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Final Super Tuesday of Primary Season; Interview with Congressman Adam Schiff; Trump's Comments on Judge Raises Controversy; GOP Donors Fear Losing Latino Voters; Trump Reverses Position On Libya Intervention; Clinton's Availability To Media Under Scrutiny. Aired 8- 8:30a ET

Aired June 06, 2016 - 08:00   ET

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

[08:00:00] BOB ARUM, HALL OF FAME PROMOTER: Why isn't black also pretty? That's what he would have his face. Look how pretty. Look how pretty.

And as far as religion is concerned, like most people who believed, at first he believed in a form of Islam which was exclusive. Nation of Islam believed that their religion, theirs was for black people. Gradually with the death of the honorable Elijah Mohammad and his son Wallace, they changed that. And Ali joined that element and so that the Muslim congregations that come out of the original Nation of Islam are very, very intellectually Muslim, very peace loving, and very inclusive. And Ali became part of that. The Nation of Islam --

CHRIS CUOMO, CNN ANCHOR: Bob Arum, you wrote a great piece, an op-ed that I want to direct people to in "The Telegraph" where you talk about Ali's legacy and how what he started and what he did and how he did it wound up being one of the reasons we have Barack Obama as president. Thank you very much for joining us here. I could talk about it all day but I have other news I have to get in as well. Thank you for being with us, Mr. Arum. It's a pleasure to meet you and it is always is important to remember what Ali did inside the ring and out. Thank you, sir.

ARUM: Thank you, Chris.

CUOMO: A lot of news this morning for you. Hillary Clinton closer to clinching the nomination, that would be history. Let's get to it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. BERNIE SANDERS (I-VT), DEMOCRATIC PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: The Democratic convention will be contested.

HILLARY CLINTON, (D) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Tuesday I will have decisively won the popular vote.

SANDERS: The energy is with us, not Hillary Clinton.

CLINTON: I'm going to do everything I can to unify the Democratic Party, and I expect Senator Sanders to do the same.

DONALD TRUMP, (R) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I've been treated very unfairly by this judge. This judge is of Mexican heritage. I'm building a wall, OK?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Before a Muslim judge, would you also feel like they wouldn't be able to treat you fairly?

TRUMP: It's possible, yes.

NEWT GINGRICH, (R) FORMER PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: This is one of the worst mistakes Trump has made.

REP. PAUL RYAN, (R-WI) SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE: I completely disagree with the thinking behind that.

TRUMP: We would be so much better off if Gadhafi were in charge.

I was never for strong intervention.

A surgical shot and you take him out.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

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

CUOMO: Good morning.

BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN ANCHOR: Oh, hello.

CUOMO: Welcome to your NEW DAY. It's Monday, June 6th, 8:00 in the east. Alisyn is off. B.B., Brooke Baldwin is here with me. Thank you for helping us. And we have big news. Up first, Hillary Clinton is about to make history as the long, twisted primary season nears a close on the Democratic side. Her win in Puerto Rico's primary putting her just 29 delegates away from securing the Democratic nomination. Tomorrow's final super Tuesday, six states voting, expected to put Clinton over the top. That would make her the first woman presidential nominee in U.S. history. But rival Bernie Sanders isn't talking about history. He's talking about the convention. He's saying it's going to be contested.

BALDWIN: He said he's in it until Philadelphia, so you have that. Meantime, growing fears on the Republican side here that Donald Trump's repeated attacks on the judge's Mexican heritage could come back to haunt them. Could Trump cost the Republican the Latino vote in November? Is he doing serious harm to the party?

We have the 2016 race covered for you only the way CNN can. Let's begin with Chris Frates live in Los Angeles. Mr. Frates, good morning.

CHRIS FRATES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Brooke. And I'll tell you, with one day to go until this final Super Tuesday of the primary season, Hillary Clinton is within striking distance of clinching that Democratic nomination. But Bernie Sanders is not going anywhere. He has vowed that no matter what happens in Tuesday's contest, he's staying in the race until the convention.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) FRATES: Hillary Clinton's win in Puerto Rico over the weekend puts her on the cusp of an historic nomination.

CLINTON: I want to finish strong here in California. It means -- it means the world to me.

FRATES: Now just a few delegates shy r of hitting that magic delegate number and becoming the first ever female presidential nominee, Clinton is looking to Tuesday's final round of Democratic primaries to seal the deal.

CLINTON: On Tuesday I will have decisively won the popular vote and I will have decisively the pledged delegate majority. You can't get much more than that out of a primary season.

FRATES: Clinton telling CNN's Jake Tapper that after Tuesday's contest she's pushing for party unity.

CLINTON: I expect senator Sanders to do the same. And we will come together and be prepared to go to the convention in a unified way.

[08:05:00] FRATES: But Clinton's rival, Bernie Sanders, argues that Clinton's super delegates shouldn't be counted just yet.

SANDERS: Hillary Clinton will not have the requisite number of pledged delegates to win the Democratic nomination at the end of the nominating process. The Democratic National Convention will be a contested convention.

FRATES: Vowing to take his campaign all the way to the convention, he's banking on delegate-rich California to give him momentum. Sanders even elevating his attacks on Clinton Sunday, saying the foreign government donations to the Clinton Foundation are a conflict of interest.

SANDERS: You asked me about the Clinton Foundation, do I have a problem when a sitting secretary of state and a foundation run by her husband collects many millions of dollars from foreign governments, governments which are dictatorships, do I have a problem with that? Yes, I do.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You think it creates an appearance of conflict of interest?

SANDERS: I do. I do.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FRATES: Sanders will still have an uphill battle Tuesday because numbers don't lie. Clinton has about 500 more super delegates than Sanders, about 400 of which he says supported Clinton before he even got into this race. And he wants the chance to make his case to those super delegates before the vote at July's convention. But if Clinton wins big tomorrow, that argument becomes an even tougher sell, Chris.

CUOMO: Mr. Frates, numbers may not lie, but they can deceive. If we're talking about getting to the nomination, is it with pledged, is it with super delegates, is it with both?

Let's discuss the implications of what's going on the Democratic side with House Intelligence Committee member and a Hillary Clinton supporter, California Congressman Adam Schiff, the ranking member, I should say, of the House Intelligence Committee. Good to have you with us, Congressman. Do you believe that Clinton wins California? Do you believe she captures the necessary number of pledged delegates before the convention?

REP. ADAM SCHIFF, (D) CALIFORNIA: Chris, we want everybody to turn out and vote tomorrow. But whoever they're supporting, we want a huge turnout. We want everybody participating in this process. And there will be time on Wednesday to sort it out. But I think on Wednesday, Secretary Clinton will have the requisite number of delegates, both pledged and super delegates.

And I think the fact that she will have won by millions of votes, the popular vote, will have a majority of the pledged delegates, will mean that the super delegates that are committed to her will remain committed to her.

But we don't want to get too much past tomorrow. We want everybody turning out. It's important not only that people have their voices heard in the presidential race tomorrow, but we have a lot of races down ticket that we want people to turn out on as well. So we're encouraging maximum turnout in California tomorrow.

CUOMO: Two big obstacles for Hillary Clinton. First one is in the form of Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders. If she captures, Hillary Clinton, the number of pledged delegates, I know how your system works. I know that the super delegates count. But I'm just saying for the sake of argument, if she gets the pledged delegates, would you advise that Bernie Sanders withdraw and have a subsidiary role at the convention as opposed to what he's contesting right now, which is that I'm going to the convention and I'm trying to win this nomination?

SCHIFF: I think that anything that anything I might suggest or if others are trying to push him out, he is likely to push back. And that's a decision ultimately he's going to have to make. I think we all want to see the same thing, that we broadly hold the same policy priorities, and last thing we want to do is have a decisive fight that helps Donald Trump become president of the United States.

And I know that Secretary Clinton after Tuesday is going to make her best outreach to senator Sanders. I hope that's reciprocated. I hope they can join forces in an effort to make an effort that a Democrat is in the White House because it would be a disaster in terms of the issues of income inequality, the issues of trying to raise wages in America, campaign spending if we have someone like Donald Trump in the White House. So for all the issues that the Sanders' supporters as well as Clinton supporters care about, we need to come together in this party, and I hope that begins Wednesday.

CUOMO: Now, you know that there is no category that Sanders does better against Clinton in than trust. And there are some big issues hanging out there over Hillary Clinton's head which she's going to have to deal with, the campaign and her supporters alike.

Bernie Sanders just mentioned that he has concerns when the Clinton Global initiation, the foundation was taking in millions and millions of dollars from foreign companies at the same time that she was secretary of state. This is not something she talks about. Her campaign says she answers these questions all the time. That's not really true. That I.G. report raised a lot of questions about what she said versus what she did with the e-mails. As the House ranking member of the House Intelligence Committee, you know the FBI is looking at the handling of intelligence information by Clinton. How big are these issues for you?

[08:10:08] SCHIFF: Well, look, I think the Justice Department will be wrapping up their investigation in the near future.

CUOMO: How do you know?

SCHIFF: Because, and I think, and I don't know for sure, Chris, you're right, but I know just from the public comments that I think the director has made, they want to get this done in a thorough but expeditious way. I don't think they want this to carry on through the course of the entire year. So they're going to dot every "i" and cross every "t" and make sure they do a completely thorough investigation.

But I imagine that's going to wrap up soon. And when it does, I think Secretary Clinton can put this behind her. Of course, the Republicans are going to continue to try to make an issue of it. But nonetheless I think when you compare in the bigger scheme of things to what voters are going to care about going to the polls in November, they're going to be far more concerned about the contradictory and often counterproductive positions that Donald Trump has taken when it comes to the national security of the country, something I care deeply about. He just reversed himself against on the subject of Libya. And the secretary I think made a very powerful speech earlier in the week highlighting all the ways in terms of his praise for Putin and Kim Jong-un in North Korea, his belittling of the NATO alliance, the fact that he is unconcerned about a nuclear arms race in the Middle East or another one in Asia. All of these things are antithetical to our interests. And frankly I think Americans care much more deeply about that than they do about emails.

CUOMO: But the trust, as you know, is what this winds up projecting onto. We see it in every poll. Very often, Clinton and Trump, but if you are comparing yourself to Trump on this basis, you're already speaking to a problem that you have. She's upside down very often when it comes to positive and negative favorable ratings, and it's usually all about trust. You believe, just to end the interview on this note, which obviously is sensitive to you and your position on the Intel Committee, you believe the FBI wraps up and there are no indictments?

SCHIFF: Absolutely, Chris. I haven't seen any evidence of any kind of a criminal intent here. So I think they do wrap up their investigation and conclude there's no evidence of a crime. So I feel confident going forward. But I do think, Chris, part of what we're seeing is the cumulative

impact of four years of intensive attacks on Secretary Clinton. The Republicans don't want to run against her. They do want to run against Senator Sanders, which is why you've seen them concentrate all their fire on Secretary Clinton. And that has an impact on trust. All that negative campaigning does have an impact. But it's something I'm confident the secretary will overcome as we move into the general election.

CUOMO: Adam Schiff, Congressman, Democrat from California, thank you for joining us on NEW DAY as always, sir.

SCHIFF: Thanks, Chris.

CUOMO: Brooke?

BALDWIN: All right, Chris, thank you.

As for the Republicans, there is growing fear inside the Republican Party about Donald Trump. Party leaders and donors are worried that Trump's attacks on this judge's Mexican heritage will drive voters away. But instead of backing down, Trump is tripling down. CNN's Phil Mattingly is live at New York's Trump Tower. Phil, good morning.

PHIL MATTINGLY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Brooke. Donald Trump has had ample opportunity to walk back or even more away from those comments, attacking the ethnicity of a federal judge. Even this morning on FOX had another opportunity to do so, decided not to. That's despite Republicans both publicly and, sources say, privately asking him to do just that. There's a reality with Donald Trump's candidacy. Republicans are going to have to answer for every one of his statements until November.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MATTINGLY: Donald Trump now musing that a hypothetical Muslim judge might not remain neutral if presiding over the case against Trump University.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If it were a Muslim judge would you also feel like they wouldn't be able to treat you fairly because of that policy of yours?

TRUMP: It's possible, yes. That would be possible.

MATTINGLY: And doubling down on his attacks against the Mexican- American federal judge he says should be disqualified from the trial.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If you are saying he can't do his job because of his race, is that not the definition of racism?

TRUMP: He's proud of his heritage. I'm building a wall. He's a Mexican.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You're invoking his race when talking about whether or not he can do his job. TRUMP: Jack, I'm building a wall, OK? I'm building a wall.

MATTINGLY: Trump's comments increasingly raising sharp concerns inside the Republican Party.

GINGRICH: This is one of the worst mistakes Trump has made. I think it's inexcusable. This judge is not Mexican. This judge is an American citizen.

MATTINGLY: Interviews with a series of top GOP officials, donors, fundraisers and Congressional aides, making clear Trump has crossed a major line.

RYAN: I completely disagree with the thinking behind that.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't condone the comments, and we can press on to another topic.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You think it's a racist statement?

SEN. MITCH MCCONNELL, (R-KY) MINORITY LEADER: I don't agree with what he had to say. This is a man who was born in Indiana.

MATTINGLY: It's a line of attack the Republicans fear could endanger their majority in the Senate -- the GOP is defending 24 seats this cycle -- and threaten the future of the party, something Senator McConnell hinted at in an interview with CNN's Jake Tapper last week.

[08:15:03] JAKE TAPPER, CNN HOST, "THE LEAD": Do you worry at all that your nominee now, Donald Trump, will do to Latino voters what Barry Goldwater did to African-American voters?

MCCONNELL: I do. I do.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MATTINGLY: And, Chris, the reality is, Donald Trump hasn't backed down really from anything over the course of his campaign. So the expectation that he would do so now seems slightly misguided Republican officials acknowledge.

And those same officials many of whom have been looking for or at least wanting a third party option, they'll be disappointed. The most likely or at least most recent candidate name floated, David French, the conservative writer, former Iraq war veteran.

Decided in a "National Review" column last night that he will not choose an independent bid for president. So Chris, for Republicans who want another option, looks like they're, at least up to this point, out of luck.

CUOMO: Trump has got enough opposition from his own words so at least he doesn't have to worry about another candidate right now. We have heard about another change in Trump's policy position, this one concerns U.S. military intervention in Libya.

For that we have CNN Suzanne Malveaux live in Washington. How do we understand this now?

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Chris, Donald Trump's evolution on matters of foreign policy has really been stunning. Last September, Trump was widely criticized for his lack of knowledge regarding basics of international affairs.

Now, after a few foreign policy speeches, countless interviews, he's revealing what he believes the U.S. role should be around the world. Like many of his positions, it's constantly changing.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I was never for a strong intervention. I could have seen surgical where you take out Gadhafi and his group.

MALVEAUX (voice-over): Donald Trump reversing his position on U.S. military intervention in Libya, now saying he would have authorized targeted strikes to oust Moammar Gadhafi.

TRUMP: You do a surgical shot and you take him out. But I wasn't for what happened --

MALVEAUX: Trump's comments Sunday contradict those he has made throughout the primary season, insisting that Libya would be better off with Gadhafi still in power at a Republican debate in February.

TRUMP: We would be so much better off if Gadhafi were in charge right now.

MALVEAUX: To CNN's Jake Tapper in October.

TAPPER: The world would be better off with Saddam Hussein?

TRUMP: One hundred percent.

TAPPER: And Gadhafi in power?

TRUMP: A 100 percent.

MALVEAUX: But in 2011, Trump advocated for action.

TRUMP: We should do on humanitarian basis, immediately go into Libya knock this guy out very quickly, very surgically, very effectively, and save lives.

MALVEAUX: Trump's Libya flip flop, just one of many political reversals. Last week, Trump accusing Hillary Clinton of lying about his proposal to arm Japan and South Korea with nuclear weapons.

TRUMP: She lies so much. She said Donald Trump wants Japan to put in nuclear weapons. No, no, no.

MALVEAUX: Defying his own previous comments.

TRUMP: Maybe they would, in fact, be better off if they defend themselves from North Korea.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: With nukes?

TRUMP: Including with nukes, yes.

MALVEAUX: Trump has also staunchly maintained he opposed the war in Iraq before it began.

TRUMP: I was totally against the war in Iraq. Very proudly saying for many years it would destabilize the Middle East.

MALVEAUX: A claim that contradicts this position he took back in 2002.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Are you for invading Iraq?

TRUMP (via telephone): Yes, I guess so. You know, I wish it was -- I wish the first time it was done correctly.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MALVEAUX: What makes Trump's contradiction over Libya so stunning is that it's one of his main criticisms of Hillary Clinton, her role as secretary of state, going after Gadhafi, the ordeal in Benghazi.

Now the Clinton campaign sees Trump's reveral as a real opportunity here to make the case that he doesn't have the steadiness needed to be commander-in-chief -- Brooke.

BALDWIN: Florida Governor Rick Scott calling off his meeting with Donald Trump in New York today as Tropical Storm Colin closes in on the Florida panhandle. Look at those pictures. St. Pete Beach. The clouds are rolling in. Live pictures there.

Colin is expected to make landfall later today. New storm warnings stretch north to Georgia. People in Colin's path should brace for heavy rain, hail and flooding, strong winds and even tornados are also a big, big threat. So keep an eye Florida and Georgia today.

CUOMO: All right, so what will happen with all of these attacks against the judge in Donald Trump's Trump University case? He is saying because of his Mexican heritage, the judge should now recuse himself in the case against Trump. Coming, we'll get California's former governor to weigh in.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[08:23:17]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: I have had horrible rulings, been treated very unfairly by this judge. This judge is of Mexican heritage I'm building a wall. I'm building a wall. I'm going to do very well with Hispanics.

TAPPER: So, no Mexican judge could ever be involved in a case against you?

TRUMP: Well, he's a member of a society where, you know, very pro- Mexico and that's fine. It's all fine, but I think he should recuse himself.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: What an exchange that was. Donald Trump in the hot seat from Democrats and Republicans alike, for continuing to attack a Mexican-American judge that many are just flat out calling racist.

What Mr. Trump has been saying, that U.S. District Judge Gonzalo Curiel was born in Indiana, but now serving the great state of California.

Joining me now is former California governor, Gray Davis, who supports Hillary Clinton. Governor Davis, good morning.

GRAY DAVIS (D), FORMER CALIFORNIA GOVERNOR: Good morning, Brooke. How are you?

BALDWIN: I'm wonderful. But this is about you this morning and we'll get to Hillary Clinton here momentarily. Just coming out of that sound bite, Trump continues to triple down on how he feels about this judge in your state. And Trump is calling on him to recuse himself. Do you think he should?

DAVIS: No, I do not. This judge, as you said, was born in Indiana. He is an example of the American dream. The son of immigrant parents, now a federal judge. He is has done absolutely nothing wrong that no reason to disqualify him.

If there's a conflict in this case, Brooke, it's not of the judge's making, is of Donald Trump's making because he runs around at rallies talking about how bias this judge is.

Do you know why he is doing that? He would rather have us talk about that than talk about all the abuses and defrauding that went on at Trump University.

BALDWIN: Well, I think I'm sure that the Clinton camp is enjoying Trump doing a lot of his talking instead of their own campaign. Although she's using some of it in his own words for ads.

[08:25:11]Let me ask you, though, about voters in California, Governor, and I have some numbers from your secretary of state releasing this final report of voter registration, growing by 650,000 in the final six weeks of registration, three out of every four voter a Democrat. Do you think those Dems specifically will translate into Hillary Dems or perhaps the Bernie or bust category?

DAVIS: I believe Hillary will win California. I know she will be the nominee --

BALDWIN: You do? DAVIS: -- and the next president of the United States. I mean, she has less than 30 votes to get to 650 votes up Tuesday night. She will be the nominee before California. I know she wants to win California. I saw her in L.A. recently. She's campaigning well.

There's a lot of enthusiasm. She wants this to be the exclamation point, if you will, on her primary campaign and going to the poll with some momentum.

BALDWIN: Senator Sanders is not ready for the exclamation point. He's ready for the dot, dot, dot at this moment. I mean, he's pointing out the super delegates, of course, you could get pledged after tomorrow night.

How much of a -- you know, he is pledging to stay through Philadelphia. How much of a thorn in Hillary Clinton campaign's side will that be?

The fact that in fact if he stays true with his promise and goes through Philadelphia, you know, that they cannot fully pivot to Trump in November?

DAVIS: Well, Brooke, let's give Bernie his due. He's ran a remarkable campaign. Exceeded everyone's expectations. I'm sure he has exceeded his own expectations, brought back alienated voters, expanded the Democratic base and, in the process, made Hillary a better candidate.

But he has said all along the last thing he wants to see is Donald Trump as president. So I know after the primary votes are counted, he will do the right thing and begin to bring this party back together so it's strong and united.

BALDWIN: Governor, you know if and when history is made this week and if Hillary Clinton does clinch that number that she will need all those Democrats who have been energized by this revolution that is the Bernie Sanders' campaign.

Over the weekend, Bill Clinton was out and was heckled by some Sanders' supporters. His response to them was if I were them, I would be screaming, too, because they know they will be toast by Election Day. Is toast the right word?

DAVIS: I have great admiration for President Clinton. I thought he did a fantastic job. We've all been I campaigns. I remember being on the other side of Hillary's campaign when she lost to then Senator Obama. We didn't feel good about it.

We all came around and we are very proud of the work that President Obama did. I'm confident the same thing will happen again this time because you don't want to sit on your hands, stay home. You're casting a vote for Donald Trump.

Bernie knows that and his followers know that. So give him his moment. Let him run out of the rest of his race. I believe in my heart, there is no doubt he wants to stand side by side Hillary at the convention and campaign with her in the fall and make sure that he can influence policy going forward.

BALDWIN: Final question, Governor, obviously, we are bias in the media, we would like to be able to ask questions of the woman who would like to be the next president of the United States. She has not held a formal news conference since December 4th. It's frustrating. Why is she not speaking out more?

DAVIS: I'm not the campaign spokesman, but she's campaigning --

BALDWIN: Don't you think it would help her?

DAVIS: I think she's doing great. She gave a fantastic speech in San Diego last week. It was a phenomenal speech, using Donald Trump's words against him. A lot at stake here, Brooke. We have never seen a campaign like this.

This is like a reality TV show. Give Donald Trump his credit. He can change the subject like nobody on the planet earth. He didn't want to talk about Ted Cruz, he would raise the question of his maybe not being able to vote because he was born in Canada.

Larry Tribe of Harvard was talking about that. This man will not be easy to beat. We have to come together to do it, but I'm confident that she will win and run a strong campaign.

BALDWIN: Governor Davis, thank you so much. I appreciate your time. We'll be watching California come tomorrow. Thank you.

DAVIS: Thank you.

CUOMO: Mark Cuban has a bit of that Trump factor going on, big businessman, big public persona, but he says that Trump would be a puppet president. Why does the entrepreneur and reality TV star want to be his VP? We're going to ask him when he joins us, ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)