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Trump Calls for Waterboarding; U.S. Airstrikes Target ISIS; Academy Addresses Controversy. Aired 8:30-9:00a ET
Aired June 30, 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] SAM CLOVIS, TRUMP NATIONAL CAMPAIGN CO-CHAIRMAN & POLICY ADVISER: I don't - I - that is not at all what he has ever said what -
ALISYN CAMEROTA, CNN ANCHOR: I'm asking you.
CLOVIS: Well, I'm telling you what the issue is. We will consider it. It is something that has to be considered. We also have to follow the law. And we would not do this without consultation with Congress. We would not doing this without talking to our commanders in the intelligence community because we would have to find the best possible way to gather intelligence, whether it be for immediate tactical action, or for long-term strategic action. We will consult and - and I wish that this is something that more people would actually think this through rather than just making declarative statements out here because, you know, this is nonsense to think that we're not going to be collaborative, that we're not going to consult, that we're not going to go to the experts, that we're not going to follow the law. I absolutely find it just, you know, incredible that people can't think these things through -
CAMEROTA: Well, hold on, Sam.
CLOVIS: And they draw assumptions and they throw this stuff at the wall and hope it sticks.
CAMEROTA: Sam, it's Donald Trump, it - if I may quote Donald Trump, "I would bring backwater boarding and I'd bring back a hell of a lot worse than waterboarding."
CLOVIS: He would - yes.
CAMEROTA: So he's the one making the declarative statement.
CLOVIS: Well, that's true. And we would bring it back after we have consulted with Congress and the intelligence community, the military and all others to find out what is the best possible way to protect this country. That's what the president is charged with doing. And that's what this president will do.
CAMEROTA: Sam Clovis, great to have you on NEW DAY. Thanks so much.
CLOVIS: Always. Thanks, Alisyn.
CAMEROTA: Let's get over to Victor. VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN ANCHOR: The U.S. hitting ISIS hard, targeting a
convoy of fighters leaving Fallujah. Dozens of terrorists killed by airstrikes. We'll have a live report, next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[08:35:41] BLACKWELL: Breaking overnight, U.S. airstrikes targeting ISIS fighters fleeing Fallujah in Iraq. The toll could be in the hundreds. CNN's Pentagon correspondent, Barbara Starr, live with the very latest this morning.
Barbara.
BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Victor.
We have a good deal of new information about all of this. First, south of Fallujah, the U.S. military now saying there were a series of U.S. and Iraqi airstrikes south of Fallujah on a number of ISIS vehicles seen leaving the area. The U.S. calculates its own airstrikes destroyed about 55 ISIS vehicles, Iraqi airstrikes destroying a good number more, and perhaps dozens, if not hundreds of ISIS fighters dead, that near Fallujah. Near Ramadi, west of Baghdad as well, another series of airstrikes, U.S. and Iraqi. The U.S. calculates it struck about 120 ISIS vehicles, the Iraqis striking even more.
Why are these two air strikes so unusual and so significant? It has been a long time since ISIS moved in such a manner, with such a large number of troops, presenting themselves as a very ready target for airstrikes.
Chris. Alisyn.
CHRIS CUOMO, CNN ANCHOR: All right, Barbara, thank you very much.
Of course, all this reporting is subject to confirmation and we'll go back to the story as we get more. Barbara Starr is always on it.
Let's discuss the implications now with CNN senior international correspondent Clarissa Ward.
What do you make of the idea of going slow on this, that you don't know if ISIS did this as a diversion or who these people were that were there and killed. How immediate can you assess a situation like this?
CLARISSA WARD, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, I think as Barbara said, it's a highly unusual situation for ISIS to be traveling in what appears to have been a massive convoy. Traditionally, ISIS is pretty quick to adapt to the environment around them to these relentless airstrikes that have been going on now for two years. So it's highly unusual to see a huge movement of ISIS military personnel like that.
One can only begin to speculate why they would move so many vehicles in such a large convoy with the inevitable result of having so many casualties. Are they trying to create a diversion? Were they the ones driving the vehicles? Were they trying to escape, you know, an implement onslaught on the city of Fallujah? And why where they moving out of Ramadi when we've been told the city of Ramadi has already been cleared? I would say this is highly unusual, as Barbara highlighted, and also at this stage, honestly, raises more questions than it answers, Chris.
CAMEROTA: Clarissa, help us understand this sort of paradoxical reporting that we've all been engaged in this week. ISIS is losing ground, we're told. The U.S. and the coalition are winning the fight on the ground in Iraq and Syria, trying to contain ISIS. They're on the run. ISIS fighters are being killed. And yet ISIS' deadly attacks continue to happen, as we've seen tragically in Istanbul and Orlando and elsewhere.
WARD: OK, well, so first things first. I think we have to be careful about using words like "winning." There can be no doubt that ISIS is in much worse shape now than they were a year ago. The coalition has been hitting hard firstly at its oil infrastructure, which was its main source of revenue. Then also kind of nibbling around the edges of ISIS territory in Syria and Iraq. We've also seen a big push in Libya. So there's no question that ISIS is on the back foot now.
And it's important to remember, their whole motto is remaining and expanding. If they are not expanding, that hurts their credibility. If they are shrinking, that hurts their credibility even more. At the same time, they still have large swaths of territory. They still control Raqqa and Mosul, and they means that they can plan and carry out major attacks, like the one we saw at Istanbul airport, which now appear to have been planned in the ISIS capital of Raqqa, they can still continue to plan those kinds of attacks and to carry out those kind of attacks, even with less territory.
We see ISIS adapting. They're like a virus, they mutate to survive. And we see them adapting from a physical actual caliphate that has territory on the ground, to a virtual caliphate, one that operates largely online. And, ultimately, I would say that it's the virtual caliphate, the countries like the U.S. need to be more worried about, because that's how you see case like Orlando, Omar Mateen, inspired by online propaganda, already radicalized but looking for a raison d'etre, looking for a direction. And as long as ISIS is able to harness all that anger, they will continue to wreak a lot of havoc.
[08:40:25] CUOMO: So this is the frustration when you talk about, how do you kill an idea?
CAMEROTA: Yes.
CUOMO: How do you beat an idea? But many here are feeling that, once again, as we saw in Afghanistan and Iraq before, that the answer is more involvement on the ground. Get in there with the best warriors in the world, the U.S. forces, and take these people out once and for all. We've heard this before. What is the risk factor?
WARD: Well, there are a number of risk factors. And I've spent a lot of time on the ground in areas that have been recently liberated by ISIS. And the reality is that the U.S. proxies on the ground there who are largely comprise of Kurdish fighters do not have a good relationship with any of the Sunni Arabs who make up the majority of Syrians. So if you're talking about marching into the city of Raqqa, or marching into Mosul in Iraq, you cannot do that with a force that is mostly comprised of Arabs - sorry, rather of Kurds.
Now, would U.S. troops have better luck marching on cities like - or trying to take those major cities? Of course they would. But at the same time, you are then talking about being drawn into a long, dirty battle in which many American lives could be lost.
CAMEROTA: Clarissa, it is so complicated. Thank you for walking through all of this. We really appreciate your expertise this morning.
Let's get to Victor.
BLACKWELL: You remember that hashtag #oscarssowhite. Well, the group that votes on the Academy Awards will look a little different next year. Will it mean that more people of color take home Oscars? We'll discuss.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[08:45:55] CAMEROTA: It's time now for the five things to know for your new day.
Number one, Turkish sources tell CNN there is strong evidence ISIS leadership was involved in planning the Istanbul airport attack and the attackers had been in Syria recently.
Up to 250 ISIS terrorists killed in a series of U.S. airstrikes in Iraq. A U.S. official says the terrorists were targeted as they tried to escape Fallujah.
Donald Trump expected to keep pushing his anti-trade message today during a campaign stop in New Hampshire. President Obama says Trump's threat to rip up trade deals is, quote, "the wrong medicine."
Former London Mayor Boris Johnson deciding against a run for British prime minister after leaving the movement to leave the E.U.
And Michael Phelps is heading back to the Olympics. He's the first male swimmer to secure a place in five separate Olympics games with his victories, the 200 meter butterfly qualifier.
For more on the five things to know, you can go to newdaycnn.com for the latest.
Chris.
CUOMO: All right. So after these complaints that the Oscars are too white, the Academy is now rolling out a more diverse voting pool. The question is, will it make a difference? We take it on, next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[08:50:38] (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) JESSE WILLIAMS, ACTOR: And we're done watching and waiting while this invention called whiteness uses and abuses us, burying black people out of sight and out of mind while extracting our culture, our dollars, our entertainment, like oil.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLACKWELL: That was actor Jesse Williams talking about really a lot of issues, but in part blasting the racial divide in Holly wood over the weekend. And now the film academy is announcing its most diverse class ever after two straight years of all white acting ballots at the Oscars. Joining us now, "Entertainment Tonight" host and CNN contributor Nischelle Turner, and senior editor for "The Wall Street Journal," Christopher J. Farley.
Good to have both of you.
CHRISTOPHER J. FARLEY, SENIOR EDITOR, "WALL STREET JOURNAL": Thank you.
NISCHELLE TURNER, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Hi. Good morning.
BLACKWELL: And, Christopher, I want to start here, that there has been this hashtag of Oscar's so white.
FARLEY: Oscar's so white.
BLACKWELL: We've seen - we've seen the nominees. This is a statement. Let me tell you, 683 new members, largest class, most diverse ever, 41 percent people of color, 46 percent female. We'll get to the larger issues in a minute. But this is a start.
FARLEY: It's a start. It only pushed things ahead a little bit if some of these members actually decide to join the Academy. But, you know, they had to do something because other award shows were making fun ever them. The BET Awards were making fun of them. The Tony's were making fun of them. I mean when other awards shows are making fun of yours awards show, that's a problem. So the Oscars had an image problem they had to deal with, and this is the first step in trying to deal with that image problem.
BLACKWELL: And, Nischelle, just the start, because even with this very diverse class, it only brings the number of people of color up to 11 percent.
TURNER: Right. No, absolutely. And you're right, it is just a start. But I also think we need to keep in mind what we've been saying throughout this whole conversation, Victor, is that this is not just an Academy problem. It's an industry wide problem. So to make these kinds of strides in one year and have these numbers of people that you invite to the Academy, I think it is a very good start. And I think that it does say something as well because when you look at some of the members, the specific people that were invited, these are younger activist type of actors and actresses and also folks behind the scenes that have very specific voices and that are not afraid to use those specific voices. So I do think it's a really interesting class. I think it's a class that could make some waives. And I think it - you know, it will be interesting to see the nominations in this year coming forward, but -
BLACKWELL: But let's -
FARLEY: But -
BLACKWELL: Go ahead.
FARLEY: But you raise an interesting point because some of the people that are on the list of being invited to be part of the Academy finally, you wonder why, why weren't these people invited before?
BLACKWELL: Ice Cube.
FARLEY: Yes, Ice Cube -
TURNER: Absolutely. Absolutely.
BLACKWELL: Twenty-five years after "Boys in the Hood," $1.5 billion in ticket sales, and it's just this year.
FARLEY: And Idris Elba. He's just now being invited.
TURNER: Absolutely.
FARLEY: You're just now getting around to inviting Idris Elba to be a part of your Academy? And part of the problem is, it's very difficult to become a member of the Academy. You can't just join. You can't just sign up. You can't just pay dues. You actually have to have two sponsors to be part of it. And that's part of the reason why it remains so overwhelmingly male and white and people of color have historically been locked out of being part of the voting Academy.
BLACKWELL: And you make the point that this is not just about diversity, this is not just about not being laughed at, it's about money.
FARLEY: It is about money because more increasingly the people that buy tickets to see films, by some estimates, almost 50 percent of them are people of colors. So if you keep on putting shows on like the last Oscars, whose ratings were down, if you keep on not nominating films that feature people of color, your ratings are going to go down, your ticket sales are going to go down. It's going to hurt you at the box office.
And this might all happen again next time around at the Oscars unless the industries are producing more films that feature people of color. I mean this year we're looking at "The Birth of a Nation" will probably get some attention. Denzel Washington's "Fences" will probably get some Oscar attention if it comes out this year.
BLACKWELL: Yes.
FARLEY: But there's not a whole lot of other stuff in the pipeline and the hopes are resting on a few films that (INAUDIBLE) generate some real Oscar buzz.
BLACKWELL: Nischelle, let's talk about the pipeline because there is a goal by 2020 to, of course, make the Academy even more diverse. But, of course, you need to hire actors, directors, designers, technicians, to be able to fill that pipeline. Is there any movement on that front, aside from the Academy, in the industry?
TURNER: Well, you know, I think it's very interesting because this is a conversation that I have been having recently about what audiences are starting to look like, you know, television, film, audiences like Chris just mentioned. They are browning. They really are. I mean and they're getting more diverse. So I do think that if you look at television right now, you are starting to see a lot more diversity. You're starting to see television shows that are casting, you know, multicultural audiences.
[08:55:17] So I do think there is some movement. But again, I have to stress, that it's a big issue. So it's not something that we're going to see turn around in a year. I mean I think there - it's kind of that, you have to crawl before you walk.
BLACKWELL: Yes.
TURNER: And I do think that we're seeing a little bit of that. Cheryl Boone Isaacs, I do believe, is committed to diversity and committed to doing what she can -
BLACKWELL: Yes.
TURNER: To make changes in this industry. It's one of those things where, you know, you do have that frustration, but you've got to understand when little victories happen.
BLACKWELL: It takes some time.
TURNER: Absolutely.
BLACKWELL: Yes.
TURNER: And I think that's - that's one of them here.
You guys, really quickly, though -
BLACKWELL: Ten seconds.
TURNER: You talked about some of the people that you were surprised to see.
BLACKWELL: Yes.
TURNER: And I do agree with you with the Ice Cube and things like that.
BLACKWELL: Yes.
TURNER: But look at people like Loretta Devine, Patti LuPone, Rita Wilson, who I was floored that were not members of the Academy, in fact.
BLACKWELL: They've been in films for decades.
Nischelle Turner, Christopher J. Farley, thank you both.
FARLEY: Thanks.
BLACKWELL: Well, what's your take? Tweet us @newday or post your comments on our FaceBook page, facebook.com/newday.
"The Good Stuff" is coming up next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CUOMO: We need "The Good Stuff," and this is a good one. It comes from Buffalo, New York. A man opened a coffee shop to serve as an inspiration to many. Take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Muffins, donuts, cakes, (INAUDIBLE), pop and coffee. People will come in and they will buy stuff.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CUOMO: It's a very different type of business. George set it up with the help of a nonprofit called People, Inc. They help people with disabilities, developmental disabilities, achieve their goals.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He can say, this is what I would like to do, this is my dream, this is my goal, and then he can hire people, like Eddie, into place. He can, you know, say this is what I - how I want to expand and we can get the right people in there to help him.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CUOMO: Beautiful. George is hoping to open more coffee shops in the future. We love the stories that show that people are not their limitations.
BLACKWELL: Yes, that overlap of doing well and doing good.
CUOMO: Nice.
BLACKWELL: Good, good, good.
[09:00:00] CAMEROTA: And so valuable for the community also to employ people.
BLACKWELL: Yes.
CAMEROTA: Great story. Thank you. And, Victor, great to work with you.
BLACKWELL: Great week. CAMEROTA: Yes.
BLACKWELL: Thanks for having me.
CAMEROTA: Thanks so much. Thanks so much for being here.
CUOMO: See you again.
BLACKWELL: Yes.
CAMEROTA: All right, time for NEWSROOM with Carol Costello.
CUOMO: See you tomorrow.
BLACKWELL: Yes.
CAMEROTA: Take it away, Carol.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: All right, I will. Thanks. Have a great day.
