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President-Elect to Remain Reality Show Executive Producer; Biden on the 2016 Race; Civilians Caught in the Crossfire in Aleppo. Aired 8:30-9 a ET

Aired December 09, 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] CHRIS CUOMO, CNN ANCHOR: This isn't about legal or illegal, is it?

DAVID CHALIAN, CNN POLITICAL DIRECTOR: No. And I'm going with nontroversy is the one I'm going with, Chris. I think it's fascinating. I think this is part of having this totally different kind of person as president with his different experience, that he may keep this on. You - Kellyanne Conway told you guys earlier, this clearly is going under review to some ethics advisers and attorneys. I assume the White House Counsel's Office, once he takes office, will need to make sure that everything is square here as well. But if, indeed, it gets the legal blessing and he stays on with the executive producers, he draws salary from royalties, I think that we'll just have to watch to see if there's any policy making that comes out of the White House that somehow impacts broadcasters in that way and maybe if he's an executive producer there could be a conflict there to discuss. But I don't see this being much of a controversy.

ALISYN CAMEROTA, CNN ANCHOR: Well, I mean, Kellyanne Conway also said, all presidents need a hobby. I mean that was -

CHALIAN: And then she called work his hobby, right?

CAMEROTA: Right.

CUOMO: She was referring to the ability to multitask. And she took a shot at Obama, saying that the president was playing golf all along and he was still able to do his job.

CAMEROTA: President Trump will like golf. We - if there's one thing we know about Donald Trump, is that he loves his golf game. So I don't know if that's the right line of attack.

CHALIAN: Yes, that was odd to me. And notice she didn't rule out the fact that Donald Trump will be playing golf when you asked her about that, Alisyn. So I'm sure we're going to see President Trump on the golf course, just like when he saw President Obama, President Clinton, I guess George W. Bush actually gave it up. But we - that is not unusual. And I'm sure that will continue.

And I can't imagine being the - being Donald Trump and having your name on as an executive producer credit because you created the show, and as Hope Hicks, his spokesperson, said, you know, still has a stake in this. I can't imagine that it's going to be all that much like taxing worktime for Donald Trump.

CUOMO: How - how about Jake Tapper interviewing the vice president. It airs this weekend on the Sunday show. Here's a little taste.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE BIDEN, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: They'd probably be eating me alive. You know, who - who knows what would have happened. But - and I really mean that. I don't know. I mean, right? I learned how to become popular.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CUOMO: He's saying something that I haven't heard echoed in the media a lot lately, especially this latest round of drama about whether or not he'll run in 2020. There is this foregone conclusion that Biden would have beaten Clinton because he's such a better connector with the middle class and he had it all over Bernie. It somewhat ignores some of the problems he would have had as a candidate, right?

CHALIAN: Without a doubt. I really - I don't buy into the theory. First of all, it's very hard to do the counterfactual stuff and come up with a hypothetical scenario. But what we do have is some track record of Joe Biden. He ran for president twice. Both of them were pretty disastrous presidential campaigns. Now, that doesn't say clearly Joe Biden had an appeal with white working - has an appeal with white working class voters. The Scranton guy. That was clearly part of the calculus at the end of the day of this election that made a difference were those voters and perhaps he would have had a better connection with them.

But I think he's right. And, by the way, if Barack Obama, in a recent interview with "The New Yorker" was also saying in today' environment things may have been very different from what he was experiencing in 2008 as a candidate. There's a little bit of truth to what Joe Biden is saying there. He's also, obviously, being very gracious and not trying to, you know, put some more salt in the wounds of Hillary Clinton. There's no doubt about that. He's being a gentleman.

But I think the larger point that Joe Biden made to Jake and has made elsewhere is what - repeating what he said at the convention, which was, these voters, economic anxiety and their concerns about society and how it's moving around them and their fear of that is something that the Democratic Party should not have ignored, and they did.

CAMEROTA: David, you have a crystal ball. Who do you think the leading - who do you think the leading contender is for secretary of state?

CHALIAN: Oh, man, Alisyn, I don't know. Listening to Kellyanne this morning, she tricked through a whole universe of names. Obviously, Mitt Romney is still in contention. That is pretty clear. I am - I don't have any reporting to suggest that there is a superseding top contender. I do think the search has clearly widened and I just think we're going to have to wait until next week.

I will say this, though. After - it is going to be really important because it is the last piece into this cabinet, into the high-profile positions that I think will give us the final sort of assessment to make about how to assess the whole of the cabinet. How he goes on this, especially on the national security side, I think is going to determine what kind of national security. Is it more Mike Flynn or is it more Mattis? I think that's going to be an important character trait of the secretary of state.

CUOMO: And no mention by Kellyanne Conway of Rudy Giuliani in the discussion.

CAMEROTA: I think she did, didn't she?

CHALIAN: She did.

CAMEROTA: I think she did, yes. She - she -

CHALIAN: She ticked him off. She did.

CAMEROTA: That was part of the list.

CUOMO: But not as like, it's come down to - dot, dot, dot.

CHALIAN: That's right.

CUOMO: He was just one of the group.

CAMEROTA: Well, yes.

David, thank you for "The Bottom Line."

CHALIAN: Thanks, guys.

[08:34:55] CUOMO: All right, so the future of safety in America, a wave of road-weary civilians fleeing Aleppo. In this humanitarian crisis, you see the potential for the next generation of those who are so oppressed that extremism may become a vulnerability. We have a report from the battle zone, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CAMEROTA: The humanitarian crisis in Aleppo is getting worse. A wave of civilians trying to flee as Syrian regime forces pound what's left of the city.

CNN's senior international correspondent, Fred Pleitgen, has more on all of the lives caught in the crossfire.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice- over): As the rebels increasingly lost their grip on Aleppo, Syrian armed forces continue to pound the besieged areas, many killed and wounded in the crossfire. We came to this front line crossing just as a man was being evacuated, claiming he was shot by rebels as he tried to flee.

"They shot me as I was running out," he says. "They don't allow anyone to get out. They said, are you going to the regime areas?"

The opposition strongly denies its fighters would harm civilians, but the rebels do acknowledge they won't be able to hold out in Aleppo much longer. And that realization is leading to an avalanche of people trying to flee the rebel districts.

[08:40:07] Syrian troops throwing some bread, but not nearly enough to quell the hunger of the many who have been starving for months.

PLEITGEN (on camera): The Syrian military has made major advances once again in the past 24 hours, and we can see that as the army moves forward, more and more people are coming out of those former besieged areas.

PLEITGEN (voice-over): Many of those fleeing, families with small children, struggling to carry the few belongings they were able to take. Many overpowered by emotions. Some with barely enough strength to walk, others too frail to walk at all.

The Syrian army has amassed a massive force at this front line. The local commander with a clear message to the rebels.

"Look at this scene," he says. "Do this for your families. Surrender yourselves and drop your arms. Come back to the country and hopefully our leadership will forgive."

But for now, the fight goes on. This family, one of the many to cross into government-controlled territory, now in safety, but still in agony.

"Things used to be good," this elderly woman said. "May God act out revenge on those who brought us these difficult circumstances and may God protect us."

And so they walk on, weak and traumatized, moving into an uncertain future.

Fred Pleitgen, CNN, Aleppo.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CAMEROTA: It's just overwhelming. I mean to see babies being carried in arms, to see grandmothers, it's just all so heart-wrenching.

CUOMO: Right. And the suggestion is not that these are bad people, they will become terrorists. But what we've seen time and time again, and, you know, many of us in this business have gone and lived and experiences, when people have no opportunity, they are constantly in fear and they are oppressed by where they are, extremism can exploit those conditions to turn people to be sympathetic to their cause by saying, we're the only ones who are here for you. And that's being done right now by ISIS and its affiliates to that population that is fleeing. And that's why you've got to keep your eye on it and help those people to have a better solution than going to that option.

CAMEROTA: And that's why we have people - CNN has people on the front lines. So we will show you more of that over the weekend and next week.

Meanwhile.

CUOMO: How about five things to know for your new day.

CAMEROTA: Let's do it.

CUOMO: Number one, Donald Trump defending his cabinet picks during a thank you rally last night. This, we can confirm, that the president- elect will remain executive producer of his reality TV show, "Celebrity Apprentice." Controversy, nontroversy, you decide.

CAMEROTA: Space pioneer and longtime Senator John Glenn died Thursday in Ohio at the age of 95. Glenn became the first American to orbit the earth in 1962.

CUOMO: Dramatic testimony in day two of the Dylann Roof murder trial. Jurors shown disturbing images of the aftermath of the Charleston church massacre, including video of the suspect arriving and leaving the church moments after allegedly killing nine people.

CAMEROTA: Police reports in Oakland show officers visited the site of last week's deadly warehouse fire several times over the past couple of years and would have seen the hazards. The fire chief told CNN it is unclear if safety inspectors checked the building.

CUOMO: Panda twins born here in the U.S. They're having a tough time adjusting to life in China, even though that's much closer to the indigenous lands that they have. They're said to have had trouble understanding their trainers. This is about language, not location.

CAMEROTA: These guys have trainers?

CUOMO: And about the food there. Supposedly there's being an adjustment. Apparently they really miss American biscuits.

CAMEROTA: So do i?

CUOMO: Who wouldn't, right?

CAMEROTA: They're adorable.

CUOMO: Until -

CAMEROTA: Yes.

CUOMO: They grow up -

CAMEROTA: No, they don't.

CUOMO: And then they are wild animals -

CAMEROTA: No, they're not.

CUOMO: That will eat your face.

CAMEROTA: No, they won't. They are stuffed animals zapped to life.

CUOMO: They will use you like a piece of bamboo.

CAMEROTA: No, they won't. You hug them. You just hug them.

CUOMO: No.

CAMEROTA: Yes.

CUOMO: Ordinary people doing extraordinary things. That's what CNN Heroes are all about. We're honoring ten of them this weekend. We've got our man, Anderson Cooper, joining us with a big preview. Look at him, arms crossed. Looks like -

CAMEROTA: Our own huggable panda.

CUOMO: Looks like the Ajax man over there. He's no joke.

CAMEROTA: Panderson Cooper, come out here.

CUOMO: Next.

I'm going to hug you up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[08:47:59] CAMEROTA: This Sunday, ten extraordinary people will be honored at the tenth annual "CNN Heroes: All-Star Tribute." It's a chance to share stories from around the world of everyday citizens making a difference. The live show will be hosted by our own Anderson Cooper -

CUOMO: Wow.

CAMEROTA: And a special guest, who's trying to horn in on his glory.

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR, "AC360": No.

CUOMO: What?

CAMEROTA: Kelly Ripa.

COOPER: No, I'm all - I'm thrilled.

CAMEROTA: Are you thrilled?

COOPER: Yes, I am.

CUOMO: Controversy?

COOPER: No controversy. It's a nontroversy, as you said.

CUOMO: Ah.

COOPER: I'd never heard that term before. I'm going to use it.

CAMEROTA: So why are you two pairing up this year, just for fun?

COOPER: Who wouldn't want to pair up with Kelly Ripa.

CAMEROTA: I know.

COOPER: So, yes, it's our 10th anniversary and Kelly's been a great friend to the show and she's - she's been involved in the Heroes really from the beginning. So I'm so excited to hang out with her.

CUOMO: Everybody loves the franchise. There's a little bit of an extension that we'll get to see tonight.

COOPER: That's right.

CUOMO: Tell us about what the special is tonight.

COOPER: Right. Tonight there's a special, we're calling them super heroes. They're five former CNN Heroes of the Year who were kind of taking a look back to see how becoming CNN Hero of the Year has changed their life, changed their work. And we're actually airing this special tonight at 9:00. And actually people can vote to decide who should be the super hero out of these five former CNN Heroes of the year and they will get an additional $50,000 -

CAMEROTA: A cake and tights (ph).

COOPER: No, to help their work.

CAMEROTA: Got it.

COOPER: Yes.

CAMEROTA: For the super hero. That's great.

COOPER: Yes.

CAMEROTA: And so for the "CNN Heroes," the live broadcast on Sunday night -

COOPER: Right.

CAMEROTA: Tell us about some of the things that these folks do.

COOPER: I mean, you know, that's - it's - it's - the amazing thing about it is, these are people who - they don't have access to power, they don't have access to money, and yet they are people who decide to stand up and see a need and do something to help their communities. And so I think, you know, we try not to focus on the - on any one because any one of them, frankly, could be CNN Hero of the Year. And it's totally still up for viewers. Viewers can still vote for it.

CAMEROTA: Oh, is that right?

COOPER: Yes.

CAMEROTA: Voting's still open? COOPER: Voting is still open.

CUOMO: What do you think Kelly Ripa will add as a dimension to your anchoring of this?

COOPER: I think Kelly will be the charming, smart, funny person that she always is and she will draw me out of myself.

[08:50:02] CUOMO: She will emotionally react because she is an (INAUDIBLE) -

COOPER: She's like you.

CUOMO: Where as you like to kind of keep it all in.

CAMEROTA: You're (INAUDIBLE).

COOPER: I'm an introvert. She's an extrovert.

CUOMO: She is.

CAMEROTA: Right.

COOPER: Yes. Yes.

CAMEROTA: That and she's super fun and adorable.

COOPER: Yes. She is the yin to my yang. Or perhaps she's the yang to my yin, I'm not sure. But, one of those.

CUOMO: Well, that's a deeper discussion. Might be worthy of having. Maybe another special.

COOPER: Might be a worthy discussion (ph).

CAMEROTA: But - but, I mean, we were just showing a little bit of the video. So children with - people - here's are some of the things that some of the heroes have taken on. Children with disabilities, health care for people living in remote villages, assistance for young survivors of war, care for elderly dogs, care for the elderly. I mean everything that you can imagine.

COOPER: Yes.

CAMEROTA: And when we've met for some of them here, it's - they're - they're so like jaw dropping because they just do it out of - they're driven. You know, they're (INAUDIBLE).

COOPER: Right. I mean they never expect to get sort of this incredible global attention that CNN can give them. And, you know, it really helps their work. It's great to be able to - you know, in this special tonight, to be able to go back and look at, you know, Liz McCartney (ph) in New Orleans, who started in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, helping people build houses. She's still working in New Orleans. Her organization has gotten bigger than ever before. You know, she's one of the people who could potentially win the super hero award. CUOMO: And you've done, in this series, you heroize (ph) ordinary

people doing the extraordinary.

COOPER: And you invent new words. You heroize.

CUOMO: That's a word.

COOPER: Is it really?

CUOMO: Yes. I'd bet your breakfast on it.

CAMEROTA: Are you sure?

COOPER: Heroize.

CUOMO: Yes.

COOPER: It's making into a hero?

CUOMO: Yes, absolutely. Yes.

COOPER: We heroize them.

CUOMO: No, it's making into an eggplant, but I'm using it out of context here.

And but one of the beautiful messages for all of us when we watch it is, this person who's doing this is doing it not because they have some special talents that -

COOPER: Right. Yes.

CUOMO: They're doing it because they wanted to and they put everything into it.

COOPER: And this is something - right, any of us could do if we were, you know, so motivated as these people are. I mean these are people who - they don't have - it's not necessarily a special talent that they have, but they are just committed to helping other people. It's extraordinary.

CUOMO: And the winner is?

COOPER: It's up to our viewers. We shall see.

CUOMO: Do you know right now?

CAMEROTA: Why is it -

COOPER: No, I don't know. We don't - I don't know until we -

CAMEROTA: They are still voting. It's open.

CUOMO: He giggles a lot. They say that's a sign of deception.

CAMEROTA: Is that right? COOPER: It is that right? It is.

CAMEROTA: Well - be sure to catch Anderson's special "CNN Superhero: Above and Beyond." That's tonight -

COOPER: Oh, it's tonight at 10:00. I thought it was 9:00. It's at 10:00 p.m.

CAMEROTA: Oh, 10:00 p.m. OK, I'm glad we clarified that, Anderson.

COOPER: Yes.

CUOMO: That's why we have the graphic.

CAMEROTA: All right. And do not miss the tenth annual CNN Heroes. Now did you think it was the 9th annual CNN -

COOPER: No, I know it was the 10th annual.

CAMEROTA: Tenth annual.

COOPER: That's why we brought out the big guns, Kelly Ripa.

CUOMO: Hey, there they are. A good-looking couple.

CAMEROTA: Got it. Very. And that will be live this Sunday at 8:00 p.m. and we'll leave you with a quick look -

COOPER: It's live this year.

CAMEROTA: It is live. You're learning a lot from this segment right now.

COOPER: Live. Anything could happen.

CAMEROTA: Here's a look at the nominees.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They are the kind and the caring. They are the strong and the brave. They are the ones who see a need, fill a void, make a difference.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm trying to give them all the opportunities that they deserve.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This has become my life. I don't ever want to do anything else.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They don't do it for themselves, they do it for all the rest of us. They are a reminder of what's good in this world and what it truly means to be a hero.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We give them the foundation from which they can thrive. It's a feeling of family.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We have transformed the lives of thousands of children.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This Sunday night, CNN presents a very special live event. The tenth annual "CNN Heroes: All-Star Tribute.

COOPER: Tonight we're gathered to celebrate extraordinary men and women who highlight the best of what humanity has to offer.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Join host Anderson Cooper and special co-host Kelly Ripa, as we honor ten extraordinary people. The tenth annual "CNN Heroes: All-Star Tribute, live Sunday night at 8:00 on CNN.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[08:57:42] CUOMO: The president-elect has been a golden goose for late-night comedians. Here are some of the big punch lines from last night.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JIMMY KIMMEL, "JIMMY KIMMEL LIVE": Hillary Clinton made her first public appearance on Capitol Hill since that whole election thing today. She was in town to honor outgoing Nevada Senator Harry Reid, and what an impression she made. She showed up in black leather from head to toe, like Olivia Newton John in the final scene of "Grease."

SETH MEYERS, "LATE NIGHT WITH SETH MEYERS": Trump adviser Kellyanne Conway told reporters today that Donald Trump is a huge Elton John fan. That can be cured, said Mike Pence.

STEPHEN COLBERT, "THE LATE SHOW WITH STEPHEN COLBERT": We are 43 days from the inauguration and Donald Trump continues to fill out his cabinet. Watching Trump pick these people is like watching your nanna get a sponge bath. You know it has to be done, but it's still upsetting.

CONAN O'BRIEN, "CONAN": For his secretary of labor, President-elect Trump has picked an executive from the fast food restaurants Carl's Jr. and Hardee's. That's true. That's who he picked! Carl's Jr.'s and Hardee's! Yes. Afterwards Trump admitted he made the choice on an empty stomach.

MEYERS: Donald Trump, this weekend, will give his first Sunday morning news interview since the election. And it's a big sacrifice for him because Sunday morning is usually when he tweets about "Saturday Night Live."

JIMMY FALLON, "THE TONIGHT SHOW STARRING JIMMY FALLON": So Leonardo DiCaprio met with Trump last night to talk about the environment. He even handed Trump a copy of his environmental documentary "Before the Flood." If you haven't seen the film yet, you can pick up a copy in the dumpster behind Trump Tower. I can't wait to watch this fall into my trash can.

(END VIDEO CLIP) CUOMO: I can't wait to watch this fall into my trash can. That's funny.

CAMEROTA: A lot of that was funny. You should do late nights live on your show. Have you thought out that?

COOPER: I like the segment, yes.

CAMEROTA: Yes.

CUOMO: I like "The RidicuList" -

COOPER: Because you don't have to stay up late.

CUOMO: "The RidicuList" doesn't happen the way it used to. Why?

COOPER: We just - you know, we're bringing it back. We're going to bring it back.

CAMEROTA: Are you?

COOPER: Yes. Yes.

CUOMO: I actually watch your show.

COOPER: Yes, I appreciate that.

CUOMO: You do not return the favor.

CAMEROTA: Right.

COOPER: Well, I - it's early in the morning. I DVR you.

CUOMO: You have called me by the wrong name three times when you've been on the show.

COOPER: Listen, Bob, I -

CUOMO: See, four times.

CAMEROTA: So, "The RidicuList," would you ever name colleagues on there?

COOPER: No, we're bringing it back. No, of course not.

CAMEROTA: No, we're off. Of course not.

COOPER: Right.

[09:00:01] CAMEROTA: Even if Chris said something completely (INAUDIBLE).

COOPER: If I knew the names of my colleagues, perhaps.

CAMEROTA: Then - got it. Got it.

Well, here's one, Carol Costello. Does that ring a bell?

COOPER: Of course, Carol Costello.

CAMEROTA: Everybody knows her.

COOPER: Yes.

CAMEROTA: Time for "Newsroom" with Carol Costello.

CUOMO: Who would never be on "The RidicuList."

COOPER: No.