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Interview with Sen. Tim Kaine; Trump Latches Onto Bill Clinton's Critique Of Obamacare; Florida's Governor Expected To Speak About Hurricane Matthew. Aired 7:30-8a ET

Aired October 06, 2016 - 07:30   ET

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

[07:30:00] TIM KAINE (D), VICE PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: It really says who Hillary Clinton is and who I am. We measure our life by what we do for others and, especially, Hillary Clinton has had a lifelong passion for families and children. It really started when she was a kid in a Methodist youth group in the suburbs of Chicago.

And, Alisyn, when she called and asked me to be on the ticket and I started to say yes, she said no, let me tell you why first. And then she, basically, said you've been a missionary, a civil rights lawyer, and you've worked at the local, state, and federal level.

The success of our administration isn't going to be measured by a bill signing or a headline, it's going to be measured by the difference that we make in people's lives, especially families and kids, and I think you've got the background to help me always remember that. So, this is who she is and that's why this ad, I think, is so nice.

ALISYN CAMEROTA, CNN HOST: Yes. I mean, Senator, this is an ideal version, obviously, of who we are as Americans. But, of course, we're also a materialistic society that is enamored of celebrities like Kim Kardashian and billionaires like Donald Trump or he wouldn't be doing so well. So, do you ignore that aspect at your peril?

KAINE: Well, you know, I -- you speak a lot of truth in that, Alisyn. I mean, it is the case that that ad may speak to the better angels of our natures, to use Lincoln's phrase, and we're not always at our better angels. But I think part of what leadership is is always calling us to pay attention to the better angels and yes, there's pettiness and focus on things that are of more momentary distraction.

But at the end of the day, we have a country that's really built on the big ideas, not the small ideals and the deep and important principles like equality, for example. And so, this is an ad that I think reminds us of that. And again, it's an expression of who Hillary Clinton is.

She has had a remarkable track record of focusing on this empowerment of families and kids from her very earliest days and it is a through- line in a theme that has run throughout everything she's done. So I know, for her, this is talking about what's important to the country, but it's also a way of her speaking to the voter and saying and this is what's important to me. This is what I'm going to be worried about every day when I get up as your president.

CAMEROTA: Senator, let's talk about the V.P. debate.

KAINE: Yes, absolutely.

CAMEROTA: Anything that now, two days later, you wish you'd done differently?

KAINE: You know, the debate was a vigorous discussion and I had two goals, Alisyn. First, I wanted to, obviously, defend Hillary Clinton against a lot of attacks, most of them baseless, that the other side is leveling, and I think I did a good job on that.

And second, I was really interested to see -- very interested -- whether Gov. Pence would defend his running mate or not. I viewed it as fundamentally a debate, really, between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump and so, I put over and over again to Gov. Pence the notion of how can you defend what Donald Trump has done or said, and again and again he refused to defend Donald Trump. And so I think that was what I was hoping to get across in the debate and I think folks watching it definitely understood that Gov. Pence wouldn't defend his running mate.

CAMEROTA: What did Sec. Clinton say to you about your performance?

KAINE: She thanked me for playing good defense. You know, I said last night I've never played hockey but there was a little bit of that debate where I was just a goalie. And as they were trying to, you know, render attacks, I was stopping them. And so, none of the post- debate coverage was really anything about attacks on Hillary Clinton.

But she also thanked me for prosecuting the case against Donald Trump. And, you know, Gov. Pence had a choice. He could have defended his running mate or not. But the fact that he didn't is leading to, I think, sort of two sets of stories since the debate.

First, that Gov. Pence wouldn't defend Donald Trump, and if your own running mate won't defend you it's kind of hard to ask people to vote for Donald Trump. But then, secondly, the effect of both debates, I think, has led to a number of stories suggesting that the GOP is really having buyer's remorse about Donald Trump as their nominee and, frankly, they should.

CAMEROTA: One of our pundits said that it looked as though -- as if you had prepared for a debate against Donald Trump, not against the more subdued Mike Pence. And they also said that it was possible that you had missed some opportunities to go after Gov. Pence on some of his weaknesses, such as LGBT rights.

KAINE: Right. Well, it is the case that there was no question that was asked that dealt with Gov. Pence or just the issue of LGBT equality. Hillary and I are strongly for LGBT equality, including marriage equality. And a Trump-Pence ticket is deeply against it, especially Gov. Pence. So, yes, that was an opportunity. I would have loved to have had a 93-minute debate instead of a 90-minute debate.

But I think that the -- that pundit who said that was probably accurate. I viewed this as, fundamentally, a debate that was about Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump, not about Tim Kaine and Mike Pence. And so, I went in with the thought that look, Hillary Clinton's the top of the ticket and Donald Trump is the top of the ticket and that's where I'm going to focus. And so, that was my goal and I think we succeeded in doing it.

CAMEROTA: Some of the reviews were not that kind. The Trump campaign -- a couple of their surrogates said that you seemed unhinged. And then, the campaign manager for Donald Trump, Kellyanne Conway, had a different take on you, so let me play that for you.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KELLYANNE CONWAY, TRUMP CAMPAIGN MANAGER: So why in the world was her running mate interested in ignoring the female moderator -- Asian- American female moderator, by the way -- completely? It was almost like it was his strategy. It's almost like he didn't hear her and it came off terribly on T.V.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CAMEROTA: Governor, I don't know if you could hear that but, basically, she was suggesting that --

KAINE: Yes, I did, I did.

CAMEROTA: -- there was a -- there was some sexism there. Do you want to respond?

KAINE: Well, Alisyn, you've quoted people from the Trump campaign who are not happy with the debate and I understand why they weren't. There's been a lot of stories that suggest that Donald Trump's reaction to the debate was one of anger. Why won't my own running mate defend me? And, you know, that, I think, was --

I think that's going to work on his head a little bit as he goes into prepping for the really important debate on Sunday. He had a poor performance a week ago and then he saw a debate two nights ago where his own running mate sort of threw him under the bus. So yes, I'm sure that the Trump campaign is not happy with that debate and that puts some extra pressure on him getting ready for Sunday.

CAMEROTA: Senator, let's talk about the hurricane -- Hurricane Matthew that's bearing down on Florida. Do you or Hillary Clinton plan to visit Florida in the next several days?

KAINE: We are assessing that as we go. I mean, I think the key thing, having been a governor with the responsibility of declaring states of emergency during hurricanes and other weather-related challenges, we really have to monitor it and, first, encourage everybody to follow evacuation and other safety instructions that are being given by Florida officials who are watching the path of it to other states, as well -- the Carolinas and north. Virginia could be affected.

But in terms of visiting, we're very mindful of the fact that a visit at the wrong time, when people are really focused on keeping themselves safe, would be a real distraction. So we're just going to monitor the weather as it goes, keep everybody there in our thought, encourage everybody to pay attention to your local emergency instructions and follow that advice. It's very important.

CAMEROTA: OK. Senator Tim Kaine, always nice to have you on NEW DAY. Thanks so much for joining us.

KAINE: Thanks, Alisyn.

CAMEROTA: Coming up --

KAINE: Great to be with you.

CAMEROTA: -- in our -- thank you -- in our next hour, we will talk to Donald Trump's running mate, Indiana governor Mike Pence about how he thinks he did during that debate.

CHRIS CUOMO, CNN HOST: We're also going to have much more of our coverage as Hurricane Matthew bears down on the East Coast of Florida. We're tracking the storm. The state's governor is expected to update us on the latest storm preparations at the top of the hour. We'll bring you that live.

But first, the next presidential debate quickly approaching. It will be Sunday. What can Hillary do to come out on top again? How high are the stakes for Trump and what makes a town hall, not a debate, a trickier challenge -- next.

[07:38:05] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[07:41:30] CUOMO: This election is constantly a surprise. Former President Bill Clinton has now given a boost to the Trump campaign. What? Yes. How? Let's discuss.

We have Christine Quinn and Joe Borelli with us right now. Christine Quinn, of course, New York City former council speaker. And New York city councilman and Donald Trump supporter Joe Borelli here, as well. It's good to have you both.

CHRISTINE QUINN, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR, VICE CHAIR, NY STATE DEM. PARTY, CLINTON SUPPORTER: Thank you.

CUOMO: So, let's play what former President Bill Clinton said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BILL CLINTON (D), FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Where all of a sudden 25 million more people have health care and then the people are there busting it, sometimes 60 hours a week, wind up with their premiums doubled and their coverage cut in half. It's the craziest thing in the world.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CUOMO: And that's why Hillary Clinton should not be President of the United States because she wants to keep the ACA in affect and her own husband just said it stinks.

QUINN: Well, I don't think he said it stinks. I think he was attempting, with perhaps a little too much enthusiasm on one word there, but to point out some of the challenges that I think the president would admit and also, Sec. Clinton would admit. And Sec. Clinton and Sen. Kaine, I think, have been clear that some of the challenges that have played out with ACA are ones they're going to address.

I don't think the President's point at all there was to say throw the baby out with the bath water. It was to say there's been some hiccups, some bumps, and those have got to be fixed.

CUOMO: Challenge, hiccup, bump, small words. You see this as a big thing.

JOSEPH BORELLI, NYC COUNCILMAN, 5TH DISTRICT, REPUBLICAN COMMENTATOR, TRUMP SUPPORTER: I think it is a big thing. I think it was a gift to the Republican Party and to Donald Trump. Look, you know, this is an issue that has been driving voters away from the Democratic Party in 2010 and 2012 and 2014.

We still have Independent voters who were driven about -- driven against Obamacare as they've seen their premiums double, they've seen just their access to doctors go away. We all remember the famous line of if you like your doctor you can keep it.So, this is an issue that doesn't work for the Democratic Party. And to have to have damage control by the Clinton campaign and the White House to, essentially, double down on that which is not working is a problem.

QUINN: You know, I think it's very hard to judge, Joe, what you're saying from the perspective of the Trump campaign, right, because Obamacare with its hiccups and its bumps -- it's a program and a plan designed to help get people health care who don't have access to health care. And I've got to say, in the shelters for homeless people I run every day, those are all people who have no access to health care without involvement from the government, so that's a great goal.

Can we make it more efficient? Of course. That is not at all the kind of goal you hear from Donald Trump. And, in fact, many of the people who he attacks regularly in racist and offensive ways are from communities that have largely been served by Obamacare.

CUOMO: All right, but hold on. I want to --

QUINN: You can't criticize it in the full swath way when you're offering nothing substantial to help people who don't have access to health care.

CUOMO: All right. The last part of that is a fair criticism that we should take on -- the Donald Trump insults a lot of people. People either know that or they don't to accept it, but there's no reason to debate it. It is what it is, it's fact.

QUINN: Well, it -- CUOMO: No, no, but here's the point that is worth debate. Nothing has been offered to fix it. That is true. The reason that Bill Clinton is correct that you have people who aren't poor enough to get the straight subsidy but aren't wealthy enough to have to not worry about the premium in the same way are getting squeezed under the current plan, true.

[07:45:00] Why hasn't it been fixed? Because the GOP will not work with the Democrats to fix it. They want to get rid of the ACA. They don't want to fix it and a result, people will continue to struggle. Fair pushback?

BORELLI: Right, but I would contend that if you look on the House GOPs website you see a very detailed plan by Speaker Paul Ryan, which I think Donald Trump has spoken very extensively about as being supportive of. And I think that's one of the things a Trump presidency --

CUOMO: Politically impractical. Forty-plus attempts to get rid of the ACA have failed.

QUINN: Right.

BORELLI: But some of --

CUOMO: You have to decide do we just obstruct or do we fix? You've decided to do the former.

BORELLI: No, I think a repeal and replace would be, probably, the most appropriate thing but that's --

CUOMO: But how do you get it done?

BORELLI: But that's something that Donald Trump has been talking about. Again, you could go onto the House GOP --

CUOMO: I know he's talking about it --

BORELLI: You can go on the House GOPs website --

CUOMO: -- but how do you get it done?

QUINN: Repeal isn't going to fix the hiccup but --

BORELLI: The other side is the replace part.

QUINN: -- there's no clear plan from Donald Trump, in my opinion, of how to replace this and put something in place that would be better and put something in place that is -- look, health care is probably one of the most complicated issues out there. And you need -- if you're going to have a real plan -- you know, a multi-point developed plan -- that Donald Trump doesn't have that and all we've seen from the Republican Party is no, no, no. And it's really hypocritical.

(CROSSTALK)

CUOMO: All right, well, hold on. Let Joe respond.

BORELLI: Whatever you're saying you have to fall back on the fundamental truth that the former president made up that this is a policy that's simply not working for Americans and with Hillary Clinton --

QUINN: No.

CUOMO: No, for some, for some.

BORELLI: And, yes, but --

CUOMO: And that matters. You have a lot more people covered now.

BORELLI: But even the enrollment goals have not been met by the administration.

CUOMO: The enrollment goals have been getting --

BORELLI: They've been getting there but they've not been met.

CUOMO: They were -- they were not being met early on --

QUINN: And now, they are.

CUOMO: -- and now, the pace is good. But you make a good point. The efficiency, the effectiveness has not been what you want. But here's something you've got to remember because a lot of this is politics, not policy, right? This is playing to advantage for Trump. Bill Clinton comes out and says something negative about Obamacare, it's good for his campaign because it's simple in politics. But the policy's more complicated.

President Obama, he's very popular. Maybe more popular than both these nominees combined right now. That says that there is a threshold of belief for people in this policy. Are you risking --

QUINN: And help people. Help --

CUOMO: -- throwing it out?

BORELLI: No, no. I think there are a large number of Americans that are disenfranchised by the Obama administration, not just by Obamacare but by the economic recession, by our foreign policy situations that have developed over the time, especially when Sec. Clinton was Secretary of State. So, you know, Barack Obama is a surrogate for Hillary Clinton and, perhaps, be effective, but I don't see him -- his popularity being able to run the gap and attack new voters --

CUOMO: Final point --

BORELLI: -- that are not --

QUINN: You're putting out there that there are all these people disenfranchised from President Obama and his administration --

BORELLI: Yes.

QUINN: -- but the numbers in the polls don't bear that out. If so many people were disenfranchised, he wouldn't have the support. And his support is going to help elect Hillary Clinton, someone who actually has plans and ideas to make America better. Not a man who just shoots from the hip --

BORELLI: Well, I think that's the disconnect --

QUINN: -- without substance.

BORELLI: -- of the Obama and Clinton debate.

CUOMO: And that's the -- that's the state -- and that's the state of play.

QUINN: Look at the popularity.

CUOMO: Let's leave it there. Thank you very much. Christine, Joe, always a pleasure -- Alisyn.

CAMEROTA: OK, Chris. Of course, we're staying on top of Hurricane Matthew's track. Florida's governor is expected to talk about the storm at the top of the hour. We will bring that to you live.

But first, this case was known as the "Central Park Five" and it shook New York City. It put Donald Trump in the headlines. Now, years later, a member of the "Central Park Five" is speaking out about Donald Trump and asking him for something. We discuss that next.

[07:48:25] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[07:52:00] CUOMO: The "Central Park Five". Heated allegations but false convictions that shook New York City and brought Donald Trump into the headlines. Now, a member of the so-called "Central Park Five" is speaking out about Trump's run for the White House and what he wants from the Republican presidential candidate.

CNNs Miguel Marquez has the story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MIGUEL MARQUEZ, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A gang of violent teens terrorized New York. The crime inflamed a city and the nation.

ROBERT COLANGELO, CHIEF OF DETECTIVES, NYPD: They beat her with their fists with, we believe, a rock and a metal pipe. She was raped by four of these youths.

MARQUEZ: Arrested within hours of the attack five teens, four black, one Latino, all charged with the brutal rape of a 28-year-old jogger in New York's Central Park.

YUSEF SALAAM, "CENTRAL PARK FIVE": It was the scariest time in my life. MARQUEZ: Yusef Salaam was one of the so-called "Central Park Five" just 15 years old, paraded in front of cameras.

SALAAM: Had this been in the 1950s I would have had the same fate as Emmett Till.

MARQUEZ: You'd have been hung.

SALAAM: I would have been hung.

MARQUEZ: Two weeks after their high-profile arrests, Donald Trump took out full-page ads in four major newspapers, calling for the death penalty to be reinstated. Trump wrote, "Criminals must be told that their civil liberties end when an attack on our safety begins."

SALAAM: He was, literally, like the fire starter. He lit the match.

MARQUEZ: Salaam served his full sentence, nearly seven years in prison, as did all the "Central Park Five" but none of them were guilty.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The men cleared after spending years in prison for a crime they did not commit.

MARQUEZ: In 2002, serial rapist Matias Reyes came forward, claiming he was solely responsible. His DNA and description of the crime matched. With no DNA evidence linking the "Central Park Five" to the crime their sentences were reversed.

SALAAM: When we heard that the verdicts were being vacated it felt -- it felt -- it was like the best feeling in the world, and that feeling quickly came and went.

PROTESTORS: Donald Trump, Donald Trump, you can't hide, you can't hide.

MARQUEZ: "The Central Park Five", their families, and supporters wanted an apology from Donald Trump. The billionaire refused, telling "The New York Times", "They confessed. Now they say they didn't do it? Who am I supposed to believe?" Those confessions, parents and lawyers said, were coerced.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They didn't give them no food, they didn't give them no sleep for 43 hours, and that's how they did it.

MARQUEZ: The five sued New York City and settled for $41 million in 2014. Trump incensed, calling the settlement a disgrace in an opinion column saying, "Settling doesn't mean innocence, but it indicates incompetence on several levels. It is politics at its lowest and worst form."

MICHAEL D'ANTONIO, AUTHOR, "THE TRUTH ABOUT TRUMP": I spoke to Donald shortly after the city made a settlement with these men and he was outraged.

[07:55:00] MARQUEZ: Michael D'Antonio's "The Truth About Trump" follows the billionaire's rise to the top of the GOP ticket.

D'ANTONIO: He's not a person who takes in new information and then adjusts and accepts reality. The only reality that matters to him is his judgment, which was rendered many years prior.

MARQUEZ: Not matter how total the vindication for the "Central Park Five", there is still one thing they'd like to see.

SALAAM: I keep saying to myself, one day Donald Trump is going to, perhaps, take a full-page ad out and apologize to the "Central Park Five", you know. That would be tremendous. That might make the (laughing) --

MARQUEZ: Do you really think that's going to happen?

SALAAM: I doubt it's going to happen.

MARQUEZ: In a statement to CNN, Trump not only didn't apologize, but said "They admitted they were guilty. The police doing the original investigation say they were guilty. The fact that the case was settled with so much evidence against them is outrageous."

Yusef Salaam denies any wrongdoing that night. And as for the actual rapist, Matias Reyes, he is currently serving 33 years to life for a series of rapes. But interestingly, not for this one. By the time he admitted to the crime the statute of limitations had already run out. Miguel Marquez, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CAMEROTA: All right, joining us now to discuss this story is special correspondent for "The Daily Beast", Michael Daly. Michael, thanks so much for being here.

MICHAEL DALY, SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT, "THE DAILY BEAST": Thank you for having me.

CAMEROTA: It's funny to hear Yusef, one of the "Central Park Five" -- so-called "Central Park Five" say that he's hoping for an apology from Donald Trump. Let's hope he's not holding his breath because yesterday, that statement that Miguel Marquez ended with was anything but an apology. In fact, there's one sentence in it that I just want to reiterate where he says "The fact that the case was settled with so much evidence against them is outrageous." Was there evidence against them?

DALY: Well, the courts ultimately found that they were wrongly convicted. I mean, Trump --

CAMEROTA: Right. There wasn't DNA evidence against any of these guys. In fact, it was the other person --

DALY: Right.

CAMEROTA: -- who then confessed. So, what does he mean? DALY: Well, you know, when Trump says he wants law and order he doesn't want law, he wants order. The law said that these young men were wrongly convicted. The law said that these young men should not have been sent to prison. I mean, that's the law. Those are the courts. That's the way the whole investigation congressed.

CAMEROTA: What's interesting about this is that it is a little similar, I think, to the birther situation where Donald Trump -- there was a very provocative case and there's a premise -- it's a lightning rod. Donald Trump inserts himself into the situation and then when proven wrong -- when the evidence suggests that he's wrong he doesn't apologize or even, basically, back off the original supposition.

DALY: Well, I think that's because his initial position is not determined by the facts. Not determined by what he actually believes. He takes these positions, I think,because I furthers his primary interest, which is Donald Trump. And he doesn't want to back down because he figures I'm still getting something out of this.

And, you know, when he initially went after these kids it isn't like the whole world went to ask Donald Trump what his opinion was. He took out a full-page ad.

CAMEROTA: He injected himself into the story.

DALY: He actually spent his own money. He's not big on that. He actually spent some of his own money to take out a full-page ad that kind of - basically, it was like he hadn't discovered Mexicans yet so he discovered these kids and --

CAMEROTA: Meaning that they were the villains then.

DALY: Yes. Well, he made them like these scary -- you know, we have to guard ourselves against this. The whole city's, you know -- and he made them the symbols of a city that actually was kind of a feared city at that time.

CAMEROTA: In 1989 --

DALY: Right.

CAMEROTA: -- there was violence in this city.

DALY: There were 2,000 murders a year in this town.

CAMEROTA: Two thousand murders a year. But you say that this case is relevant today and to this election because of how the city has changed. What do you mean?

DALY: The whole city was transformed and, oddly enough, the basic principle that changed the city of New York was that black lives matter because there was a police genius named Jack Maple whose fundamental philosophy was that you have to treat black-on-black crime as seriously as black-on-white crime. And the police were always very good at getting somebody if you got robbed in Central Park South or if you got robbed on Junior (ph) Street in Brooklyn they might not have been as energetic.

And Maple created a situation called CompStat that made every crime equally important, whether it occurred in the richest part of Manhattan or the poorest part of Brooklyn. And that is what transformed the city of New York.

CAMEROTA: Because crime has plummeted here. It is now one of the safest cities --

DALY: It's the safest city.

CAMEROTA: -- in the country.

DALY: And even when they -- and he -- he starts calling about stop and frisk, stop and frisk. They yanked that way back and crime still is going down because of those same principles.

CAMEROTA: Michael Daly, thanks so much for bringing us all the facts this morning. Great to talk to you.

DALY: Nice talking to you.

CAMEROTA: All right, so we're following a lot of news including, of course, the latest on Hurricane Matthew, so let's get right to it.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is CNN breaking news.

CAMEROTA: Good morning, everyone, welcome to your new day. It is Thursday, October 6th, 8:00 in the East.

And we do begin with breaking news for you because the state of Florida is bracing for a direct hit from the very powerful Hurricane Matthew. Millions of residents are urged to evacuate as this storm heads to the East Coast.