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New Day
Cosby Found Guilty; Trump Tweets about Comey and Korea; NFL Holds Draft; Trump Silent on Racial Discrimination. Aired 6:30-7a ET
Aired April 27, 2018 - 06:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[06:32:00] ALISYN CAMEROTA, CNN ANCHOR: Disgraced comedian Bill Cosby cursed at the lead prosecutor after being convicted on three counts of aggravated indecent assault. Cosby now faces up to 30 years in prison.
CNN's Jean Casarez was in the courtroom. Here's how it all went down.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
GLORIA ALLRED: Bill Cosby, three words for you, guilty --
WOMEN: Guilty, guilty.
JEAN CASAREZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): In a dramatic fall from grace, a jury finding Bill Cosby guilty of all three counts of aggravated indecent assault for drugging and sexually assaulting Andrea Constand 14 years ago. The courtroom erupting after the verdict. Some of Cosby's accusers leaving the room overcome with emotion.
LILI BERNARD, COSBY ACCUSER: I was also just shocked. I didn't expect this kind of verdict. The jury has restored my faith in humanity.
CASAREZ: The 80-year-old disgraced comedian, who has been accused of sexual misconduct by more than 50 women, appeared emotionless after the verdict, but broke his silence when prosecutors asked the judge to revoke his $1 million bail, claiming he is a flight risk because of his access to a private plane. Cosby, visibly upset, standing up and shouting, he doesn't have a plane, you asshole. The judge ultimately declining the prosecutor's request, but telling Cosby he may be fitted with a GPS tracker. Cosby's legal team vowing to appeal the conviction, which came after a mistrial last year.
TOM MESEREAU, COSBY'S ATTORNEY: We are very disappointed by the verdict. We don't think Mr. Cosby's guilty of anything. And the fight is not over. Thank you.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Are you putting up (ph) appeal, sir?
MESEREAU: Yes.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.
MESEREAU: Yes. Very strongly. CASAREZ: A Cosby spokesman denouncing the verdict saying, Mr. Cosby's
spirits are up. They're high. He knows he's not guilty and we feel that these jurors got it wrong.
After the ruling, Montgomery County district attorney praising Constand for agreeing to testify in this retrial.
KEVIN STEELE, MONTGOMERY COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY: She showed courage. She stepped up. She went forward. And -- and -- and we got to the right result.
We have shown from our record that money and power or who you are will not stop us from a criminal investigation or prosecuting a case.
CASAREZ: Five other women also testified that Cosby drugged and assaulted them decades ago. Cosby is the first powerful man to be convicted since the Me Too movement began.
VICTORIA VALENITINO, COSBY ACCUSER: We are vindicated. We are validated. And we are now part of the tsunami of women's power and justice. We are not shutting up and we're not going away. Get over it.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CASAREZ: And Bill Cosby does remain in his home right here in Montgomery County. This morning, his wife, Camille, is by his side. The judge did order that he is to remain in that home. And if he wants to go out of state, he will have to get that ankle monitor.
[06:35:06] Chris, sentencing should take place right here at the courthouse in 60 to 90 days.
CUOMO: All right, Jean, thank you very much. That is a very big deal.
Another very big deal, history on the Korean peninsula today. President Trump not tweeting about it yet, even though he legitimately deserves credit. What is he talking about? Nonsense allegations against James Comey. Details, ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CAMEROTA: History unfolding on the Korean peninsula. Leaders of North and South Korea announcing a commitment to end the war and end -- well, and to beginning, I guess, denuclearization. President Trump could get extra credit for the extraordinary moment. But, instead, this morning, he is focusing, at least on Twitter, on James Comey. Here's what he's just tweeted. Is everybody believing what is going on? James Comey cannot define what a leak is. He illegally leaked classified information, in all caps, but doesn't understand what he did or how serious it is. He lied all over the place to cover it up. He's either very sick or very dumb. Remember sailor (ph)!
[06:40:11] Joining us now are CNN political analysts John Avlon and Brian Karem.
Great to have you guys. BRIAN KAREM, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: Great to see you.
CAMEROTA: What does remember sailor mean, John Avlon?
JOHN AVLON, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: So it appears to be a reference to a -- a Navy ship and who took a picture of a submarine inappropriately named Kristian Saucier, who was mentioned by Mike Pence in a presidential debate. The pardon appears to be largely political and the controversy around it was that this sailor was being punished much more aggressively for sins that were comparatively small to what Hillary Clinton got -- got away scott free with during the campaign.
CAMEROTA: OK. And so all of that --
AVLON: Or it's the movie "Sailor Moon," but that's unlikely.
CAMEROTA: And so why is all that taking precedence over this historic moment in the -- on the Korean peninsula?
AVLON: Because the president can't stop obsessing about petty politics. Comparatively small ball politics.
This is an historic moment in the Korean peninsula today, being brought about, in part -- large part by the president's own actions. His tough talk. His, you know -- and instead of focusing on that, he can't help but obsess over domestic politics and take swipes at folks. And it's -- it's -- it diminishes the office and it diminishes his own accomplishment.
CUOMO: I've got to tell you, Brian, I'm surprised by this one. I am. Because the --
KAREM: Hello, sailor.
CUOMO: I know. Geez, I haven't been called that in a long time.
KAREM: Right.
CAMEROTA: Oh, my goodness.
CUOMO: The -- it makes me feel that he is not absorbing the gravity of what's going on in Korea, because ordinarily he will jump at a positive about himself.
But let just put the tweet back up for a second, Brian, and you check me on this quick check, all right?
KAREM: Yes.
CUOMO: Is everybody believing what's going on? You know, he means a question mark after that, but I don't care about any of that.
KAREM: Right.
CUOMO: James Comey can't define what a leak is. All right, that's demonstrably false. He spent a lot of time with Anderson Cooper at the town hall defining exactly what he considers a leak.
KAREM: A leak, right.
CUOMO: OK. He illegally leaked. All right, we don't know that. There's an IG inspection right now going into it. Classified information, all caps. Two points on that.
KAREM: Demonstrated -- yes.
CUOMO: One, Comey was in charge of what would be classified or not in that regard.
KAREM: Right.
CUOMO: And, two, the IG, to our knowledge, is not looking into the mishandling of classified information.
And then you get the idea of having the sailor thing there, which seems to suggest what John is saying, which is, Donald Trump will pardon something just to make a political point.
KAREM: Well, and, remember earlier this week I tried to hold him to that too. If there are people that are indicted in the Comey -- I'm sorry, in the -- in the current investigation by Mueller, and if they don't reach him but they are people that are indicted, is he going to support the rule of law and not do that? And he -- and Sarah Huckabee Sanders said, yes, he would support the rule of law. That's questionable.
As far as the leak goes, look, between you and me, Comey gave it to you, me and the rest of the world. Comey gave that to a third party. You could class -- that -- that's a -- that's a leak from where I come from.
CAMEROTA: Yes.
CUOMO: It's a leak.
KAREM: But is it -- is it classified information? Demonstrably, no. And the illegal aspect of it, and lying all over the place, I get the feeling, again, he got up this morning, had his normal morning activities and tweeted this out without even bothering to look to see that he actually did something presidential and --
CAMEROTA: Well, you're going to -- about to stand corrected. The president --
CUOMO: He's listening to Karem.
KAREM: Oh, did he just do it?
CAMEROTA: Yes, he just did it. He must be watching our show.
Good morning, Mr. President.
KAREM: Good morning. CAMEROTA: After a furious year of missile launches and nuclear
testing, a historic meeting between North and South Korea is now take place. Good things are happening, but only time will tell.
OK. I mean that one --
KAREM: So --
CAMEROTA: Perhaps should have, if his maybe aides had an influence, proceed the one about James Comey, but now he is talking about North Korea, John.
KAREM: Well, hello, sailor. We're back in town.
AVLON: Yes. I mean, a little -- a little obliquely, as he sometimes is want to do. But this is something that he and the administration should feel real pride in. We are a long way from wellville on the Korean peninsula. The summit has not yet occurred. But this represhma (ph) between the North and South, you know, 65 years in the making, is a big deal. And the president deserves credit for it. And he should take credit for it. But in statesman-like terms, not simply sort of blurting out the first thing that comes to him.
CUOMO: Final word, Brian Karem.
KAREM: Yes, John makes a great point about a statesman like -- we would like to see the tweeting, you know, die down a little bit more and the statesmanlike like activity pick up a little bit more. But that's not been the case for this presidency, nor do I think it will change. I think we're going to be treated to whatever comes across Donald Trump's mind, whenever it comes across Donald Trump's mind. And that in alone is -- that -- that's scary.
CAMEROTA: All right, Brian Karem, John Avlon, thank you very much for all of the breaking news this morning.
Meanwhile, the NFL draft kicks off in Dallas. Which quarterback was first to come off the board? Details in the "Bleacher Report," next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[06:49:04] CUOMO: Going from a walk-on to a Heisman winner and now a number one draft pick. The legend of Baker Mayfield grew even more last night.
Lindsay Czarniak has more in the "Bleacher Report."
Although in this age of full disclosure by the media, I'm happy the Jets didn't take him. I feel that this is the first draft in a long time that the Jets didn't screw up. Darnold was a good pick. But back to Mr. Mayfield, number one, to Cleveland.
LINDSAY CZARNIAK, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: OK. All right, so you went with the safe choice. Fair enough. There --
CUOMO: I'll take it. With the Jets. I'm surprised they didn't draft, you know, a bunch of --
CZARNIAK: We'll see how it turns out, Cuomo. All right.
There was so much more intrigue, though, Chris, in the seconds leading up to the commissioner announcing the first pick, just because people did not know which quarterback Cleveland was going to choose.
But before he announced Mayfield's name, Roger Goodell, he dealt with a different reaction from the crowd. Goodell walked out with former Dallas Cowboys legend, but it didn't stop that booing that you can hear there in the background.
Meanwhile, the Browns were on the clock. They drafted Baker Mayfield first overall, except Mayfield wasn't in the house. Now, he had opted to not attend the draft and, instead, he wanted to be at home to be able to celebrate with his family. So he watched from Austin.
[06:50:23] The Oklahoma quarterback was one of five quarterbacks, but the way, drafted in the first round. And as we know, that has not happened since the '80s. But look at the reaction there, the happiness. He was so pumped to be there with his family, Alisyn.
CAMEROTA: It sure looked like it.
OK, Lindsay, thank you very much for all of that.
CZARNIAK: Thank you.
CAMEROTA: So, President Trump tweets all the time, as we know, but we have heard nothing from him on several recent incidents, high-profile incidents, of racial discrimination. W. Kamau Bell here next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CUOMO: There have been several public incidents across the United States of black people being discriminated against for doing nothing. They've been forcibly asked to leave a Starbucks, a gym, restaurants. President Trump has been silent on these racial incidents. But here's what he had to say about his party's handling of black issues.
[06:55:15] (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Have Republicans done a bad job ignoring the black community up until now?
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: You know, I think it was just a custom. People don't realize, you know, if you go back to the Civil War, it was the Republicans that really did the thing. Lincoln was a Republican. I mean and somehow it changed over the years. And I will say, I really believe it's changing back. Remember, I was going to get no black folks.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Sure.
TRUMP: I was going to get none. Well, I got a lot. I got a lot of support. (END VIDEO CLIP)
CUOMO: Joining us now is the host of CNN's "United shades of America." W. Kamau Bell is --
CAMEROTA: Who's heavily sighing right now.
CUOMO: His new -- newest season premieres this Sunday.
The president did not get a lot of black votes.
W. KAMAU BELL, CNN HOST, "UNITED SHADES OF AMERICA": Yes.
CUOMO: He only got it on a relative assessment of him being expected to get almost none.
BELL: He's counting Diamond and Silk as a lot of black people.
CUOMO: That's -- that's right.
BELL: Yes. Yes.
CUOMO: Well, there are two there.
BELL: Yes, there's two there. They're very loud and fervent fans.
CAMEROTA: But when he says, and what you just heard him say there on "Fox and Friends," that he thinks it was a custom for Republicans to ignore black people, I guess? And, by the way --
CUOMO: What about Lincoln, Kamau?
CAMEROTA: Did you know that Lincoln was a Republican.
CUOMO: Yes.
BELL: I love when he learned something and he thinks he's the first person to break the news. I'm surprised Fox didn't do, breaking news, Lincoln freed the slaves.
Yes, I -- we all know that. We all know that. We all took, you know, American civics courses in school, in elementary school. We know that the Republican Party freed the enslaved people and then we know that the southern strategy and the dixiecrats and it crossed over in the '60s and George Wallace (ph). And, ah, now we're here. We all know this, you know. Well, I didn't even graduate from college and I know this.
CUOMO: So then you get what is a legitimate area of political concern. You have the African-American vote that is culturally and customarily bundled with Democrats, right? And people will point and say, but where's the progress in those communities where Democrats are in positions of authority? Why do they get the black vote when the situation for black lives in so many aspects is not better despite their allegiance to that party? BELL: Because we have two choices. We don't have a multiparty system.
If we had a multiparty system, then black people might not be with the Democratic Party. But, basically, we have two spoonfulls (ph) of vinegar, and one has a little bit of sugar in it. So, generally, the Democrats do work better with the black community, but it doesn't mean they get an a-plus. It just means that maybe the Republicans get a -- get an F and Democrats get a D plus. You know what I mean? And I'm not here -- I'm not saying that's true. I'm just saying that the case is, is that we only have two -- we only have two legitimate choices.
CAMEROTA: Let's talk about your -- the new season of your show, "United Shades of America."
BELL: Yes. Yes.
CAMEROTA: So you went to the border.
BELL: Yes.
CAMEROTA: You wanted to see what's really going on there, how do people really feel.
BELL: Yes.
CAMEROTA: So we have a little clip of what you discovered when you crossed the border into Mexico, right
BELL: Uh-huh.
CAMEROTA: Let's watch it.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So this is a place where we provide two meals a day, mostly to deportees.
BELL: This is their first sort of welcome back to Mexico?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It really is essentially. We provide food, clothing, (INAUDIBLE) support. This is critical work here on the border.
BELL: Are there people who are coming here who have like been in the states for years?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, we're seeing an increasing number of people who have been living in the United States for a long time who are being deported, in comparison to last year.
BELL: I've read, for some people, they thought their life was set up there. And then suddenly they're deported and they find themselves in this room.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Sometimes almost overnight.
(END VIDEO CLIP) CUOMO: What did you learn?
BELL: I mean a lot of the episode is about this whole idea of the wall that the president has talking about. And what I learned that they -- (INAUDIBLE) -- we talked to people on both sides of the issue. We talked to people in border patrol. We talked to people who live on the border, white people who are not in any way connected to Mexico. We talked to people at the (INAUDIBLE) County Morgue (ph). We talked to people on -- man on the street interviews on the other side of the border. Nobody thinks a bigger wall is the solution, you know, to --
CAMEROTA: Why not?
BELL: Because they -- because the -- as border patrol security gets more intense down there, things get worse.
CUOMO: Why?
BELL: Because more security, more restrictions, people still -- this country still thrives off of undocumented labor. So people are still going to come across. The more security there is, the more dangerous it is, the more people get arrested. It doesn't make the situation any better.
CAMEROTA: What else do we need to know about your new season?
BELL: That it's our blackest season yet because we have three black episodes out of eight. It's the blackest season. It's 37 percent black. We have an HVCU episode, historically black colleges and universities. We have a -- the (INAUDIBLE) of South Carolina. And I got to Mobile, Alabama, and talk to my dad.
CAMEROTA: Oh, my gosh, that will be exciting.
BELL: It is exciting. He was very ready for it.
CUOMO: Did you have the foresight in the Mexico episode to use Tribe Called Quest's, I lost my wallet in El Segundo.
BELL: You -- we don't have four (ph) day's budget.
CUOMO: Oh, man.
BELL: So, who's talking about it.
CUOMO: Oh, man, what a missed opportunity that was.
BELL: We missed a lot of opportunities because we don't have four (ph) day's budgets.
CUOMO: Kamau, thank you very much. I appreciate it. Good luck with this season.
BELL: Thank you.
[07:00:00] CUOMO: The all new season of "United Shades of America" premiers this Sunday, 10:15 p.m., only on CNN.
ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.
CUOMO: Good morning.
