk about. Things that he did to help under privileged youth because he was a humble guy and he didn't care about the self-glory.

He also said, Coy, I was supposed to walk in graduation with Will in less than a month from now. He's pursuing an executive NBA at the University of Miami. How many former NFL players have you heard of that pursue an executive NBA degree, an 18 month program? This is a guy who was figuring out his next steps in life. He was on a mission. There he is with his family, his wife, his beautiful children, now widowed and fatherless. A tragic story indeed.

CUOMO: So much of his life still in front of him. Remember, you know, nine years in the NFL takes a lot out of you. There's no question. But this guy was just in his 30s. Imagine how much life was taken from him and yet how much he did with the time that he had.

[08:55:09] Christine, Coy, thank you very much.

From one of the hardest stories there is to talk about, to what makes this show special every day, "The Good Stuff" coming up next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CUOMO: All right, you ready to feel good -

PEREIRA: Yes.

CUOMO: Even though you're going to feel a little sad?

PEREIRA: OK. CUOMO: Time for "The Good Stuff." Will Macki (ph), standout linebacker for Owen Whitty (ph) High School in Wisconsin. He was diagnosed with a rare form of bone cancer. It put a halt to playing football. Didn't stop him from attending every game to support his team.

PEREIRA: That a boy.

CUOMO: So he has to undergo a real tough round of chemo. He does it and the school doesn't forget who he is to them, whether he's on the field or not. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're in it to be with Mack (ph) through this process and give him the support and the love and that positive reinforcement.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CUOMO: Oh, man, did they do that.

PEREIRA: Oh, (INAUDIBLE).

CUOMO: That's Will's coach, by the way, Terry (ph), who praised Will's victory. I - as the only way the school new how to do it. They dropped him off in a big limo and the whole school turned out and threw a football-style pep rally for him in his honor.

PEREIRA: Oh, my - they took him (ph) - oh, I'm going to cry.

[09:00:00] CUOMO: Take a little listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's a big day because in the game of life he just got a win.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CAMEROTA: There you go. That is beautiful. What a great message.

PEREIRA: Beautiful. Thanks for that.

CAMEROTA: Thank you, Chris.

CUOMO: Right?

CAMEROTA: Time now for NEWSROOM with Carol Costello.

Good morning, girl.

PEREIRA: Happy Monday.