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Clinton, Trump Lay Out Closing Arguments; Interview with Rep. Steve Cohen; Interview with Fmr. Gov. John Sununu. Aired 7-7:30a ET

Aired November 02, 2016 - 07:00   ET

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

DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENTIAL NOMINE: If we don't repeal and replace Obamacare, we will destroy American health care forever.

[07:00:09] HILLARY CLINTON (D), PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: When I listen to Donald Trump's dark and divisive vision, I sometimes don't know what country he's talking about.

TRUMP: You can change your vote to Donald Trump. We'll make America great, again, OK?

CLINTON; This is a big deal. We cannot take anything, anybody, anywhere for granted.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

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

ALISYN CAMEROTA, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, everyone.

Welcome to your NEW DAY. Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump making their closing arguments, Clinton going after Trump's character and what you heard her say there his divisive vision as she tries to stem the fallout from the latest FBI probe over her e-mails.

CHRIS CUOMO, CNN ANCHOR: Donald Trump is sticking to the script, staying off the news shows. He just wants to stay on Crooked Clinton and blasting Obamacare. He's also making a last-minute pitch to voters who have already voted in early voting in this election. He says if you voted for Clinton, change your vote now.

Just six days from election day. Let's begin with CNN's Phil Mattingly live in Orlando -- Phil.

PHIL MATTINGLY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, good morning, Chris.

For four days it was a sustained and deliberate attack from the Clinton campaign and HHHHillary Clinton herself on FBI director James Comey for that letter he sent to Capitol Hill. Yesterday a shift. And here's why. The Clinton campaign is very cognizant. They can't spend the last seven days talking about an FBI review of Hillary Clinton's e-mails. They want to spend it talking about Donald Trump.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CLINTON: Why does he do these things? Who acts like this? And I'll tell you who: a bully. That's who.

MATTINGLY (voice-over): Hillary Clinton trying to turn the page and get the focus back onto Donald Trump.

CLINTON: We've never had someone so unqualified and unfit to be president and commander in chief.

MATTINGLY: After days of intense scrutiny over a new FBI review of e- mails that could be related to her private server, Clinton campaigning in Florida with the woman she thrust into the national spotlight at the first debate: former Miss Universe Alicia Machado.

ALICIA MACHADO, FORMER MISS UNIVERSE: He even called me names. He said to me, "Miss Piggy, Miss Housekeeping, mean eating machine (ph)."

MATTINGLY: And deploying a new ad attacking Trump's incendiary remarks toward women.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So you treat women with respect?

TRUMP: I can't say that either.

MATTINGLY: All part of Clinton's pitch to female voters, a crucial voting bloc for a campaign looking to regain its momentum.

Clinton also using a tried and true campaign attack, slamming Trump over not paying taxes.

CLINTON: He took everything our great country has to offer. He scooped it up with both hands and then paid nothing to pay to support us. And then he has the nerve to call our military a disaster, to insult POWs.

MATTINGLY: Clinton's campaign raised $11.3 million in just 72 hours after the FBI director's letter to Congress, cash immediately put to use to hit Trump with attack ads in four states that have leaned blue.

Clinton's frustration with Trump's rhetoric reaching a boiling point, as she confronted a heckler at a rally last night.

CLINTON: I am sick and tired of the negative, dark, divisive, dangerous vision and behavior of people who support Donald Trump.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MATTINGLY: And Alisyn, I can tell you, more than a few eyebrows were raised yesterday when the campaign did commit to that buy, that television ad buy in those blue states. Did that mean that Donald Trump was gaining? Were there problems?

Look where Hillary Clinton is going today: heading out west, hitting Nevada, obviously, a well-known battleground state, but also stopping into Arizona. You talk to Clinton campaign advisers. They say that's not because they're trying to expand the map. They look at that state as a very real battleground. They've been following the early voter data, the Hispanic turnout in that state. They believe they have a real opportunity there.

So you see both candidates going into enemy territory, trying to flip those states. I'll tell you this: if Hillary Clinton wins Arizona, yet, that race is definitely going her way -- Alisyn.

CAMEROTA: Very interesting to watch how the map and the sands keep shifting during this election. Phil, thank you very much.

Donald Trump staying on message as the race tightens, focusing on Clinton's e-mails, and he says he wants to, of course, repeal Obamacare. Trump's new message, though, to early Clinton voters, is "change your vote."

CNN's Sara Murray is live in Washington with more. Good morning, Sara.

SARA MURRAY, CNN POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Alisyn.

Well, it is a rare move, and it's only legal in a handful of states, but this is Donald Trump's new message in the wake of this late- breaking news from the FBI, telling voters, "Look, it's not too late. You can still switch and support Donald Trump."

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

TRUMP: This is a message for any Democratic voter who have [SIC] already cast their ballots for Hillary Clinton.

MURRAY (voice-over): Donald Trump making a pitch to Hillary Clinton's early voters: It's not too late to change your mind.

TRUMP: You can change your vote to Donald Trump. We'll make America great, again. OK?

MURRAY: Taking that message to Wisconsin, one of several states where voters can legally switch their vote.

TRUMP: A lot of things have happened over the last few days.

MURRAY: Trump arguing the FBI's decision to investigate e-mails sent from one of Clinton's top aides is reason enough to reconsider Clinton.

TRUMP: She has really no one else to blame but herself.

MURRAY: Despite the FBI admitting it doesn't know if the latest batch of e-mails is even significant, Trump claims...

TRUMP: She is likely to be under investigation for many years. Probably concluding in a very large-scale criminal trial.

MURRAY: Trump also taking an apocalyptic tone on Obamacare.

TRUMP: If we don't repeal and replace Obamacare, we will destroy American health care forever.

MURRAY: Stumping with running mate Mike Pence as the two seized on premium hikes and rolled out their own health care proposal.

GOV. MIKE PENCE (R-IN), VICE-PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: Obamacare is a catastrophic failure.

TRUMP: Our replacement plan includes health savings accounts, a nationwide insurance market where you can purchase across state lines, and letting states manage Medicaid dollars so much better.

MURRAY: In the election's final week, Trump's campaign says it's launching a $25 million ad blitz in battleground states. The campaign throwing a Hail Mary, going after states that currently look out of reach, while Pence makes overtures to those Republicans put off by their own nominee.

PENCE: It's time for us all to say with one voice to our fellow Republicans and conservatives, it's time to come home.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MURRAY: Now, if you look at where Mike Pence and Donald Trump are campaigning today, gives you a sense of how they're trying to play offense and defense at the same time.

So Pence is going to Arizona. This is a state that has been tilting red, but is now looking a little bit more like a battleground. But he's also hitting up New Mexico and Colorado, both states that have been tilting blue but where the Trump campaign believes they can make in-roads now late in the game.

As for Donald Trump, he will be campaigning in a much more traditional battleground state, Florida. We're expect them to focus a lot on the economy today, maybe meet with some pastors, as well as talk to some Cuban-Americans.

Back to you guys.

CUOMO: All right. Sara, thank you very much.

Joining us now is Congressman Steve Cohen of Tennessee. He is a Clinton supporter. Haven't seen you in a while, Congressman. How are you doing?

REP. STEVE COHEN (D), TENNESSEE: Chris, it's good to be back with you. And I'm doing a lot better than last time.

CUOMO: Good, you know, I was going to say, I would have chalked up your personal situation to one of the most bizarre things I've covered in politics. But now we have this election in front of us, so you have dropped down the list forever, and at best second place.

COHEN: Good.

CUOMO: How do you tell people -- how do you explain what this choice is about in this election that seems to have become a question of who is less bad? COHEN: Well, it has become that to a lot of people. Secretary

Clinton is a person who has a lot of experience and knowledge of government and world affairs and how to deal with people in a rational way.

The other candidate is the most, in my opinion, bizarre candidate that we've ever had on a national ticket. A sociopathic megalomaniac, narcissistic individual with an attention span of a flea. And the idea that he's the candidate of the Republican Party is anathema to any decent, historical Republican that thinks of Dwight Eisenhower, thinks of Charles Percy, thinks of Bill Schaefer, thinks of George Romney, any of those type people.

The Republican Party had people that understand the issues. They presented candidates that could act as president, even if their positions were a little more conservative than the Democrats.

But this year, it's a choice between competence or incompetence. And I think the American people will choose the right candidate, and we'll have somebody that can see that we honor our obligations with NATO to protect people.

I've been to the Baltic region, and those people are very fearful of Russia. We can't have a person like Trump, who might be making deals that make the Trump Plaza in Moscow or some other Russian country or some other business enterprise a priority over our nation. America first means Trump second.

CUOMO: You have two states of play. The first is whom do people like better? Let's put up the numbers, your favorable/unfavorables in this race at last current count. You have the most historically negative numbers for both of these candidates. You have the write up on the screen for the audience right now. Favorable: 46 and 40. At this point in an election, almost unheard of for two nominees. Unfavorable, 52 and 57. Almost 60 for Trump. Again, unheard of.

So, what do you say to people who say, "I don't like her for 1,000 reasons, and I don't like him. So, it's a wash"? What do you say to them?

COHEN: It's not a wash. I understand that people don't like both candidates, and the unfavorables are so high. But Secretary Clinton is knowledgeable and competent. She served in the United States Senate. She's been secretary of state. When she was first lady, she was active in all the issues that were affecting America then that affect America today. In health care...

CUOMO: But that's why, Congressman, people are against her. People use her experience as a negative, because as you know -- you see this in your state acutely: people are desperate for change. They say the system is rotten to the core. And they are worth -- they believe it is worth it to take the risk on someone like Trump, because they are so desperate for something different.

COHEN: Well, unfortunately, some people that do that aren't looking at the lack of ability that Trump has. Trump doesn't have a plan for them. He doesn't have an economic plan. He doesn't have a foreign policy plan. He has no plan at all. And change is one thing, and taking the course of state and putting it off to wreck it is another. And you would wreck it by putting somebody in that who has not the experience or the demeanor to lead this nation.

Trump could not work with Congress. Trump doesn't understand the three branches of government. He thinks he can just appoint people without the Senate confirmation on the Supreme Court. He wouldn't work with foreign leaders. He doesn't know the repercussions of his actions. And he's just that person that would jeopardize everything the United States is about in terms of our relations with foreign nations.

I understand the need for change. We need change in this country, and we certainly are going to have it. But it's -- change is normally evolutionary, not revolutionary. And you're more likely to get that evolutionary change with Secretary Clinton, who is going to guide us in the right direction and guide us in the direction that President Obama is taking us to try to make things better.

Listening about President Obama being the closer. He's Mariano Rivera, and he's going to get up there and throw that hardball. And people are going to get out and vote. And they better vote, because it's civil rights on the line. It's health care on the line. It's the -- it's the middle class that's in jeopardy, and it's the middle class that doesn't get it. They've been -- they've been bamboozled by this guy Trump, who cares about only himself. He is what my friend, Warren Zevon, wrote about, Mr. Bad Example.

CUOMO: Warren Zevon. I'm going to end it on that, Congressman Cohen. You win for that reference.

COHEN: Send lawyers, guns and money.

CUOMO: I know that. Thank you very much. Congressman Cohen, you always surprise. Thank you very much -- Alisyn.

CAMEROTA: I was afraid it was going to be "Werewolf in London."

CUOMO: That was a good one. Now you win.

CAMEROTA: We like the references, the musical references always on NEW DAY.

So let's get the other side now with John Sununu. He's the former governor of New Hampshire and former chief of staff to President George H.W. Bush. He supports Donald Trump.

Good morning, Governor.

JOHN SUNUNU, FORMER GOVERNOR OF NEW HAMPSHIRE: Good morning, Alisyn. How are you?

CAMEROTA: I'm doing well.

Hillary Clinton is making what sounds like her closing argument: that Donald Trump's character disqualifies him to be president of the United States. She cites his offensive comments towards women and Muslims and Hispanics; and she says that that's revealing of his character. What do you think of Donald Trump's character?

SUNUNU: Look, she's doing this, because she got pressure from the down ballot and the Democratic side that if she kept talking about Comey, all it would do is remind people of a culture of corruption that the Clintons have brought to the Democrats, and that was oozing down to the down-ballot candidates.

You had people talking about Virginia, where McAuliffe raises money with the Clintons and gives the 500,000-plus thousand dollars to the wife of the deputy director of the FBI, who eventually was -- was examining the Clinton case. It even creeps down into New Hampshire, where Maggie Hasan is running against Senator Ayotte, and Hasan then comes under scrutiny. And people find out she took illegal contributions and was involved in pay-for-play when she was governor on state contracts.

And even the candidate running against my son, who last night in the debate wouldn't answer the question about his involvement for pay-for- play, he tried to pivot away.

This is a climate of corruption that the Democratic candidates around the country told Hillary that, "If you keep talking about Comey, it's pouring down on us."

CAMEROTA: And do you think that Donald Trump can fix that climate of corruption?

SUNUNU: I think so. I think, look -- Donald Trump is certainly a relatively coarse guy. But Mrs. Clinton is a relatively, not relatively, a significantly dishonest person. So, when voters have to choose between coarseness and dishonesty, and they're being reawakened to that dishonesty with this investigation, I think you're going to see them moving to Donald Trump.

CAMEROTA: OK. Because -- I ask you about his character, Governor, because you have changed your tune on Donald Trump. You were not supportive of him.

SUNUNU: Right.

[07:15:08] CAMEROTA: And back during the primary, you were on record as calling him, quote, "stupid." You said he would be disastrous for the United States. And you wrote this op-ed at the time that you said, "Trump is cut from the same big-government cloth as Barack Obama. He welcomed the Obama stimulus packages. He supports government-funded universal health care. We must not drink the Trump Kool-Aid."

So why now can you drink the Trump Kool-Aid?

SUNUNU: That's why my -- that's why my endorsement, I think, carries weight. Because when I look at Hillary Clinton, even with any of those burdens, Donald Trump is an order of magnitude better for the country.

Hillary Clinton has got a policy of free tuitions, a policy of single- payer health care, all across the board those issues that will take us down the slippery slope to socialism.

CAMEROTA: Yes, but...

SUNUNU: Her two favorite surrogates are the avowed socialist Bernie Sanders and the non-avowed socialist Elizabeth Warren. That's the choice. And when you make a choice, you pick between those that have significant problems. Hillary Clinton's problem is a horrible policy and a clear definition of her as someone with a proclivity to personal enrichment and political power.

CAMEROTA: And you don't think that Donald Trump has a proclivity towards personal enrichment?

SUNUNU: I haven't seen any of that in his public life. In his private life, he's an aggressive businessman.

But the Clintons have sucked on this process in public life. You see the tying of the foundation to Bill Clinton's pocket in the Doug Band e-mail, where he talked about Bill Clinton Inc.

You see Mrs. Clinton, on issues like the uranium issue, leaning towards those who have given money, not only to the foundation, but to the Bill Clintons and the Hillary Clintons in speaking engagements.

They've put money in their personal pocket, and they've created institutions for personal political power.

CAMEROTA: And Governor -- Governor, what about the Trump Foundation that we know made an illegal political contribution, that it may have paid off some legal fees. The things that charitable foundations are also not allowed to do.

SUNUNU: Look, let's look -- you're talking about a foundation of the order of about $1 million or so. A couple of million dollars.

CAMEROTA: Sure. But same practices.

SUNUNU: You're talking about a billion dollars' worth -- a billion dollars' worth of influence peddling. And can you imagine the Clintons saying, "You better get your donations in now before the end of the year, because we might at the end of the year stop taking foreign donations"? They said, in essence, "Put your bribes on the table now, because we may shut it down later."

CAMEROTA: So you're saying the order of magnitude, that you think that because there was more money involved on the Clinton side, though some of the same practices that you are criticizing on the Clinton side, Donald Trump, there's evidence of him having done.

SUNUNU: Look, you quoted one instance. If you would give me 20 minutes here, I will go through the litany of 100 instances, from the way they played with Morocco, from the money they took from Ethiopia, from the way they played the Middle East royal families, from the way they put $900,000 speeches into Bill Clinton's pocket, from the way they played dishonestly with the Canadian foundation. If you give me 20 minutes, we can go through all the Clinton ones...

CAMEROTA: All right.

SUNUNU: ... and I'll put that against the one you put up on Donald Trump.

CAMEROTA: I said -- there were two. There were two instances that I gave you. But, listen, Governor, Governor, I, too, am cognizant of time. After the election, you and I can have a 20-minute debate...

SUNUNU: Yes.

CAMEROTA: ... about anything you'd like.

SUNUNU: Thanks, Alisyn.

CAMEROTA: Governor, thanks so much for being on NEW DAY.

Over to Chris.

CUOMO: All right. Let's get back to that breaking news out of Iowa. There is a massive manhunt under way in the Des Moines area. Police say two officers were shot and killed in separate ambush attacks, both officers found dead in their cruisers. The shootings happened within blocks of each other, about 20 minutes apart, police believe at this point. They're working on a description of the suspect. There may be multiple suspects.

We're staying on this. As we get information, we will bring it back to you.

CAMEROTA: So back to politics. Hillary Clinton is trying to turn the focus back on Trump's character, as we've been discussing, deploying some high-profile surrogates in key battleground states. Will the enthusiasm of Trump's supporters affect her strategy? We discuss all that, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[07:23:47] CAMEROTA: Six days -- count them -- until the election. Hillary Clinton is shifting her focus back now to Donald Trump's character.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CLINTON: When I think about what we now know about Donald Trump and what he's been doing for 30 years, he sure has spent a lot of time demeaning, degrading, insulting and assaulting women.

I would frankly rather be here talking about nearly anything else. Like how we're going to create more good jobs and get the economy working for everybody. But I just can't talk about all the good things we want to do because people are making up their minds. This is a consequential choice.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CAMEROTA: So will that quell the looming questions about the FBI's new e-mail probe? Let's bring in CNN political commentator and former Donald Trump campaign manager Corey Lewandowski; and CNN political commentator and vice chair of the New York state Democratic Party, Christine Quinn. She is a Hillary Clinton supporter. Great to see both of you.

CHRISTINE QUINN, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Thank you.

CAMEROTA: Christine, let's talk about whether or not there's some irony here, where Hillary Clinton says, "I would like to be talking about my bright vision for the future and my plans, but I can't, because I have to talk about Donald Trump's dark character and dark vision for the future."

QUINN: I mean, I don't think there's any irony or anything of that nature there. I think what the secretary is doing in the six days is making an important part of her closing argument. Reminding Americans what we've seen throughout the course of the primary and throughout the course of the general election and what we have come to know about Donald Trump.

He is a man who attacks women verbally. We've seen that over and over. He is a man who has 12 women alleging that he sexually assaulted them. He's someone who has attacked Mexican Americans.

Go down the whole list. And somebody who has spent decades, decades when the secretary was in public service, decades avoiding and hiding from taxes and then calling Americans stupid.

CAMEROTA: And we've dealt with those, and we know those stories. So basically, what you're saying is it's OK to focus on those negatives rather than a bright vision for the future. You think that's a winning closing argument?

QUINN: I think it's a necessity in this race. Look, I've been a winning and a losing candidate. And she's right. You would rather and I think Corey would say this about most of his candidates. You'd rather be talking about your vision and your future -- future plans for the country or wherever you're running.

But in this case, the threat of Donald Trump, of his discriminatory view, his being a person who is just endorsed by the Ku Klux Klan's newspaper, the threat is so huge.

CAMEROTA: He's denounced.

QUINN: But, nonetheless, if those type of individuals are drawn to that person...

CAMEROTA: You're saying it's important to keep reminding the voters of that?

QUINN: Yes. He is a dangerous person.

CAMEROTA: So that's your closing argument and her closing argument.

QUINN: Part of it. We have six days left.

CAMEROTA: OK. Very good. Let's talk about what it sounds like Donald Trump's closing argument to voters is with six days left. Basically, "I'm going to repeal Obamacare." So he talked about that yesterday. He's talked about it a lot. But he doesn't provide a lot of solutions, particularly for the dozens of millions of people who are already covered, who have insurance. Does he mead in the closing days to be more specific?

COREY LEWANDOWSKI, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: I don't think so. What I think this election is about is about change in Washington. And you have an opportunity right now to have a person who -- you know, many people say Hillary Clinton is the most qualified ever to run for president of the United States. That's under the premise that you want someone who has extensive government experience. I don't think that's where the American people are right now.

So what Donald Trump is laying out is a different vision, which is a vision of, look, the Republicans and Democrats have failed you for 30 years in Washington. The president promised you Obamacare, if you like your doctor, you can keep him. We know that's not the case. People are opening up their premiums right now. Twenty-five percent on average increases, some places over 100 percent increase. That's not what the American people want; that's not what they were promised.

So what he's saying is, give me an opportunity to go and change your broken system. And if I can do that for you, you'll be better off. That is a positive vision for America. And right now, what you see is you could have a reason to vote against somebody or you can actually have a reason to vote for somebody. What he's doing is laying out his reason to vote for him.

CAMEROTA: A couple things. He didn't mention the subsidies that will take care of something like 85 percent of those premium rises. That's important for people to know so that they're not panicked.

But, next, he also said he would convene a special session of Congress to get this accomplished. Congress will be in session. Should voters be concerned that he doesn't exactly know how the branches of government work?

QUINN: Nonetheless, the date of the election.

LEWANDOWSKI: I think -- I think what you have to remember is, sure, there's still -- there's like 7 million people that don't qualify for the subsidies still that are going to be on Obamacare. That's a massive amount of people. And even the people who don't qualify for the subsidies are going to see these massive increases in their premiums. So what you do, again...

CAMEROTA: Does he know enough about the specifics of Congress and other things? LEWANDOWSKI: Absolutely he does. But what Hillary Clinton doesn't want to talk about, she doesn't want to talk about Clinton Inc. She doesn't want to talk about the Clinton Foundation.

And what we saw today in the ABC/"Wall Street Journal" poll, for the first time is her honest and trustworthy numbers are down another 7 points in a week. That's real concerning when she is prosecuting a case....

CAMEROTA: Understand.

LEWANDOWSKI: ... against the FBI and not saying what she wants...

CAMEROTA: Their daily tracking poll could be concerning for Hillary Clinton.

QUINN: What Corey just said Americans really need to listen to, because when asked if Donald Trump owed the American public specifics about what he was going to do, the answer was no. The answer was no because he doesn't have any. He doesn't have any specifics. And we've seen with not knowing Congress is in session, giving out wrong dates of the election by a significant number, not just a day or two, the end of November. I think most Americans know that's not the case. Over and over has shown us he's making it up as he goes along.

And change, it can be a great thing. But if you go from a lane where you're following the road and you know where you're going, to a change where you switch lanes, get off the wrong exit and are entirely lost, that's bad change.

This would be change to a man who has no plans, doesn't understand how to get things done in a governmental setting, has run a business that we're questioning how well he ran it, because he won't show his taxes...

CAMEROTA: I want to stop you...

QUINN: ... and someone who has policies against women. That's not good change.

CAMEROTA: I want to stop you there about his business. Because there's this new reporting from "Newsweek." We just interviewed the reporter. About, you know, it's interesting that there may be another e-mail scandal, but this one on Donald Trump's side. "Newsweek" found that, over the course of decades, Donald Trump's companies have systematically destroyed or hidden thousands of e-mails, digital records and paper documents demanded in official proceedings.