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Actor Alec Baldwin Gives Interview about His Accidental Shooting on Movie Set that Killed Halyna Hutchins and Injured Film Director; Lawsuits being Filed against Alec Baldwin for Movie Set Shooting; Interview with Democratic Candidate for Governor in Georgia, Stacey Abrams. Aired 8-8:30a ET

Aired December 03, 2021 - 08:00   ET

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

[08:00:00]

SHERIFF MICHAEL BOUCHARD, OAKLAND COUNTY, MICHIGAN: Check all these threats out. But the fact of the matter is none of them have been verified as anything that ultimately has any credibility.

And typically, what we see is tragically, and crazy, that after a real tragedy, these kinds of threats spike all across the community. And they're completely false 99 times out of 100, and usually 100 out of 100, but we can't afford that one out of 100. And most of the time it's because some kid thought it was funny, which it's not. It's a crime. And if the other option is they want the day off of school, and that's a crime. If you make a threat of any kind of violence against a school in our state, that's a 20-year felony potentially. So we're investigating each and every one of those, and we're going to prosecute each and every one we can identify. And because of the sheer volume, I've asked the FBI and the secret service cyber assistance to help our computer crimes and cyber folks to run these to ground and identify people.

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: Sheriff Michael Bouchard, it's sick. And I'm sorry that you have to deal with it, and we appreciate the work you're doing. Thank you very much for being with us this morning.

BOUCHARD: Thank you.

BERMAN: NEW DAY continues right now.

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning to viewers here in the United States and around the world. It is Friday, December 3rd, and I'm Brianna Keilar with John Berman.

Alec Baldwin says he has nothing to hide. We're hearing from the actor in a raw and emotional first interview since the deadly shooting on the set of his film "Rust."

BERMAN: The tragedy took the life of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins. Baldwin tells ABC News that at first, he didn't even realize she had been shot. He recalled the moment when the gun went off.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) ALEC BALDWIN, ACTOR: She was someone who was loved by everyone who worked with and liked by everyone who worked with and admired.

Sorry. But admired by everybody who worked with her.

The trigger wasn't pulled. I didn't pull the trigger.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You never pulled the trigger?

BALDWIN: No, no, no, no. I would never point a gun at someone and pull a trigger at them, never. Never. That was the training that I had, you don't point a gun at somebody and pull the trigger.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So you have this Colt 45, you just pulled --

BALDWIN: The hammer as far back as I could without cocking the actual gun.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And you're holding on to the hammer?

BALDWIN: I'm just showing. I'm going how about that, does that work, do you see that, do you see that. She said, yes, that's good. I let go of the hammer, bang, the gun go.

Everyone is horrified, they're shocked. It's loud. They don't have their earplugs in. The gun was supposed to be empty. I was told I was handed an empty gun. There were cosmetic rounds, nothing with a charge at all, no flash round, nothing. She goes down. I thought to myself, did she faint? The notion that there was a live round in that gun did not dawn on me until probably 45 minutes to an hour later.

When she finally left, I don't know how long it was she was there, 30 minutes, 40 minutes, it seemed like a very long time. But they kept saying, she's stable. Like nobody -- just as you disbelieve that there was a live round in the gun, you disbelieve this was going to be a fatal accident.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So you didn't know exactly how serious it was?

BALDWIN: At the very end of my interview with the sheriff's department, they said to me we regret to tell you that she didn't make it. She died. Then told me right then and there. And that's when I went in the parking lot and called my wife.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KEILAR: Baldwin made it very clear that he believes he did nothing wrong. He told George Stephanopoulos he is desperate to find out how a live round found its way onto the set and into that gun.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: I don't want to sound like I'm a victim. I mean, again, we have two clear victims here.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Is in the worst thing that's ever happened to you? BALDWIN: Yes. Yes. Yes, because I think back and I think of what

could I have done?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Do you feel guilt?

BALDWIN: No, no. I feel that there is -- I feel that someone is responsible for what happened, and I can't say who that is, but I know it's not me.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You're not worried about being charged?

BALDWIN: I don't -- I've been told by people who are in the know in terms of even inside the state that it's highly unlikely I would be charged with anything criminally.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BERMAN: Two lawsuits have been filed against Alec Baldwin by members of the crew. Here's how Baldwin addressed that.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: The two civil suits that were filed, which I find odd, because those two people are lunging toward making sure their suits are filed before the husband files his suit?

[08:05:03]

They couldn't wait until Matthew on behalf of his son filed his suit first? I found that to be unsettling.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BERMAN: Joining me now is attorney Gloria Allred representing the "Rust" script supervisor Mamie Mitchell who was the first person to call 911 after the tragedy. She's suing Baldwin and others for causing harm and emotional distress.

Gloria, Alec Baldwin referred to your client there, suggested she was lunging to file a suit before the husband of Halyna Hutchins could even get a chance to. What is your response to that?

GLORIA ALLRED, REPRESENTS SCRIPT SUPERVISOR ON "RUST" WHO IS SUING ALEC BALDWIN: First of all, patently ridiculous. Another deflection of instead of taking responsibility himself, attacking other people.

But, John, there is no need for the husband of Halyna Hutchins to even file a lawsuit because Alec Baldwin and the producers and the insurers could all settle with him without his having to file a lawsuit. And so that is a ridiculous point. And what he's trying to do is point to everybody else and blame them instead of taking responsibility himself. What he said in that interview was, what could I do?

BERMAN: We'll get to his claims of no responsibility in a second, but I just want to cover your client here for a moment. Would your client ever agree not to accept money or a settlement until the family of Halyna Hutchins receives some compensation?

ALLRED: Look, there is no point in pitting victims against each other. Of course, Mamie would want the child of Halyna, who she loved, who she admired, who was her new friend and a respected colleague, we want that family to be compensated. But everybody who can prove they are a victim and who has been damaged should be compensated. It is just as simple as that.

BERMAN: But there are different levels of being victims here, correct, between your client and the family of Halyna Hutchins?

ALLRED: Of course, there are. And according to the damage and according to what happened to them, they'll be compensated. But that's not the point. The point is Mr. Baldwin is not taking responsibility. He said in this interview, what can I do? I will tell you, Alec Baldwin, what you could have done. You could have checked that gun before it was fired from your hand. You could have, if you didn't want to, check the barrel of the gun, the chambers of the gun. You could have said to the assistant director, where is the armorer? Bring her in. Have her demonstrate to me that this gun is empty, that there is no live bullet in it. He didn't do that.

He's now out there saying, I didn't have any responsibility. Well, who is the mystery man here who had the gun in his hand, who cooked the hammer of the gun, the bullet discharged from the gun, it hit Halyna and Joel. Who is the mystery man who did that? The mystery man is named Alec Baldwin.

BERMAN: There's no question that it was a gun in his hand that went off and it killed Halyna Hutchins. There's just no question about that. Do you have knowledge that all actors always check the gun before using it in a scene?

ALLRED: It isn't a matter of what all actors do. It is a matter of what industrywide labor management safety protocols that are accepted in -- and are supposed to be followed in a motion picture industry and on television, what they are required to do.

Now, Mr. Baldwin says, you know, in his world, it was not within the realm of possibility that there would be a live bullet in that gun. Well, every gun is supposed to be treated, according to safety protocols, assume it is loaded. And that's why the safety protocols are there. Check the gun or have someone demonstrate it. George Clooney was right when he said he checks the gun, he makes sure that it is safe if he has a gun in his hand on a movie set.

BERMAN: When George --

ALLRED: And, of course, Alec Baldwin in the interview just blew that off, well, goody for him. Well, that's what Alec Baldwin should have done or had the armorer do.

BERMAN: When George Stephanopoulos outright asked him, do you feel any guilt for this, Alec Baldwin said no, no guilt. Information, if I had felt responsible at all, Alec Baldwin says he would have killed himself. ALLRED: Well, he said -- he said he -- someone is responsible. Well,

all I can say to Alec Baldwin is look in the mirror and you will find out who is at least one of the people who is responsible. So, I feel for him. It is a terrible thing to kill anyone, whether you did it intentionally or not.

[08:10:04]

But step up and take responsibility. And that's what you need to do. And it is the only thing that you should do. And it matters what happened to Halyna, it matters what happened to the director, and it matters what happened to Mamie Mitchell. Mamie Mitchell ran out and made that 911 call, OK. She cared about helping someone else. What did Alec Baldwin do? Why is he not taking responsibility now? Does he think we're all foolish that we think there is someone else?

The whole idea that let's find out who put the bullet, the live bullet in the gun, of course, that's a very important question. But it's not the only question. We have to come back to Alec Baldwin and ask why didn't he follow the safety protocols? He has -- he's married to a woman. They have six children. Would he want someone else who had a gun that was aiming it at the mother of his children, wouldn't he want that person to at least check the gun or make it -- make sure it is safe instead of saying, someone else should have done that?

BERMAN: Gloria Allred, I appreciate you being with us. Thank you very much for your time.

ALLRED: Thank you.

BERMAN: We have brand-new CNN reporting on how Donald Trump reacted to his chief of staff Mark Meadows spilling the beans on his secret positive COVID test. Here's a hint, not well.

And Stacey Abrams gearing up for a second big political fight against Georgia Governor Brian Kemp. What's different this time? She's here with us next.

KEILAR: And we're about to get our first look at the latest monthly jobs report. How strong is the economy as we're staring down this new coronavirus variant?

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[08:15:29]

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN ANCHOR: Democrat Stacey Abrams announced she's running for governor in 2022, facing off against Republican Brian Kemp. Abrams who ran against Kemp in 2018 and narrowly lost made the announcement in a video.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

STACEY ABRAMS (D), GEORGIA GUBERNATORIAL CANDIDATE: But if our Georgia is going to move to its next and greatest chapter, we're going to need leadership, leadership that doesn't take credit while also taking responsibility. Leadership that understands the true pain folks are feeling and has real plans.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KEILAR: And joining us now is Democratic candidate for governor in Georgia, Stacey Abrams. She's also the founder of Fair Fight Action, a voting rights organization.

Thank you so much, Representative, for being with us.

I want to talk, first, about the issues that you're going to be tackling in the election and that you would tackle as governor. And I just wonder what you can do as governor to help ease inflationary pressures like gas prices.

ABRAMS: We know that gas prices are driven by global market changes. But what we can do is make certain the folks who live in Georgia have the wages they need and the income they need to actually meet the changes happening in the national -- in the global and national economy.

For example, Georgia is ranked near the bottom in terms of income equality. We're 40th. We have one of the nation's highest poverty rates, ranked number 37. Those are issues that can be addressed by a governor who's paying close attention not simply to these metrics that are fun to tout in a headline, but don't change the real lives of people living on the ground.

And I want to focus on making sure we have educational attainment, educational mobility, that we have economic mobility and social mobility, so our families are moving up and they can meet these new pressures with the incomes and the opportunities that can make their lives thrive.

KEILAR: Will you be inviting the president on the trail to campaign with you?

ABRAMS: I think that Joe Biden, John Ossoff and Raphael Warnock have been delivering for Georgia. We're seeing an infusion of capital into our state that will help infrastructure issues, tackling child poverty.

But we need to have a partner in the governor's mansion who actually believes in making sure the state and the resources are reaching all Georgians. Rather than picking people that agree with me, I want to serve every Georgian and make certain we have one Georgia.

And, yes, I look forward to having anyone who is willing to invest in the state come down and talk about what the great future we can have.

KEILAR: So you're looking forward to campaigning with Biden?

ABRAMS: I'm looking forward to campaigning with the president, with our senators, proof that we have the opportunity in Georgia to elect strong Democrats up and down the ticket. In 2020 and 2021, we showed America what Georgia is capable of. And we know that together we are seeing real action happening at the federal level, coming to Georgia. But the problem is at the state level, we are still number 50 in terms

of healthcare coverage. We live in the state that has a high COVID rate, but we do not have the leadership in the governor's office to actually address the challenges that we face and that's why I'm running.

KEILAR: I know that you've been watching these other governors' races that we have seen here recently, Biden was a drag. We heard that from Terry McAuliffe even as he was campaigning, that he was a drag on the race there. Is there anything you would like to see the president do or focus on that he hasn't been?

ABRAMS: I've been focused for the last three years on how we serve Georgians, how we make certain we have access to vaccines, how we settle medical debts until we can get the state to expand Medicaid.

I am focused right now at the national level on making certain that we have voting rights legislation that actually protects the rights of voters in the state of Georgia. Unfortunately under this governor, we have seen a retrenchment on voter suppression and that's action we need to take. And I'm deeply concerned about the anti-choice law that Governor Kemp signed in 2019, that drove away jobs, and is hurting the state of Georgia.

We need leadership that is looking forward, we need action at the federal level to continue to support our people, but my focus is on making sure that in the state of Georgia, we're doing everything we can to help our community succeed.

KEILAR: Do you want Biden to do more on voting rights?

ABRAMS: I am bullish that the legislation that is sitting in the Senate is going to move. We have watched change happen in the last ten months, where we now have all 50 U.S. Democratic senators signing up for the Freedom to Vote Act and we even got a Republican who's joined on the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act. I think that the White House is committed to voting rights.

But I want to see action because we know in January, a continuation of the insurrection, this voter suppression activity across the country based on the big lie will rev up once again and we need to see Washington, D.C. understand that they are called to protect democracy.

[08:20:17]

And protecting democracy needs passing the Freedom to Vote Act and passing the John Lewis Advancement Act.

KEILAR: You were so close to winning in 2018 and even though you didn't, it was a huge wake-up call for that narrow margin in Georgia, huge wake-up call for people watching your race.

Do you concede that you lost the 2018 race?

ABRAMS: I, on November 16th, 2018, acknowledged at the top of my speech that Brian Kemp is the governor of Georgia. I even wished him well at the end of the speech. And in the middle I talked about the fact that we had a system that he managed, that he manipulated, that hurt Georgia voters.

And the responsibility of leaders is to challenge systems that are not serving the people. My responsibility was not to try and make myself governor, I've been very well aware for three years I am not the governor of Georgia.

But I am a citizen of Georgia and the citizen of this country, and my responsibility is to challenge a system that would rob a single voice from being able to be heard if they are eligible.

And that's the work that we have done, that's the work I will continue to do. And I wonder why others aren't willing to join me in this effort because this isn't about partisanship. This is about patriotism. We are a democracy, a democratic republic that says that every voice should be heard to set the future.

And I want to know why more people aren't standing up and saying, every single person should have access if they're eligible, especially in the state like Georgia that has a terrible history of voter suppression.

KEILAR: You were clear what you were seeing in that speech, that you acknowledge that he was the victor, even as you said you wanted to be clear it wasn't a concession speech. Do you see his victory as legitimate?

ABRAMS: This is a relitigation of a conversation that is -- I think it can be fun to talk about, but here's where I am. He won under the rules of the game at the time. But the game was rigged against the voters of Georgia. Not against me, not against him.

This isn't about politicians. This is about people and their right to be heard. And the work that I've done for the last three years, in fact, work I've been doing since I was 17 has focused on how do we expand access to the right to vote so that every single eligible American can be heard and can help set the terms of our future.

And so, yes, he became the governor. And we have watched him fail for three years. And I'm running for governor now because leadership has to not only take credit, it has to take responsibility, and be held accountable and I want to be the person who helps lead the state forward.

KEILAR: Look, I do think it's essential that we talk about it because you're up against him again and you're also not only up against Kemp, but there is this new Georgia voting law which, of course, you're very much opposed to, that is going to make it voting access for people who would support you, it will make it more difficult, it will make it more confusing, the outcome of the election will be more in the hands of Republicans.

Do you believe that this campaign will be a fair fight?

ABRAMS: I intend to work hard to ensure that every single voter has every opportunity to cast their ballot, regardless of who they intend to vote for, because that's not the -- the election process is not about me. It is about making sure that everyone eligible, Democrats, Republicans, independents, that if you want to vote in Georgia and you're eligible to vote, that you can vote.

But my also -- my other responsibility is to ensure that who we elect is someone who is going to protect the right to vote. And between myself and Brian Kemp, I'm the only candidate who is intentional about protecting and expanding access to the right to vote. In this campaign, as in every campaign, we always have to guard against those who are willing to game the system, rather than put their ideas forward and use their ideas as their catalyst for success.

I'm willing to put my ideas up against Brian Kemp every single day of the week. And I believe that Georgians once again will see that I am a leader who will not only serve them, but who will care for all of us, not just those who agree with me.

KEILAR: Political headwinds, I think, you know, just looking at what happened in 2018, what we're expecting in 2022, it does seem that 2022 is going to be a tougher race, just when it comes to where the politics are. But then as I mentioned, there is also this voting law that has gone into effect in Georgia.

How are you going to win? What makes you think that you can overcome these additional obstacles to close that gap?

ABRAMS: Well, three things, one, hundreds of thousands of new voters who join the rolls since 2018, in fact, 1.2 million new voters have joined since 2018. And of that, we know that the modeling shows that there is a 17-point advantage for Democrats among those new voters.

[08:25:03]

Number two, we have had proof of concept. We saw the election of Joe Biden in 2020 and the election of Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock in 2021 that demonstrates that we've got voters who are activated and energized and ready to turn out.

But number three, most importantly, we have a failed leader in the governor's mansion. And that means that people not only have a reason to show up, they got a reason to show out, because Georgia is facing terrible times. We have got some successes for some, but not for everyone.

There is real pain in this state. There is real need. Half a million Georgians do not have access to health insurance because of the callousness of one man.

And if we can solve those problems, if we can show there is a brighter future ahead, I believe that we can win, and that's why I'm in this race because I believe we can win it.

KEILAR: So, we did just learn that 52 percent of absentee ballot applications were rejected under this new Georgia law. So, we're talking about more than half of them because voters missed a deadline. Do you think that hurts Republicans? What do you think?

ABRAMS: I think it hurts Georgia. And that's, again, the point. Voter suppression may target certain communities that they find inconvenient, mainly young people, people of color, the disabled, the poor.

But it hurts everyone. When you break democracy for some, you break it for all. And these laws are demonstrating already that voters need clarity, but they also need ease of access. There should be nothing difficult about making your voice heard in a democracy, if you are legally eligible to participate.

And yet we have watched Brian Kemp once again rig his -- sorry -- pin his hopes for success on making it harder for voters to make their voices heard.

KEILAR: You've heard Donald Trump not exactly backing up Kemp. He recently said that you'd be better for the job. Is that drama going to help you? Is that going to hurt the GOP primary process and help your chances?

ABRAMS: While the internecine fighting among Republicans happens, I'm going to be fighting for Georgia. That's my job.

KEILAR: All right. Stacey Abrams, thank you so much. It is a pleasure having you this morning.

ABRAMS: Thank you. And I encourage people to go to staceyabrams.com to learn more about my campaign.

KEILAR: All right. We'll be tracking your race. Thanks again.

ABRAMS: Thank you.

KEILAR: Preposterous and disgusting, those words from Dr. Anthony Fauci about remarks from a Fox News host.

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: And fresh scrutiny on former White House physician Sean Conley after the timeline of Trump's COVID diagnosis came to light. We have brand-new CNN reporting ahead.

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