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New Day
20 Killed in El Paso, 9 Dead in Dayton Mass Shootings. Aired 6-6:30a ET
Aired August 05, 2019 - 06:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Perform CPR!
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Help!
[05:59:18] UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I heard clapping noises. We all started running. I had my mom. I had my daughter. I grabbed them both, and I carried them out.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm shouting out to the president of the United States. My cousins did not deserve to lose their life.
DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Hate has no place in our country. We're going to take care of it.
SEN. CORY BOOKER (D-NJ), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Donald Trump is responsible for this.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We're being attacked. Our government needs to step in. If not, the people here will step in.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANNOUNCER: This is NEW DAY with Alisyn Camerota and John Berman.
JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome to our viewers in the United States and all around the world. This is a special edition of NEW DAY. It's Monday, August 5, 6 a.m. here in New York. Alisyn is off. Erica Hill joins me live from El Paso in Texas.
Twenty people were murdered behind Erica in the name of white supremacy, police say, and the question this morning is really, America, what are you going to do about it? Congress, what are you going to do about it? Mr. President, what are you going to do about it?
Nine people were murdered in Dayton, Ohio. The question this morning is, America, what are you going to do about it? Congress, what are you going to do about it? Mr. President, what are you going to do about it?
After spending the weekend at his golf resort, the president will address the nation this morning. Will he propose new gun safety measures? Will he call the attack in El Paso white supremacist terror? What message has it sent to white nationalists that he has chosen so far not to do so?
This morning, Senate Democrats are asking to return to Washington to vote on two measures to expand background checks that passed the House with bipartisan support. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell hasn't even allowed a vote on them. Will that change this morning?
We should note we invited dozens of Republican leaders from Texas, Ohio, and beyond to discuss the situation with us this morning. None of them agreed to appear. That list includes Texas senators John Cornyn and Ted Cruz, Texas Governor Greg Abbott, Ohio Governor Mike DeWine and House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy.
ERICA HILL, CNN ANCHOR: Well, here in El Paso, among the questions which are left unanswered this morning, who are the 20 victims? That's because authorities still have not identified everyone who was shot and killed. And that wait for their families is agonizing.
The alleged gunman is in custody. Police say he's volunteering information and showing no remorse.
Among the dead is a young mother of three. She was shopping for school supplies and died shielding her 2-month-old from gunfire. On Sunday, her husband was also confirmed dead.
In Dayton, police have released new surveillance video of the massacre there, which shows people running for they lives. At this hour, investigators do not know what inspired that gunman to open and kill -- open fire and kill nine people.
CNN is on the ground covering both shootings. We begin our coverage here in El Paso with Rosa Flores.
ROSA FLORES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Erica, good morning.
I've been in this community for the past few hours. I attended a vigil, trying to learn more about this community. And there's profound pain.
One of the things that I learned from just talking to people at this vigil were from Latinas, who said that, for the first time in their lives in their community, they feel threatened because of their color of their skin. And so they're trying to make sense of this. They're trying to reclaim the sense of security in their own community, all while we learn new details about the suspect's actions. Take a listen.
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(SINGING)
FLORES (voice-over): Residents filling vigils and memorials in El Paso, Texas, honoring the 20 lives tragically cut short during this weekend's massacre.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: In El Paso, we are one big family. We know that the country is mourning with us.
FLORES: The attack injuring at least 26 others. An elevated sense of fear for many residents here.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We are being isolated for our color.
FLORES: Survivors struggling to comprehend why they made it out alive when many did not.
ERICA CONTRERAS, WITNESS: Everything that happened was just terrible, but we are blessed. We are blessed because we're alive. And I pray for all those people that died. It was so many.
FLORES: Two of those murdered, Andre and Jordan Anchondo. They were inside the Wal-Mart with their 2-month-old son when the shooting began.
LETA JAMROWSKI, JORDAN ANCHONDO'S SISTER: She was a wonderful person. She'd give anything for those kids. Anything. Even her life.
FLORES: That's what Jordan apparently did that day, protecting her baby by using her body as a shield. The baby was injured but survived.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I want to just find my mom. Somebody needs to tell me where she is. I want to know if she's dead or alive.
FLORES: This emotional plea from a daughter ending in heartbreak. Eighty-six-year-old Angie Englisbee's family now says she's one of the victims.
And 60-year-old Arturo Benavides, an Army veteran and bus driver, his niece describing him as a caring and strong-willed man with plenty of love left to share.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What happened?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I don't know. I don't know.
FLORES: Police and federal authorities still piecing together why the 21-year-old suspect allegedly went on a rampage.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We are treating it as a domestic terrorism case.
FLORES: Local police saying the suspect is cooperating with investigators and that he is unrepentant. Law enforcement sources also tell CNN the suspect posted a four-page manifesto online, filled with white nationalist and racist language, targeting immigrants and Hispanics.
CHIEF GREG ALLEN, EL PASO POLICE DEPARTMENT: We have a manifesto from this individual that indicates, to some degree, it has a nexus to a potential hate crime.
[06:05:04] FLORES: State officials seeking the ultimate punishment.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We will seek the death penalty.
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FLORES: Now take a look at your screen. This is a picture of a child's wheelchair. And I met a woman yesterday at the vigil that I attended that asked CNN for help. She says that her 72-year-old brother-in-law was taken out of the Wal-Mart in the shock and chaos of that shooting in that child's wheelchair. She says that it doesn't belong to her family, so she knows that a family here in El Paso is missing that wheelchair. And she hopes that that child is alive, too, Erica.
Because that's the other thing that's really emotional for this family. Because they're hoping that they can return to it a child that is living.
HILL: Exactly. So many people hoping that.
I do have to point out, there are so many heartwarming and encouraging stories in the midst of this tragedy of the way people were helping one another, specifically helping children. And that, I know, is bringing some comfort to some folks this morning.
Rosa, thank you.
And meantime, in Dayton, Ohio, police say it is simply too soon to speculate on a motive. In just 30 seconds, the shooter there killed nine people and injured dozens more. Officers stopping him just before he entered a packed nightclub.
Last night the community and elected leaders gathered to remember the victims. The governor interrupted by chants of "Do something" as he addressed the crowd.
CNN's Polo Sandoval is live for us this morning in Dayton -- Polo.
POLO SANDOVAL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Erica.
That moment shows both the grief and anger that we're seeing in the community.
Meanwhile, CNN is learning that the killer kept a so-called kill list back when he was in high school. This is according to to four high school students, who described the gunman as both dark and depressive. It is information that is made even more significant after yesterday's rampage.
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SANDOVAL (voice-over): A flurry of shots show the brief but deadly moments that the suspected gunman opened fire on Saturday night crowds in downtown Dayton, Ohio. Police say the gunman parked his car and walked through Dayton's Oregon District, a neighborhood known for its night life, and started firing shots just after 1 a.m.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Dude, what the (EXPLETIVE DELETED). SANDOVAL: Surveillance video shows crowds running from the shots.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Shots fired! (UNINTELLIGIBLE) Shots fired!
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: A3, where are you at?
SANDOVAL: Dayton police routinely patrol this area on Saturday nights and were able to respond in seconds.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: A suspect opened fire along the Oregon District. He was wearing body armor and used a .223-caliber high-capacity magazine. He had additional magazines.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Threat was neutralized in approximately 30 seconds of the suspect firing his first shots.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Dispatch, we got shots fired. We got multiple people down. We're going to need multiple medics.
SANDOVAL: Two women say they were out with girlfriends.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: People just started running. They started pushing us out the back door.
SANDOVAL: Her friend says she remembers chatting with a woman about their outfits, but the next time she saw her --
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She was laying on the concrete dead outside of the club that we was at.
SANDOVAL: Robert Woodruff says he was standing several feet away from the gunman as he fired shots.
ROBERT WOODRUFF, WITNESS: I thought I was about to die. Till the officer, he's like standing over the top of me, like, and he starts shooting at the guy. So he saved everybody that was out here.
SANDOVAL: Despite the quick response, at least nine were killed and more than a dozen injured. Among the dead, the shooter's own 22-year- old sister.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The officers who were involved in ending this tragedy, their professionalism, their quickness, their amazing courage, and their response undoubtedly saved many, many, many lives. We will never know how many lives were saved. The assailant was obviously very, very close to be able to kill dozens and dozens more people.
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SANDOVAL: And yesterday police not only laid out a timeline, but they also released some extremely graphic video showing the moment of the shooting. So a lot of attention, of course, on that moment when the shots were fired, Erica, but also on what happened before. Investigators now saying the gunman, his sister, and apparently, a male companion all arrived here in the same vehicle. But at some point, they separated, Erica.
So the question here, what were the whereabouts of the gunman during that separation? Once they find that, then we could perhaps be even closer to trying to determine a motive. That's what investigators are saying this morning, Erica.
HILL: All right. Polo Sandoval with the latest for us from Dayton. Polo, thank you.
Joining me now is Josh Campbell, former FBI supervisory special agent and a CNN law enforcement analyst.
And let's pick up where Polo left off there, what's happening in Dayton. One of the things we have heard over and over again is the credit to law enforcement for how quick this response was, that they were able to stop this within 30 seconds.
[06:10:09] I mean, just put that in perspective for us. What could have happened? They were there so quickly.
JOSH CAMPBELL, CNN LAW ENFORCEMENT ANALYST: Yes. Just an incredible response time by law enforcement. Twenty-four seconds, I think, the mayor was saying, around 30 seconds.
If you think about the type of weaponry that the shooter had that he brought to this location, high-powered, you know, weaponry with countless rounds of ammunition. He came there with the intent to kill.
You couple that with the fact that he had body armor and hearing suppression. His job was to prolong that attack for as long as he could to stay alive, to kill as many people as possible.
So the only thing that could have stopped him would have been this quick law enforcement response. And again, we know that there are large areas now that are policed. That's just a reality in America in 2019. Anywhere people gather, law enforcement will also be focusing on. Again, it's probably due to good policing and perhaps a little bit of luck that they were in that location, able to take him down before he actually made entry to this location.
HILL: Right. And in terms of before he made entry, what -- hat has been released in some of this surveillance video, that not only speaks to, obviously, what happened, but just you can understand the chaos and the terror that people must have been feeling.
I do want to warn you, before we show this video, you may find it disturbing, but as we watch this and what happens, as we continue to watch the video, you can see them all trying to be ushered in. You can see folks try to help others get inside, as well. And then just before, you will see the shooter coming in.
But you see what looks like security there, as well, clearly speaking into some sort of microphone. One would imagine, trying to get help. And then we can see the shooter come in, and we'll freeze this here. But to your point, prepared with tactical gear, essentially, with these headphones, with that body protection.
CAMPBELL: He was ready to kill. And you know, as you look at that video, everyone involved there did, I think, what we expected them to do. We tell the public run, hide, fight. Whenever you hear gunfire, you think that there's a shooting, your first goal is to run, to get out of there.
For law enforcement and for that security officer who was there outside, he has to communicate. He has to sound off and tell others what he's seeing so that police can respond. And we know that once the law enforcement officers engaged, they didn't wait. They went to the sound of the gunfire and took him down.
HILL: One of the big questions is the why, as we know, the motive. This happened just 13 hours after what happened behind us here in El Paso. There's an assessment happening right now. The FBI has said, even as recently as last night, "We're concerned about inspiration, about copycats." Based on your sourcing, is there concern that that's what Dayton was?
CAMPBELL: Well, that's certainly something that they're looking into. What was motivating this person?
There are so many puzzling aspects of that shooting. And let's talk about the differences. We know here in El Paso -- and again let's point out for our viewers the reality of 2019 is that we're sitting at a crime scene talking about two mass shootings.
HILL: Right.
CAMPBELL: Which I think is still chilling.
Here in El Paso, the shooter was taken alive. Police were able to interview him. He was cooperative. Not the case in Dayton. He was obviously taken down. He was a threat that was eliminated. But the police can't glean that motivation from him. So they have to look outwards.
And so this continues to puzzle law enforcement. What was motivating him?
Lost on no one is the fact this happened 13 hours from another mass shooting. So the question is, if this is for someone who was planning something, did he decide to go, at this point, based on what he saw happen here?
And the last thing is you mentioned, the FBI, they're conducting this assessment, trying to determine, OK, are there other aspects of these shootings that should trouble them or at least give cause for concern around the country?
We also know the statement that the FBI put out last night, which was -- there was a very stark statement -- line in there, where it says that "We're concerned that others out there could be motivated by these actions." It's something that they're definitely looking into. HILL: There is a lot to unpack, but it's so interesting to look at it
that way. The assessment, as you mentioned, Josh. We'll continue to check in with you, obviously, throughout the morning. Thank you.
John, we'll have much more for you just -- in just a little bit. But for now I'll head it back -- hand it back to you, rather, in New York.
BERMAN: All right. Erica Hill in El Paso. Erica, it is so great to have you down there, where the sheriff says an Anglo man traveled 10 hours to kill Hispanics.
The president had time to crash a wedding at his golf resort this weekend but not time to address the nation. Why? Why hasn't he named the El Paso attack as white supremacist terror? He speaks in a few hours. What meaning will his words have now? That's next.
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[06:19:01] BERMAN: This morning, why hasn't the president called the attack in Texas white supremacist terror? Ted Cruz has. Many Republicans have. What will the president say this morning and, frankly, will it change anything? Can it change his past positions? The White House, as of this morning, says none of this is the president's fault.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MICK MULVANEY, ACTING WHITE HOUSE CHIEF OF STAFF: This was a sick person. The person in Dayton was a sick person. No politician is to blame for that.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BERMAN: Want to bring in Caitlin Dickerson, national immigration reporter for "The New York Times" and a CNN contributor; John Avlon, CNN senior political analyst; and Laura Barron-Lopez, national political reporter for "Politico."
John, you know it's glib. Sometimes after these shootings, we often say there's a search for answers. There's no search for answers this morning. We have the answers. We know exactly why this suspected terrorist drove 12 hours to kill Hispanics, because he told us, police say, in that scree he wrote.
We also know that his words are the same words that the president has used in the past. I can't tell you directly that he did it because the president said it, but I can tell you they used the same words.
[06:20:13] BERMAN: That brings us to this morning. The president will address the nation this morning. As of now, he hasn't called this terrorism. He hasn't called it an act of white supremacy.
What can he say today that matters? And I lead into that question with "The Washington Post" editorial this morning. He says, "We know by now not to waste time calling on President Trump to do the right thing. He sows division and bigotry rather than promoting unity and understanding."
JOHN AVLON, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: He sows division and bigotry rather than promoting unity and understanding. This is the president of the United States we're talking. And you can draw a direct line, unfortunately, with the rhetoric the president has used and what we hear from these shooters in their so-called online manifestos. And not just the one in El Paso.
So words are insufficient, because the president's got a gaping credibility gap on the issue of confronting white supremacist terrorism. He always says we need to call out Islamist terrorism for what it is. If that's true, we certainly need to do it now, faced with this epidemic of violence we're seeing and the copycat killings we're seeing cascade. Words are not going to be enough. He's going to need to take action. He's going to need to use his bully pulpit to try to change the debate in Washington.
Today we see "The New York Post" advocated for banning weapons of war. That's a significant sea change for conservative paper. Got that right there.
And -- and so that's the kind of thing that's going to matter. Will Mitch McConnell hear? Will Republicans ditch their fealty to the NRA? This is a moment for presidential leadership. Unfortunately, we -- if -- you know, we would be fools to expect the president to actually take a stand beyond words. And words are not enough right now.
BERMAN: Well, no. And a lot of people are noting that the Rupert Murdoc-owned "New York Post" is calling for a ban on assault weapons this morning. The Rupert Murdoch-owned FOX News, they can call on a ban for language like "invasion."
AVLON: Yes.
BERMAN: And "invaders." That has not happened yet.
AVLON: But they've participated in that language.
BERMAN: So perhaps trying to have it a little bit of both ways there.
Caitlin, I want to go to you on the language the president will use today. Does it matter?
CAITLIN DICKERSON, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: I think it matters in terms of 2020. I think it matters in terms of speaking to the public now who are looking to the president to acknowledge what's happened.
Does it matter, though, in terms of addressing all the people who he's roused in his rallies for years now, and who have gotten excited about the idea of trying to stop what they believe to be an invasion?
I think the problem is that the president talks about things like an invasion. He -- he brings up very strong emotions for people. People at rallies -- you know, he's asked during his rallies. He's asked, "There's an invasion coming. What do you guys think that we should do?" And there was a time when somebody yelled out, "Shoot them."
BERMAN: Let's play that. Let's play that. We have that.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: How do you stop these people?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Shoot 'em!
TRUMP: You can't. There's no -- that's only in the Panhandle you can get away with that statement.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BERMAN: Sorry, Caitlin.
DICKERSON: And laughed. So when -- when you don't channel the reaction, the strong reaction and the strong emotion, people come up with their own answer to that question. How are we going to deal with this invasion? And this is one of them that we're looking at now.
And so I think his words do matter. But I think that, you know, we know -- I'd certainly know from Twitter and what I hear from people all the time, that there are a lot of people who espouse the views of the shooter.
BERMAN: There's a phrase called stochastic terrorism that I think a lot of us have learned in the last 48 hours. The use of language to incite random actors to carry out violent or terrorist acts that are statistically predictable but individually unpredictable.
In other words, no one ordered this guy in Texas to go murder Hispanics, but over time, language that is used can lead to people carrying out acts. That is something that can happen.
And Laura, I've been struck by how many conservatives and Republicans have come out in the last 24 hours and called this terrorism, called it white supremacist terror, called it by its name. And we haven't heard the president yet. Now, he may say it at 10, but there's also the question of what does that delay mean? What message does the fact that the president's waited 48 hours to call it white supremacist terror mean? If you're a white nationalist, what do you take away from that?
LAURA BARRON-LOPEZ, NATIONAL POLITICAL REPORTER, "POLITICO": Right. This is a pattern with President Trump. It's one that we saw in the aftermath of Charlottesville. It's one that we saw after the Christchurch, New Zealand, massacre, as well.
And to Caitlin's point, from the moment that he announced his candidacy for the White House, Trump has spoken about black, brown, Muslims as the other. People that look like me, people that look like Caitlin. And that language is something that has become more mainstream or has been out there more in the mainstream because of the fact that he has repeated it, because of the fact that he specifically talks about Mexicans and Latino immigrants as people who are invading the U.S. And so, if anything, it just continually, potentially, sends a message to white nationalists and white supremacists that it's OK to hold these views.
[06:25:27] BERMAN: And he can't undo the things he has said in the past this morning, no matter what he says. That doesn't mean the president shouldn't come out and make a strong statement today. And maybe he will. He comes out and speaks at 10 a.m. I won't suspect, John, that he'll call for a ban on white supremacist terror like he called on a Muslim ban.
AVLON: No. But again, let's see if he even starts to rise to the occasion. And again, it's not just words. It's actions. One of the first things he did as president was to overturn an Obama-era ban on the mentally ill getting weapons, a background check that was in place.
So this is a persistent problem that he has sown not just by his words but but his actions. You reap what you sow. This American carnage we're confronting today is partly the result of what he has sown.
BERMAN: American carnage. His own words --
AVLON: Correct.
BERMAN: -- from the inauguration.
Caitlin, the Senate on its plate has two bipartisan gun control measures that were passed in the House. One of them, it would be HR- 8, the bipartisan background check of twenty thousand -- 2019. It requires a background check nearly for every firearm sale. What it really does is background checks for gun shows. It closes the gun show loophole there.
And the other measure would extend to ten days the waiting period from three days. This received some Republican support in the House. It passed with 240 votes. I don't know if it will pass the Senate. I do know that it hasn't had a vote, because Mitch McConnell has chosen not to allow the Senate to vote on these measures, which by no means are the most restrictive gun control measures.
DICKERSON: I think we're in a bit of a unique situation right now. And I don't want to suggest that we have any evidence that the pattern is going to change. And that legislative change will happen or political change, more broadly, will happen.
But there are a few things about the situation that are unique right now. So one thing is that gun control groups are catching up with funding from wealthy donors like Michael Bloomberg, former mayor of New York. They are catching up to the NRA and are putting Democrats under a lot of pressure. And they're saying it's not enough anymore to lay this at the feet of Mitch McConnell. You have to go further.
What's also unique is that we have all of the Democratic candidates at this point unanimously stepping forward and saying that they support tighter restrictions on gun control. And so I think that those two things make it possible that you could
potentially shake something loose. At the very least, I think that when you have these several mass shootings that happen over the weekend. You have Ohio. You have El Paso. You had a shooting in Chicago. That I think moderate voters are now taking a pause. And they're thinking about these -- these policy ideas and really putting pressure.
BERMAN: Laura, any chance that Mitch McConnell brings the Senate back to vote on these House measures that are sitting there just waiting?
BARRON-LOPEZ: Well, so far there's no indication that Majority Leader McConnell will bring back the Senate. And we also haven't heard from Speaker Pelosi about whether or not she would try to bring back the House to put some pressure on McConnell. So right now, it's looking like there's a very good chance that they don't come back.
BERMAN: All right. Laura, John, Caitlin, thank you very much.
We're going to have live coverage of the president's address this morning. You can watch it here on CNN. Judge for yourself the words he chooses now and if they are sufficient.
And tonight, former Vice President Joe Biden talks guns, white nationalists, and Donald Trump in an exclusive interview with Anderson Cooper. That's tonight at 8 a.m., only on CNN.
Erica, let's go back to you in El Paso. And I know that that community, yes, it's a pretty big city, but it's a small community. And I know that they're in pain this morning.
HILL: Absolutely. Waking up, you know, we just got a notice, actually, before we came on the air. One of the local school districts is putting out the idea that kids should be wearing white today in solidarity with the victims, which is such a beautiful expression. And at the same time, you think to yourself, kids wearing white to school. Also a reminder of this tragedy that struck and what the world is that they are growing up in today.
And of course, the tragedy in Dayton happening just about 13 hours later. When tragedy struck there, more than a dozen victims were rushed to one hospital in Dayton. And just ahead, we'll be joined by some of the doctors who were on duty in those moments. Stay with us.
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