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New Day
Roy Moore Still Not Conceding In Alabama Senate Race; Jones And Goodell Bury The Hatchet; Trump Voters React To Roy Moore Defeat. Aired 7:30-8a ET
Aired December 14, 2017 - 07:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[07:30:00] STEPHEN MOORE, CNN SENIOR ECONOMICS ANALYST, FORMER SENIOR ECONOMIC ADVISER, TRUMP CAMPAIGN: People like Bob Krugman (ph) and Larry Summers saying that two percent is the top we can get.
And my point is we are already growing a lot faster than that.
CHRIS CUOMO, CNN ANCHOR: Do you both agree that Trump is responsible for the economic growth right now and the stock market right now?
Anthony, do you share that, that this is because of Trump?
ANTHONY CHAN, MANAGING DIRECTOR AND CHIEF ECONOMIST, CHASE: Well, when you look at the unemployment rate at the peak of the global financial crisis it was 10 percent.
CUOMO: Right.
CHAN: And when you look at what the unemployment rate was when Donald Trump -- President Trump came into office it was in the mid -- almost four and a half percent.
CUOMO: Yes.
CHAN: So the unemployment rate has been moving in the right direction and that's why the stock market is going up.
Has this president contributed toward it? Of course, he has. But we cannot ignore the fact that when the president came in, the unemployment rate was below five percent, down from 10 percent. So all that has also contributed to the equity market.
Both presidents have helped. We cannot ignore history just because in the last nine months the stock market has gone up. It's a cumulative process of all this that's been happening in the last couple of years.
CUOMO: And if people want, they can do a quick Google search and look at job growth month-over-month, year-over-year. So you can see how it's been growing each month since Trump has been in, and you can look how it was growing in the one and two years before him. You can make your own assessment.
Steve, Anthony, thanks to both of you. If I don't speak to you again, Merry Christmas to you and your families.
MOORE: Merry Christmas to you.
CUOMO: All the best for the holidays. Appreciate you, gentlemen.
CHAN: Take care.
CUOMO: Alisyn --
ALISYN CAMEROTA, CNN ANCHOR: OK, Chris,
Democrat Doug Jones pulls off a big upset in Alabama. Is this a blue wave coming to Congress in 2018? That's next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[07:35:27] (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ROY MOORE (R), FORMER CANDIDATE FOR ALABAMA SENATE: We are, indeed, in a struggle to preserve our Republic, our civilization, and our religion, and to set free a suffering humanity, and the battle wages on.
In this race, we have not received the final count to include military and provisional ballots. This has been a very close race and we are awaiting certification by the secretary of state.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CAMEROTA: Well, that's Roy Moore refusing to concede the Alabama Senate race despite Doug Jones' victory. Still, Democrats are celebrating this and they see it as a harbinger for 2018.
Joining us now is Democratic Congresswoman Terri Sewell of Alabama. Congresswoman, good morning, welcome.
REP. TERRI SEWELL (D), ALABAMA: Good morning.
CAMEROTA: Why isn't Roy Moore conceding?
SEWELL: Well, you know, Roy Moore is Roy Moore. He's a known entity in those of -- those of us who've grown up in Alabama.
That's why it's so great that the folks of Alabama have spoken. And they spoke up for decency, they spoke up for integrity, and they voted for character over party, and I'm so excited that they did.
CAMEROTA: He believes that him staying in and refusing to concede, as he says, is a struggle to quote "preserve our republic." That's how important he sees his role in this.
Do you have any fear that what he talks about -- those military ballots that still can come in up to Tuesday of next week -- that they will shift the outcome?
SEWELL: No. I have -- I have utmost confidence that we've won outright and that the secretary of state, as he has said, will certify that the winner of the race was Doug Jones. So -- CAMEROTA: OK.
SEWELL: -- I'm not sure what his posture is about, other than that it keeps him in the limelight and it keeps him relevant for another week.
CAMEROTA: OK, so the African-American vote was huge in Alabama.
SEWELL: Yes.
CAMEROTA: It was one of the main deciding factors in helping Doug Jones win.
So what did you witness? What did you learn there that you and your fellow Democrats hope to apply in 2018?
SEWELL: You know, I think that the real -- the real test is that the stakes were so high in this election that all folks in Alabama, especially minority communities, they really understood that this administration is trying to reverse all the gains that the Obama administration had and that was one -- the message, I think was really key.
And what I really appreciated with -- that Doug did, no matter if he was at a black church or a synagogue or a chamber of commerce, his message was the same. That he preached message of -- a message of unity, not division. That he wanted to come to Washington to bring folks together and to fight for the bread and butter issues that matter to all Alabamians.
You know, I was especially proud of my district. My district over- performed, as you said, and I think that part of that was that we worked really hard on a ground game that included local elected officials and community activists doing the knocking on the doors, doing the persuasions in the churches. It was really a great combination of efforts by the campaign, the DNC, the DSCC. We have so many people to thank.
CAMEROTA: Yes.
SEWELL: I'm especially proud of my Congressional Black Caucus members that came down -- those that had connections to Alabama.
CAMEROTA: Right. So, ground game is always important but are you saying that you think that Democrats have a messaging problem at the moment --
SEWELL: No.
CAMEROTA: -- as you head into 2018? That they haven't -- that they haven't somehow appealed to, you know, the voters that you're talking about. I mean, look, we saw that in the presidential election.
SEWELL: No. I think what I'm saying is that the candidates matter. The candidates that we feel matter, as well as the message that we make matters. And I also think that lesson was learned from Alabama is that
coalition building matters, as well. Clearly, the African-American vote was very important, as was the African-American woman vote very, very important in Alabama.
But so was bringing together a swath of moderate Republicans, suburban women, educated whites. I mean, it was a real nice mix of coalition that really gave Doug the win that he -- that we enjoy.
CAMEROTA: All right. And, Congresswoman, I want to ask you about this #MeToo moment that we're in -- the sexual harassment that seems to be sweeping the country at the moment -- at least awareness of it.
Are you one of the lawmakers who is calling for an investigation into the accusations against President Trump?
SEWELL: Listen, President Trump is no different than anyone else. This should -- there should be a culture of zero tolerance when it comes to sexual allegations -- sexual misconduct, as well as sexual harassment. And he is not above the law and I really do believe that an investigation into what his -- the allegations that are against him should be the same as any other politician.
[07:40:01] So, I think that that's important -- that's important.
CAMEROTA: So you'd like to see a congressional investigation into things that happened obviously before he was president? Some of these stretch back years -- a couple of years, some of them stretch back decades. But you're calling -- you're one of the people who are calling for an investigation?
SEWELL: I think that it's important that we send a message to the world that Congress, politicians, the president -- no one's above the law and we should have zero tolerance when it comes to sexual misconduct in America.
CAMEROTA: Congresswoman, were you part of this closed-door meeting in Washington where an Ohio congresswoman, Marcy Kaptur, stunned colleagues, apparently, by suggesting that many members of Congress -- women -- dress inappropriately and that is quote "an invitation" to being harassed?
SEWELL: I was not --
CAMEROTA: Did you hear that?
SEWELL: I was not in that closed-door meeting. I was in Alabama on the ground working really hard for this election, so I did -- I was not there.
But here's what I know. I know that there should be zero tolerance. I believe that, you know -- that provocative dressing by anyone is not the same as -- does not give an invitation to men to harass women.
So I really -- you know, I wasn't there when Marsha (sic) -- when Marcy made that statement, but I don't agree with it. CAMEROTA: And I should very quickly just read that she has now amended that statement.
She says, "Under no circumstances is it the victim's fault if they are harassed in any way. I shared the stories from my time here in the context of the "Me Too" legislation and how we can elevate the decorum and the dress code to protect women from what is a pervasive problem here and in society at large."
Congresswoman Sewell, thank you very much for being here --
SEWELL: Thank you.
CAMEROTA: -- with us on NEW DAY -- Chris.
SEWELL: Thanks.
CUOMO: All right, sports news. Two NFL heavyweights finally make nice. Details in the "Bleacher Report," next.
CAMEROTA: Also, our Anderson Cooper keeping up with Kelly Ripa -- teaming up with her, as well, to honor the top 10 CNN heroes in the 2017 CNN Hero of the Year.
Here is a little preview.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: These are everyday heroes. They inspire and change lives every day.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We want to make sure that they make better choices when it comes to violence.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: When you lose your child the love doesn't go away. It has to find a place. How lucky that I found a place to put that love.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They are truly what it means to be a hero.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It is people helping people the best way we know how.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: When they see me they always feel happy.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Just give them a chance. They can do anything you ask them to do.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This Sunday night, CNN presents a very special live event.
ANDERSON COOPER, HOST, "CNN HEROES: AN ALL-STAR TRIBUTE": Hey, I'm Anderson Cooper.
KELLY RIPA, HOST, "CNN HEROES: AN ALL-STAR TRIBUTE": And I'm Kelly Ripa. COOPER: Join us live for "CNN HEROES: AN ALL-STAR TRIBUTE."
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: "CNN HEROES: AN ALL-STAR TRIBUTE," live Sunday at 8:00 p.m. on CNN.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[07:46:41] CUOMO: It looks like the feud between Cowboys' owner Jerry Jones and NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell is over.
Coy Wire has more in the "Bleacher Report." You buy this, baldy?
COY WIRE, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: I don't know. We'll talk about it after this, Chris.
This "Bleacher Report" is presented by the new 2018 Ford F-150.
Jerry Jones told me that he has concerns about extending Commissioner Goodell's contract. This was about a month ago. Many wondered how a perceived feud between the two of the league's most powerful men would end.
At yesterday's owner's meeting they say they're all good -- listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ROGER GOODELL, COMMISSIONER, NATIONAL FOOTBALL LEAGUE: My relationship with Jerry has been great. I -- we don't always agree and I'm not paid to agree and he's not paid to agree with me. I think that's, again, what the strength of our league is.
JERRY JONES, OWNER, DALLAS COWBOYS: I know how much Roger Goodell loves the National Football League, and he should love it even more after -- right now.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WIRE: And according to reports, the commissioner signed a new deal -- five years worth a reported $200 million if he hits all of his incentives. To put that in perspective that'd be $40 million a year, when this year's highest-paid quarterback in the league, Matthew Stafford of the Lions, gets $27 million.
Back to you.
CAMEROTA: That is an interesting, somewhat sickening, perspective.
Coy, do you have anything to say about Chris' hair?
WIRE: Chris' hair?
CAMEROTA: Yes.
WIRE: Always. I mean, he's my hair idol. Whoa -- he made it dance like the -- did you just make your hair twerk on national T.V.?
CUOMO: I even have muscles in my hair. Even my scalp is strong, Coy.
WIRE: Hey, I --
CUOMO: Even my scalp is strong.
WIRE: I fawn over your Instagram videos of you training. I've never seen the hair workouts but clearly, I need to get on that regimen.
CUOMO: You're too good looking to have a full head of hair. I keep telling you that. You'd be distracting.
CAMEROTA: You don't want it to be obscuring anything.
Bye, Coy. That's just cutting him off.
CAMEROTA: All right. The Alabama Senate race is over but Roy Moore refuses to concede. So, how do Trump voters in Alabama feel today about what happened with Roy Moore?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JIMMY DOZIER, VOTED FOR DONALD TRUMP AND CONTINUES TO SUPPORT HIM: I'm glad he didn't win because Doug Jones is going to be there for two years, then he'll be gone.
CAMEROTA: Then you think a Republican will be back?
DOZIER: Oh, they'll be back. They could've run a three-legged dog against Roy Moore and they would've won, you know.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CAMEROTA: My latest conversation with a panel of Trump voters, next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[07:52:44] CAMEROTA: For the past two and a half years we've been gathering voters from around the country and putting together panels to get their take on President Trump, Congress, and the state of the country. It's time for the next one.
In light of the controversial Alabama Senate race, I sat down with six Trump voters, three of whom are from Alabama, to see how they feel today about Roy Moore, his accusers, and what all of this means for President Trump.
Here's our latest "Pulse of the People."
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CAMEROTA: How many of you are from Alabama? Three of you. How many of you three voted for Roy Moore? None of you voted for Roy Moore.
Jimmy, let me start with you. Lifelong Republican -- DOZIER: Yes.
CAMEROTA: Why didn't you vote for Roy Moore?
DOZIER: He's all about Roy Moore, he's not about the people. He's not a Republican, he's a radical.
He didn't win and I'm glad he didn't win because Doug Jones is going to be there two years, then he'll be gone.
CAMEROTA: Then you think a Republican will be back?
DOZIER: Oh, they'll be back. They could've run a three-legged dog against Roy Moore and they would've won, you know.
CAMEROTA: Steve, why didn't you vote for Roy Moore?
STEVE SKIPPER, VOTED FOR DONALD TRUMP AND NOW REGRETS IT: The Steve Bannon thing, the race issue and the racism issue. That's a very strong issue for our people. He's not the kind of person that you want to be around when it comes to a particular thing about racism.
CAMEROTA: You think he's a racist?
SKIPPER: Yes. I think he's obviously, a racist.
CAMEROTA: Kim, you canvassed --
KIM DOWDLE, VOTED FOR DONALD TRUMP AND CONTINUES TO SUPPORT HIM: (INAUDIBLE).
CAMEROTA: -- for Doug Jones though you are a Republican --
DOWDLE: Yes.
CAMEROTA: -- and a strong supporter of Donald Trump. And how are you feeling today that Doug Jones --
DOWDLE: Elated. I am elated. I can't even contain it.
CAMEROTA: Why didn't you support Roy Moore?
DOWDLE: He represents hatred.
CAMEROTA: How so?
DOWDLE: He hides behind God like a body shield. He uses God as a body shield.
Then I started doing some research with the women and then I fell to my knees.
CAMEROTA: Because you believed them.
DOWDLE: I do believe them. I'm a survivor of rape and I watched them -- I didn't -- I don't even
know what they said, to this day. I've never heard anything they've said, I just watched them. They are telling the truth.
CAMEROTA: How many of you believed Roy Moore's accusers?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't know.
[07:55:02] CAMEROTA: So, one of you strongly believed them.
Saudia, why do you not know?
SAUDIA ALLY, VOTED FOR DONALD TRUMP AND REGRETS IT: Being a female, if something ever happened to me in any kind of way and I didn't speak out about it, or file a complaint, or go to the police immediately or within a certain time period, I have a hard time 30, 40 years later. I would have brought attention or light to it far sooner.
DOWDLE: Yes. We all would have done something until it happens, yes. And then, you have no idea what you would do.
So, where'd you grow up, Saudia?
ALLY: I grew up in New York.
DOWDLE: OK. I grew up in the south.
CAMEROTA: And what does that mean?
DOWDLE: So, New York -- you're a little more vocal actually, and you actually have a little more right to be vocal here.
In the south -- how shall we say this? How shall we say this?
SKIPPER: Keep it down home, cuz.
DOWDLE: And he gets it.
CAMEROTA: What does keep it down home, cuz, mean?
SKIPPER: It means keep your mouth shut --
DOWDLE: Shut up.
SKIPPER: -- and go on with your business.
DOWDLE: It means shut up. You don't understand. So, woulda, coulda, shoulda.
ALLY: I understand. I just -- not that I need proof. Don't get me wrong, I would always side with defending women.
CAMEROTA: Kim is saying that you -- but you're not supporting the women.
DOWDLE: You're not. As a matter of fact -- ALLY: Absolutely, I am.
DOWDLE: No, you're not because you aren't in the position they're in.
SKIPPER: Every individual doesn't react to the same situation the same way, so --
CAMEROTA: Yes, but there were eight women at -- who accused him, so did that hold any weight that there -- that there wasn't just one individual or two, there were eight who came forward with stories of being a teenager and either being approached, or asked out, or assaulted, or molested?
SKIPPER: You're looking at an accusation.
DOWDLE: True.
SKIPPER: You're not looking at something that's just morally wrong, we're looking at something that's legally wrong. And at the same time, if it's legally wrong you need evidence, not just an accusation. We shouldn't live in a society where an accusation makes you guilty.
DOWDLE: These young ladies told their parents and their parents basically told them to shut up.
CAMEROTA: They did tell people at the time. They didn't go to the police but --
DOWDLE: They told a lot of people.
CAMEROTA: -- they did tell friends, they told parents --
DOWDLE: Who were they going to go to? He's a judge.
DOZIER: His liars.
DOWDLE: They're not. Their parents hushed them.
CAMEROTA: What could they ever have said? I'm just curious.
DOWDLE: He was the judge.
CAMEROTA: What could they ever have said to make you believe them?
DOZIER: Well, first of all --
DOWDLE: At what time frame --
DOZIER: -- he hadn't done anything to them. They said he asked them out. They didn't say he raped them.
DOWDLE: Whoa, whoa.
CAMEROTA: They said that he -- that she felt that he was going to try to rape her.
DOWDLE: He had her clothes off.
CAMEROTA: That he was trying to force her --
DOZIER: How do you feel like I'm going to try to rape you? Now, that's wrong.
CAMEROTA: If you're ripping someone's shirt off and forcibly kissing them --
DOZIER: No, no.
CAMEROTA: -- and making them -- and in your car --
DOWDLE: He had clothes off.
CAMEROTA: -- that's assault.
DOWDLE: He had his clothes off.
CAMEROTA: You didn't believe the accusers?
DARIUS MAYFIELD, VOTED FOR DONALD TRUMP AND CONTINUES TO SUPPORT HIM: I don't know if I do or I don't.
I don't want to live in a world where people can just start being accused of things and they lose their jobs, they lose their careers. We're in a society now where we just jump to these conclusions and we literally ruin people's lives and nobody thinks about that afterwards.
ALLY: I agree with that.
MAYFIELD: But I don't believe in just accusing people and believing one person or the other because none of us were there.
MIKE BRINDOCK, VOTED FOR DONALD TRUMP AND NOW REGRETS IT: There's too many who came forward, you know. Maybe one or two may lie but when you get a whole bunch of people, you know, I think it's obvious.
It's like Donald Trump, you know.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: True.
BRINDOCK: There's over 15 now here. It keeps going up.
CAMEROTA: OK, how many of you believe the accusers of Donald Trump? A show of hands.
BRINDOCK: I do.
CAMEROTA: OK, three of you believe.
Let me start with you, Mike. Why?
BRINDOCK: There was 15 people come out against Donald Trump, you know. I think that they're telling the truth. He just about admitted it, didn't he, on T.V.? You know, he can condone such things. CAMEROTA: Why are you pooh-poohing this, Jimmy?
DOZIER: Them women just done it to make him look bad, exactly.
CAMEROTA: How do you know that?
BRINDOCK: How do you know?
DOZIER: It's just hearsay. You can tell. You can look at them girls and tell it's hearsay.
CAMEROTA: But how can you just look at women and know that they're lying?
DOWDLE: Right.
DOZIER: Because they're coming out 20 and 30 years later --
DOWDLE: Well, so did the other --
DOZIER: -- saying he hugged me.
BRINDOCK: Look at all the --
DOZIER: They ain't saying you raped me or got me naked. They said he hugged me.
CAMEROTA: Well, some of them are saying that he grabbed them and threw them up against the wall and pressed his body against them.
DOZIER: Like that man said there, accusations, you know. Nobody's proved nothing.
BRINDOCK: See, Donald Trump denies all this and as we all know, he's a liar. So, the other women must be telling the truth.
SKIPPER: That situation is different because we've heard him, the president, on tape admitting. And I think that that is the killer piece of evidence right there.
CAMEROTA: The "ACCESS HOLLYWOOD" tape, Jimmy.
DOZIER: He was talking to that guy like he said, locker-room talk. He didn't know a mic was on. And he --
CAMEROTA: He didn't mean any of that -- he was lying?
DOZIER: Yes, he might of just been talking.
CAMEROTA: So he was bragging, but it was a lie?
DOZIER: Yes.
CAMEROTA: Go ahead, Darius.
MAYFIELD: There's a lot of people in this country that are locked up for no reason. There's a lot of people that things have happened to where people have made things up. And we, especially being a black man, I know it, I see it, I know people it's happened to.
So I'll never rush judgment on anybody. I think everybody's due due process.
CAMEROTA: Do any of you want to see an investigation into President Trump because of these women?
SKIPPER: With that -- with that admission on tape and all of these women, yes. I've been an athlete. That's not common locker-room talk. No, it's not.
MAYFIELD: I come from the other perspective that the whole thing with the locker-room talk -- I mean, listen, as bad as it may be to say, I've heard those things. I've probably said things not like that, but I've heard things that are worse.
BRINDOCK: You know, maybe one or two I might think about it differently, but not when 15 people come against Donald Trump, you know. I think that --
