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Is This The Least Transparent Election Ever?; Trump Claims The Fed Is Keeping Rates Low To Help Obama. Aired 6:30-7a ET

Aired September 13, 2016 - 06:30   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:33:49] ALISYN CAMEROTA, CNN ANCHOR: Time now for the five things to know for your NEW DAY.

Number one, Hillary Clinton in CNN exclusive saying she did not think her pneumonia diagnosis would be, quote, "that big a deal", also deflecting questions about her own transparency by pointing to Donald Trump's refusal to release tax returns.

CHRIS CUOMO, CNN ANCHOR: Donald Trump in a role reversal, calling for Clinton to apologize over her "basket of deplorables" remark. His running mate Mike Pence also making headlines for refusing to call a former KKK grand wizard David Duke deplorable.

CAMEROTA: Investigators say a faulty air conditioner power cord sparked a fire that killed three adults and six children inside a Memphis home. Fire officials say the victims had trouble escaping because the house had a security door and bars on the windows.

CUOMO: The NCAA moving seven championship events out of North Carolina because of a controversial state law that takes away discrimination protections for LGBT people. The events include the first two rounds of the 2017 men's basketball tournament.

CAMEROTA: OK. So you can watch now as security guards tacked two men who rushed the stage, right there, as Ryan Lochte was making his premiere on ABC's "Dancing with the Stars."

The suspects called him a liar.

[06:35:01] Both wore anti-Lochte shirts. Police arrested them. The duo were apparently enraged that the athlete embellished his story about he and other swimmers being robbed at gunpoint in Rio.

All right. For more on the five things to know you can go to NewdayCNN.com for all of the latest.

CUOMO: Lochte didn't say anything about them running up to him and holding him at gunpoint or anything like that?

CAMEROTA: No, he didn't make that this time.

CUOMO: Good move. It will impress the judges if not the Brazilian people.

CAMEROTA: Good point.

CUOMO: All right. So, we've been covering a lot of what's been going on in the campaign right now surrounding health and foundations. Don't get caught up in the hype and the name calling. This is about transparency in this campaign.

Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump are both battling transparency issues. You as voters have never had less information given to you by campaigns. We're going to give you some perspective on what I just said, next.

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(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HILLARY CLINTON (D), PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE (via telephone): Oh, my goodness, Anderson. You know, compare everything you know about me with my opponent.

[06:40:04] I think it's time he met the same level of disclosure that I have for years.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CAMEROTA: That was Hillary Clinton defending herself against criticism that her campaign lacks transparency. Of course, the lack of transparency is not just focused on her, it's also focused on Trump.

Is the 2016 race the least transparent ever?

Let's bring in Brian Stelter. He's our CNN senior media correspondent and host of "RELIABLE SOURCES", as well as Frank Sesno. He's director of the School of Media and Public Affairs at George Washington University and former CNN Washington bureau chief.

Gentlemen, great to have you here.

FRANK SESNO, DIR. SCHOOL OF MEDIA, GEORGE WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY: Thanks.

CAMEROTA: Brian, I want to start with you, because there's something so paradoxical about this race. In this culture of exhibitionism that we're in right now, the Kardashian selfie, nude selfie moment, yet the least transparent candidates ever. What's going on?

BRIAN STELTER, CNN SENIOR MEDIA CORRESOPNDENT: Yes. And when we say transparency, what we mean is how much do we know about these candidates? It can feel like we know almost too much.

And yet, when it comes to these key issues like health and taxes, there's a lot we don't know. And I think your point about selfies is crucial. Compared to 20 or 30 or 40 years ago, we're in a much more open society. We're in a TMI, too much information, society. And that's why there's a higher expectation on our politicians as well.

CAMEROTA: Frank, how do you see it?

SESNO: I see it very much the same way, but I also see a very interesting thing here, you know. It's very paradoxical.

So, Hillary Clinton is reluctant to share all this information, very secretive because she spent her entire life in public life and has been taken apart and thinks there's this vast anti-Clinton conspiracy. She's not wrong about that.

Donald Trump doesn't want to share information because he spent no time in public life, and he's owned his own information, tried to be his own PR guy, his own pitch guy.

So for different reasons, they are in this world as they are. But Brian is right. We are in this kind of bizarre place where everything ricochets around. Everything becomes a conspiracy theory. And social media blows everything up in real-time.

STELTER: So we have to be more critical thinkers than ever before. You know, there's these crazy ideas all over the web. They boil up on our Facebook and Twitter feeds. Even ideas about Clinton having a body double. This stuff is preposterous, yet it's on us as news consumers not to buy into that hype.

I would say, you know, think about Sunday morning. Hillary Clinton leaves the 9/11 event.

She could have live-streamed herself at Hillary Clinton's home. She could have taken pictures and posted them of her watching football at home Sunday night.

She has tried last night, calling in to Anderson Cooper's show, text- messaging her supporters to show that she's alive and well and doing fine and on the mend. But there's even more both campaigning could be doing.

In the case of Clinton, she could have used social media tools to share more about herself.

SESNO: The problem is the more she shares, the more it gets batted around. I mean, it's a double-edged sword, right?

STELTER: It's almost a no-win situation.

SESNO: That's right. You share the information, then you lose control. You have a cough, and now you say every cough is an allergy.

But if you don't share information, you speed the conspiracy theories. That's why candidates have always tried to husband their information, tried to control it. It's just more difficult now than ever.

CAMEROTA: But Donald Trump, of course, likes the spotlight. He likes being featured in the spotlight. What do you mean, Brian? STELTER: Well, there's this representation, this impression of Donald Trump giving hundreds of interviews, which is true over the course of the year, but this summer and into the fall now, he's been a lot more withholding. He's mostly going on FOX News, going to friendly outlets. He hasn't been doing as much press.

Maybe that's because he doesn't want to be asked again and again, where are your tax returns?

But I think this is a proud moment for the press. We're really acting as a check and balance on the executive branch by demanding more information from both these candidates.

CAMEROTA: We're trying to do that. They're not necessarily complying, Frank.

SESNO: They're not complying at all.

I mean, if you think back to previous campaigns, which I've covered and you've covered and we've watched in so many different ways, this is typically the time when you have most access to a candidate. They need the coverage. They want to put their story out. They need to appear approachable and accountable.

This cycle, however, they are more buttoned down that we've ever seen. Why Hillary Clinton gave no news conferences, sat for no interviews, appeared to be walled off for so long, is anybody's guess. I think it will prove to be a mistake.

Donald Trump is -- you know, he appears to be kind of winging it when he wings it, although he's doing a lot less of that now.

But the actual spontaneous interaction that the candidates have through the media, with the public, is very, very minimal right now. That's why the debates are going to be so important.

STELTER: Yes, and at the end of the day, you know, I can hear Clinton supporters screaming at the TV right now saying we're holding her to a higher standard. There is this issue of coverage of this coming across as hostile. I think we have to be sensitive to that, even though we're doing the right thing by calling for more information from all these candidates.

SESNO: I think there is one thing. I'm sorry, Alisyn, if I could make one. There's an issue of proportionality here.

STELTER: Right.

SESNO: It's important for us to put our brains around.

Hillary Clinton was not forthcoming with her pneumonia. What we don't know about Donald Trump, though, is much bigger, much broader, and much more important.

[06:45:02] How much money came from the Russians into his business? Who actually was funding his foundation? How much money has he really given away? What is behind all of his bankruptcies?

These go way beyond pneumonia. And, by the way, as far as health is concerned, he's 70, she's 68. Fair is fair.

CAMEROTA: Frank, Brian, frank, thank you very much. Great to get your insight.

What's all of your take out there? You can tweet us @NewDay or you can post your comment on Facebook.com/NewDay.

Chris?

CUOMO: Transparency matters. Words matter. Saying 50 percent of Trump supporters are deplorable was wrong. How about Trump attacking the Federal Reserve and alleging economic indicators are made up? Is there any proof of what he is saying? Next.

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CUOMO: Donald Trump criticizing Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen for keeping interest rates low, claiming she's doing it for political reasons. Take a listen.

(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: She's keeping them artificially low to get Obama retired. I think she's very political, and to a certain extent, I think she should be ashamed of herself.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[06:50:03] CUOMO: Fact check, in the past, he's said great things about Janet Yellen and has said low rates are the a good thing and if they raise them, it would be a disaster.

So, let's make some sense of all this with CNN Money now business chief correspondent Christine Romans and CNN global economic analyst and assistant managing editor for "TIME", Rana Foroohar.

OK. This is a little different than what we're used to with the hyperbole of Trump, because when you mess with the markets and you undermine confidence in the economy, that could be a big problem. However, let's argue whether or not he's doing that.

Your take. Trump is saying what a lot of people believe. It's rigged. They're all in on it in Washington. The rates are low. The unemployment is really 40 percent, not 4 percent. They're trying to get over on us, and he's a truth teller. What do you say?

RANA FOROOHAR, CNN GLOBAL ECONOMIC ANALYST: Wrong. I would say that the fed is one of the least political institutions in Washington right now. You know, Fed governors have long terms. The whole system is set up to make it less political.

The only reason that some people say that the Fed has kept rates low, that's a political move, is that they're the only people that have been able to do anything over the last eight years to goose the economy because of congressional gridlock. You know, if Republicans and Democrats had been able to agree and we'd got a bigger fiscal stimulus plan through, rates probably wouldn't be so low at this point.

But the Fed is watching the economy. They're not seeing a lot of inflation. They're seeing kind of sideways growth. It's still about 2 percent. There's a lot of reasons to keep rates low still.

CUOMO: And they did just raise rates. There's speculation about what they'll do going forward.

All right. Maybe you get that point. But how about this? The unemployment rate, that's a fugazi number, it's not 4 percent. How about all the people who have left the workforce? How about all the people in lousy jobs? You know, that rate is actually 40 percent, Trump says he's heard.

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN CHIEF BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: He's heard people say it's 40 percent. It's not 40 percent. He's also said it's depression era unemployment. It's not depression era unemployment. The unemployment rate is 4.9 percent. The unemployment rate measures people who have a job or are looking for a job.

What he's talking about are all the people who aren't looking. There are a lot of reasons, Chris, why people aren't looking, 10,000 baby boomers a day hit 65 years old. Some of them are not looking because they're retired. My grandma is not looking for a job because she's 88.

You know, there are some people who aren't looking for a job right now because they're home taking care of their kids because childcare costs as much as college. So, there are a lot of policy driven things we can do to address the people who have been left behind by the labor market, but the unemployment rate is not 40 percent.

CUOMO: So why do you economist types get in high dungeon over this? This is just political talk. This is what he does on a range of issues. Why does it matter more when he does it about the economy?

FOROOHAR: Well, interest rates matter hugely, right? I mean, this is what you pay on your house, on your car. Also, confidence in the economy. You know, when he comes in and says the Fed is political, the Fed is manipulating, that's a confidence issue. That can really shake investors.

Now, a lot of people feel that there's a bubble in the stock market right now. I mean, that's worth saying. And low rates have definitely helped push stocks up. There's a divide between what people are feeling and the real economy on Main Street and stocks. That's a conversation that we have been having for several years now. But that's not about the Fed being political.

CUOMO: Now, Mark Cuban, we all know who he is. He tweeted about this. He sees it as a big deal. Trump's comment on the Fed is exactly why the market will tank if he is elected. Ask him if he understands how the Fed works.

All right. Let's put the second part aside, how the Fed works. The first part, is Cuban guilty of political hyperbole? Is there any reason to believe markets would tank if Trump came in?

ROMANS: Look, when you talk to people in the markets, if Donald Trump were elected president, market participants think if he did the things he says he wants to do, build a wall, have a trade war with China, slap tariffs in companies, that would undermine confidence in American companies, it would undermine confidence in the economy, and that would hurt the stock market. I mean, that is the conventional wisdom there.

The interesting thing about Donald Trump, there is this convention, and Donald Trump defies all conventions, right? There's this -- you don't talk up or down the economy, and you don't attack the Fed. The Fed is manipulating interest rates. That its job. It's been doing that in the absence of any kind of concrete policy in Washington to grow the American economy over the past eight years.

FOROOHAR: I mean, it's interesting. Recently in meetings, Janet Yellen and other Fed governors have been kind of in veiled language saying, you know what, Washington, we need some fiscal stimulus. We need you to do some of the heavy lifting. We have been doing it for so long.

CUOMO: So, if that's the reason that the doing it because they're trying to help the Democrats. That's the last of his allegations. That, yes, they're doing exactly what you say, Rana, that Congress isn't giving Obama what he wants, so they will give Obama what he wants and keep and juice the system to make it look good when it isn't.

FOROOHAR: You know what? There's a very vigorous debate going on in the Fed right now. It's about half and half on whether to raise rates or not raise rates. So, it's not as though everybody in the Fed is saying we got to keep rates low to help the Democrats. Vigorous debates and you can argue it either way.

CUOMO: I'm impressed.

[06:55:00] Christine Romans, Rana Foroohar, battling my allegations with fact, once again.

Alisyn?

ROMANS: Fugazi.

CUOMO: Fugazi.

(CROSSTALK)

CAMEROTA: Well, the Clinton campaign has some splaining to do after keeping her pneumonia diagnosis under wraps. How will both candidates address their transparency issues? We'll hear from both sides next.

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(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

HILLARY CLINTON: I just thought I could keep going forward and power through it.

WILLIAM J. CLINTON, FORMER PRESIDENT: Rarely same sort of things happen to her when she just got severely dehydrated.

TRUMP: She said tens of millions of patriotic Americans are a basket of deplorables.

SEN. TIM KAINE (D), VICE PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: They need to be called out. They can't just be tolerated.

TRUMP: Never in history has a major party presidential candidate so viciously demonized the American voter.

WILLIAM J. CLINTON: Nothing was ever done for anybody because they were contributor to the foundation. Not one example of something wrong happened.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Donald Trump hasn't given any of his own money to the foundation that bears his name since his last donation in 2008.

GOV. MIKE PENCE (R), VICE PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: This is a man who's given away tens of millions of dollars to charitable causes.

HILLARY CLINTON: We know the least about Donald Trump of any candidates in recent American history.