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Trump Admits to Coup Attempt in Statement; Bengals Erase 18- Point Deficit to Upset Chiefs in OT; Harris Inside DNC for 2 Hours Before Bomb Discovered Last Year; U.N. Security Council to Meet on Russia Invasion Fears; Ukrainian Civilians Training to Fight Should Russia Invade Nation. Aired 6-6:30a ET

Aired January 31, 2022 - 06:00   ET

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

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning to viewers here in the United States and around the world. It is Monday, January 31, and I'm Brianna Keilar with John Berman.

[06:00:13]

It may very well be one of the most dangerous rallies that Donald Trump has ever given and a sign of what's to come if he runs in 2024. The former president speaking to supporters in Texas, essentially calling for another insurrection if he ever faces charges in the multiple investigations into him, his business, or his coup attempt.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: If these radical, vicious, racist prosecutors do anything wrong or illegal, I hope we are going to have in this country the biggest protest we have ever had in Washington, D.C., in New York, in Atlanta, and elsewhere. Because our country and our elections are corrupt. They're corrupt.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KEILAR: That is a lie. And to boot, he also brought race into his imaginary sleight.

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: As a result of that statement, overnight, the Fulton County district attorney one of the prosecutors referred to by Trump, who is investigating his efforts to overturn the election results in Georgia, she asked the FBI to provide security for buildings and staff.

Now, Trump also put out a statement overnight that more or less admitted that he did want Pence to overturn the election.

Joining us now, CNN political commentator S.E. Cupp and CNN chief legal analyst, Jeffrey Toobin.

Trump did three things over the weekend, and I want to discuss each if we can. No. 1, that call to arms, the -- you know, the biggest protest he's ever seen. No. 2, he dangled pardons. And then No. 3, that statement where he basically said, yes, I wanted Pence to overturn the election results, not that there was any doubt. Jeffrey, I want to start with the call for the biggest protest ever,

which many look at and say, Hey, he's inciting violence in broad daylight.

JEFFREY TOOBIN, CNN CHIEF LEGAL ANALYST: Well, you know, it's not exactly news that Donald Trump doesn't change, but Donald Trump doesn't change. And, you know, what's so remarkable about this statement is that it almost is identical to what he said right before the riot at the Capitol. That, you know, it walks up to the line of calling for violence. The implication is to call for violence. But he doesn't exactly say he's calling for violence.

However, his -- his supporters understand exactly what he's saying. And he's calling for violence. So, you know, we've all been warned, and we'll see what happens, as he likes to say.

KEILAR: What do you think, S.E.?

S.E. CUPP, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Well, we know he's very good at turning Americans against each other. He did that in his, you know, campaign for president in 2015. He did it throughout his presidency, and he's still doing it.

And we talk a lot about his -- his ego and the need to be adored and -- and see his power in evidence. But we talk a little less about his affinity for anarchy.

And part of this is he just loves to see it. He loves to see it burn. He loves breaking with social norms for the sake of it. He loves the disruption. Striking the match and watching it burn.

We saw that on January 6th. We've seen it a few times. And I think this is more of that.

And whether someone gets arrested or injured or killed in the process really isn't his concern, because he's here for the anarchy. That's how little he loves this country. He's willing to break it for his ego, but also his desire to watch it fall apart.

BERMAN: You know, Jeffrey, it's also notable that, in that statement we just heard, he called the prosecutors racist, which of course, the thing that they have in common, each of the three people he's talking about, is they're black. But I don't know, you know, what do you think he's getting at there?

TOOBIN: Well, I think he's just inciting racial division. I mean, he's pointing out that his prosecutors are black. And presumably, he's asserting that they are after him because he's white.

But I think it's more -- it's mostly just stirring up his supporters for racial resentment, which is something he -- he's done throughout his career, long before he was president. And I think that's the beginning and end of his agenda.

KEILAR: He's trying, S.E., to sow a persecution complex, which we've seen. It can be very effective. We're seeing that as part of the strategy not just in this speech but in a number of things that Trump and the GOP are pursuing to motivate voters.

CUPP: Well, yes. I mean, he -- part of the cultism of Trump is obviously, he's the central figure. Nothing else matters, including, like, democracy and the future of the country. And -- and he has to be a victim as much as a strong man. It's a very -- it's a very odd dichotomy.

[06:05:05]

But it's very common to cult leaders and dictators that they are always in the line of fire, these imaginary boogeymen, and they need their followers to sort of go off and chase them.

But that they are also, right, the strongest guy in the room or, you know, the most powerful person that's ever lived at the same time. It's -- it's sort of preposterous, but this is a very common pattern among -- among cult-like figures.

BERMAN: I want to play a little bit more of what Trump said. And this has legal indications. This is, Jeffrey, where he seems to dangle pardons. And again, we've been here before. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: If I run and if I win, we will treat those people from January 6th fairly. We will treat them fairly. And if it requires pardons, we will give them pardons, because they are being treated so unfairly.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BERMAN: So not just the moral implication, Jeffrey, of pardoning people who stormed the Capitol but also the impact on these investigations and prosecutions happening right now.

TOOBIN: Right. This is why it's considered so wrong for presidents to dangle pardons, because it changes the nature of the investigations.

If you are a defendant who is considering cooperating, who is considering pleading guilty, but then you hear the president of the United States say, Well, don't worry, you can just get a pardon later, you think, Well, I'll string the process out. I won't cooperate. I won't plead guilty, because the president is going to come to my rescue later.

Now, obviously, no one knows if he's going to be president again. But the possibility of a pardon is something that will have a material impact on the investigation.

And, look, he's done it before, as you pointed out. He pardoned Steve Bannon. He pardoned all of his cronies towards the end of his term, his first term as president. And there's every reason to believe that he'll pardon more in the future. And that will affect how the current investigation goes.

KEILAR: What do you think, S.E.?

CUPP: Right. But -- and Jeffrey is completely right. And that's the legal side.

But it's worse -- and, again, to look at Trumpism as a cult, you want to look at these people and say -- and shake them and say, Donald Trump doesn't care about you. Donald Trump doesn't care whether you storm the Capitol; get arrested; get injured; die, in fact, as long as you're doing it all in the service of his name.

He didn't bail anyone out of jail for what they did on January 6th. He's not paying any of their legal fees. In fact, he's taking donor money to pay for his legal fees.

So this goes to the cultism of Trump. These people would jump off a bridge if he told them to. And this is encouraging them to, you know, potentially commit more crimes in his name, because in the end he'll be on their side. He won't be. He does not care. He uses his own voters and fans.

KEILAR: And he isn't, Jeffrey, president anymore. There are, as you know, political observers who look and say, Actually, Donald Trump, while he still has a big hold on the party, his power is waning. And so I wonder if someone would actually say, Oh, this guy can give me a pardon, when he is not president.

TOOBIN: Well -- well, that's true. But, you know, he might be. And as someone who has underestimated Donald Trump politically in the past, I don't want to do it again. And he may -- and you know, he's certainly talking like he's running again. And he may win.

And -- but the whole point of not dangling pardons is that it interferes with the administration of justice. And, you know, yes, it's true he might not be president.

But, I mean, again, I think S.E. is so right about this, that you know, it's all about him. And, you know, the tragedy for his supporters, and if you read the interviews with some of the -- you know, the FBI agents' interviews of these people arrested on January 6th, the -- some of these people said, you know, I wanted to help Trump. I was -- I thought we were doing what he wanted.

And he has done nothing for them, ever, including paying the legal fees of the people closest to him. He doesn't even do that.

So, you know, it's -- just because you might not -- he might not become president, it doesn't mean that this isn't an attempt to interfere with the legal system.

BERMAN: I just want to read quickly this statement again that the former president -- the defeated former president put out overnight, where he's criticizing people calling for reform of the Electoral Count Act of 1887, which is a bad law that needs to be cleared up.

But it begins by saying, "If the vice president," Mike Pence, "had 'absolutely no right' to change the presidential election results in the Senate, despite fraud and other irregularities, how come Democrats and RINO Republicans are trying to pass legislation that will not allow the vice president to do that?" But the last line of it is really remarkable, where he says he could have overturned the election. It's just this admission against interests, S.E., where he's flat-out saying yes, yes. This is what we were trying to do. We were trying to overturn the election.

CUPP: Yes. There's no sugar coating it. That's 100 percent what he wanted to do. It's what he asked Mike Pence to do. That's certainly implied here. And that's why he's mad at Mike Pence, because he didn't do what he wasn't supposed to do.

And he's not hiding it anymore. It's completely brazen and out in the open. And he -- he's ended up doing it again.

And it just goes -- and Jeff can talk about the legal part of this. Because you know, it's like, I guess, a little complicated. But I cannot imagine, if this person gets to be president again, what -- I mean, what a failure of our legal system and DOJ and everyone else in a position -- I mean, if this guy can't get charged with something after being twice impeached, abusing his power over and over again, possibly criming while president and maybe after, inciting an insurrection, saying out loud he wants to overturn democratic elections, what's to stop any future president from doing all of this again? What -- what's the difference between having a president and a king if you get away with stuff like this?

I think to the average person, the non-legal scholar or constitutional scholar, it seems insane that he is -- hasn't been charged with something yet.

KEILAR: Yes. Especially when we've seen a lot of charges, just not when it comes to him directly. S.E. and Jeffrey, thanks to both of you.

TOOBIN: Sure.

KEILAR: The matchup for Super Bowl LVI is set. The Bengals will face the Rams after a pair of thrilling conference championship games. Andy Scholes has this morning's "Bleacher Report."

I mean, good football has just been the name of the game lately.

ANDY SCHOLES, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT/ANCHOR: Brianna, we've been so spoiled this play-off run, leading up to Super Bowl LVI. It's been just incredible.

And what a turnaround for the Cincinnati Bengals. Yes, two seasons ago, they won just two games. They had the worst record in the league. But that got them Joe Burrow. And no quarterback has ever won a Heisman, national title, and Super Bowl. And Burrow can do that in a three-year period.

And we should have all known the Bengals were going to win the game when Burrow showed up to the stadium like this. But they needed a huge comeback in order to get it done. They were down 21-3 at one point.

Third quarter, Burrow here, the rookie sensation Ja'Marr Chase for the touchdown. Two-point conversion would tie the game at 21. The game would end up going to overtime. And this time around, the rules would not cause an uproar.

The Chiefs would get the ball first, and Mahomes is going to throw an interception. It was the second of the game. Burrow then led the Bengals down the field. The best young kicker in the game, 22-year-old Evan McPherson, wins it.

And after years of being just the joke of the NFL, Cincinnati beats the Chiefs, 27-24, going to their first Super Bowl in 33 years.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE BURROW, CINCINNATI BENGALS QUARTERBACK: I think if you would have told me before the season that we'd be going to the Super Bowl, I probably would have called you crazy. But then, you know, we played a whole season, and you know, nothing surprises me now. I know the kind of guys we have and the team that we have.

So you know, there's still one left. We're excited about this one. But, you know, we'll celebrate tonight and then move on.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCHOLES: AFC championship, the Rams, they tried everything they could to keep 49ers fans out of Sofi Stadium, but it didn't work. There was just a sea of red in the stands. And those fans cheered them onto a 17-7 lead to start the first quarter.

But this is why the Rams got Matthew Stafford. Here, Stafford, the cup got them within three. The former Lions quarterback leading two more scoring drives to take the lead.

And then Aaron Donald and that defense sealing the deal a little over a minute to go. Jimmy Garoppolo under pressure. Going to throw an interception.

The Rams finally beat the 49ers after losing six in a row; 20-17 in the final.

So we got the Super Bowl set, guys, February 13th in L.A. We went 54 Super Bowls without having a team host one. Now we've had it two years in a row. The Bucs won last year. Now we've got the Rams.

The Rams, four-point favorites was the opening lines over the Bengals. But hard to bet against Joe Burrow, right?

KEILAR: Yes. And I'm just curious to see if that black turtleneck get- up becomes, like, a thing. Is that a thing that is adopted widely?

SCHOLES: It just exudes confidence, I'll tell you that.

BERMAN: Well, what it says to me is, I can win a Super Bowl and show you my etchings. It's like, you know? Just saying.

KEILAR: Wait. What does that mean? BERMAN: You know, it's a '70s thing. People, you know, Come look at my

etchings. You know, it's a '70s thing.

[06:15:06]

KEILAR: I don't know about the '70s.

SCHOLES: Before my time, yes.

BERMAN: Bell bottoms, turtlenecks. All right.

SCHOLES: You lost us, John. Sorry, yes.

KEILAR: In the commercial break, we're going to get to the bottom of that. All right.

Overnight, Joe Rogan actually responding to the backlash over the spread of COVID misinformation on his podcast. The promise that he made to his listeners.

And new details on the shocking death of a former Miss USA pageant queen after police say she jumped from her New York City high-rise.

BERMAN: And breaking news, new CNN reporting how close Kamala Harris was to the pipe bomb planted at the DNC.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KEILAR: Breaking news this morning. CNN has brand-new details about just how close then-Vice President-elect Kamala Harris was to a pipe bomb that was planted outside the Democratic National Committee headquarters, the same day as the January 6th Capitol insurrection last year.

Now, CNN previously had reported that Harris was evacuated minutes after the pipe bomb was discovered. But multiple sources now reveal that she was inside the DNC for nearly two hours before this pipe bomb was found.

Let's go right to CNN's Whitney Wild with the breaking new details.

That's not the only new thing that we've learned here, Whitney. It's also about how close the vice president-elect came to this.

WHITNEY WILD, CNN LAW ENFORCEMENT CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely. So let me take you back to January 5, 2021. Sometime between 7:30 and 9 p.m., January 5, a suspect, still at large, planted a pipe bomb right here outside the DNC, just a few feet from where I'm standing.

That is just a few yards from where Kamala Harris entered the DNC around 11:25 a.m. on January 6 with her motorcade. Brianna, she came yards from this pipe bomb.

A source tells CNN that the United States Secret Service responsible for her protection that day, swept the areas, interior of the building, the parking deck, the entrances and exits, as well as the driveway. But clearly, something was missed.

Again, she was inside the DNC beginning around 11:25 a.m. that day. The pipe bomb was discovered at 1:06 p.m. She was evacuated through an alternate route at 1:15, about, p.m.

So, again, she was in there for nearly two hours. And Brianna, this is a further detail, an example of more gaps in security that were present throughout the city that day.

When you look at a bird's-eye view of the chaos of the city, law enforcement was dealing with crises that were unfolding in many corners of the city, seemingly minute by minute.

But this time frame was particularly crucial, because the pipe bombs here were found just as rioters descended on the Capitol. So a chaotic scene here. Another example of a security gap. Another example, Brianna of just how much worse that day could have been.

Back to you.

KEILAR: Yes. A security gap that obviously needs to be closed. Whitney Wild live for us at the DNC, thank you so much.

And we do have some new CNN reporting on when it could be safe for the U.S. to finally ease COVID restrictions.

BERMAN: And hours from now, the U.N. Security Council set to hold an emergency meeting to address the crisis in Ukraine. This could be a real circus this morning. Heated debate expected.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:26:53]

BERMAN: New this morning, the U.S. has identified Russian elites from the Biden administration plans to sanction if Russian President Vladimir Putin does decide to invade Ukraine.

It comes as the U.N. Security Council meets to discuss the growing concerns over the tens of thousands of Russian troops stationed at the border.

Joining me here in New York, CNN national security correspondent Kylie Atwood.

Kylie, this is an emergency session called by the United States. It could be serious fireworks today.

KYLIE ATWOOD, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Yes, that's right. This is going to be really interesting to watch. This is the first time that the U.S. and Russia are standing off against one another at the United Nations, perhaps the most high-profile place on the global stage today, as Russia comes to amass this troop buildup along Ukraine's border.

Now, the United States called for this meeting, and here's why. They said, quote, "The United -- U.N. Security Council must squarely examine the facts and consider what is at stake for Ukraine, for Russia, for Europe, and for the core obligations and principles of the international order Russia -- should Russia further invade Ukraine. This is not a moment to wait and see."

Now, those are the words of the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations. She also said over the weekend that the U.S. isn't going to allow Russia to use this as a place to spread propaganda. That they are going to call Russia out if they try and spread disinformation.

What that means is that the U.S. may call Russia out in this public setting. This is an open meeting, everyone. What that means is that we're going to be able to see what Russia is saying, what the United States is saying. And this is the most public setting that they have both been sitting at the table together.

Now, the backdrop to all of this, Russia continues to amass more than 100,000 troops along Ukraine's border. And the Biden administration is very clear that they are preparing for the possible situation where Russia invades Ukraine in the imminent future.

Just last week, President Biden said he was prepared to send U.S. troops into Eastern Europe, into NATO countries in the near future. And we've learned over the weekend the U.S. is sharpening its options for sanctions, identifying Russian elites and Russian business officials who they say that they would sanction if Russia does invade Ukraine.

A lot to watch here. And we will see what it comes down to, what this diplomacy on the world stage looks like, later this morning.

BERMAN: Kylie Atwood, thank you for coming here before you head over to the United Nations for what will be perhaps a historic morning. Thanks, Kylie.

KEILAR: New this morning, an abandoned asphalt factory near Kyiv, Ukraine, has become a real-life training ground for civilians, who have pledged to fight against any Russian plans for invasion.

CNN's Sam Kiley has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SAM KILEY, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): An abandoned asphalt factory near Kyiv is now a training ground for civilians who volunteered to fight off a possible Russian invasion. They're outnumbered here by journalists and armed, at best, with pellet guns. They know they'll be outmatched by Moscow's military machine. But they are keen.

SERGIY CHURNIK, CLINICAL RESEARCHER AND VOLUNTEER: It is a crucial moment for our country. We have a really big risk that a Russian invasion might occur pretty soon. So that's why even civilians have to be ready.

[06:30:00]