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New Day
California Firefighter Shot While Battling Dumpster Fire; Cruz: Biden's Black Woman Court Vow Is "Offensive" And "Insulting"; New York Times Buys Word Game Hit "Wordle". Aired 7:30-8a ET
Aired February 01, 2022 - 07:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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[07:33:37]
JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: A California firefighter has died after being shot while battling a fire. Captain Max Fortuna was a 21-year veteran with the Stockton Fire Department. Officials say they detained a 67-year-old man at the scene.
CNN's Camila Bernal joins us now with the details here. What an awful story.
CAMILA BERNAL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, John, this really is a heartbreaking story and I want to start from the beginning.
It was early Monday morning when Capt. Max Fortuna was out, essentially working on a dumpster fire, and that's when he was shot. His fellow firefighters really tried to help him. They took him to the hospital but that was not enough.
Police arrived on the scene and they arrested a 67-year-old man. He had a 38-caliber handgun. He was taken to the county jail and is facing homicide and weapons charges.
Now, the family of the shooter telling local affiliates that this was all a mistake. They say that he was a victim of a lot of recent break- ins. But I do want to make it clear that police have not given a motive. They say this investigation is ongoing.
But I do want to focus on Capt. Max Fortuna. He was 47 years old, a father of two, a husband. The union president describing him as someone who enjoyed the job -- who showed up to be a firefighter every single day and did not complain.
I also want you to listen to what the fire chief had to say about this loss.
[07:35:01]
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RICHARD EDWARDS, STOCKTON FIRE CHIEF: This is my worst nightmare as the fire chief. This is a very, very sad day for this fire department. MAYOR KEVIN LINCOLN, STOCKTON, CALIFORNIA: Captain Max Fortuna was
one of our heroes. He is a hero. This is a sobering reminder of the many sacrifices our firefighters make day in and day out in service to our community.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BERNAL: And unfortunately, this is just one of a number of incidents where we see first responders either killed or injured in the line of duty just this year -- John.
BERMAN: It's outrageous and our thoughts are with the family and the community.
Camila Bernal, thank you.
BERNAL: Thank you.
BERMAN: This morning, Whoopi Goldberg apologizing after saying this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
WHOOPIE GOLDBERG, CO-HOST, "THE VIEW": The Holocaust isn't about race.
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BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN ANCHOR: And chilling video of a driver opening fire in this extreme case of road rage. We're going to tell you how this ended.
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BERMAN: This morning, the Chicago Jewish community on edge after two synagogues were vandalized over the weekend. The incidents took place just hours and blocks apart.
One synagogue found images of swastikas on the side of the building. A young man also reported being assaulted by the vandal on his way to the synagogue. Police say they were called to the next synagogue for a man kicking the side of the building and trying to break a window.
Officials say they have a person of interest in custody who has not yet been charged.
KEILAR: Nazi symbols are also appearing at vaccination protests in Canada and in Florida, where police are investigating an alleged assault involving white supremacists.
CNN reporters are covering it all.
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ISABEL ROSALES, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (on camera): I'm Isabel Rosales in Atlanta. Disturbing videos of anti-Semitic demonstrations from over the weekend in Florida are drawing outrage and condemnation. Cell phone video shows a group of demonstrators by the side of the road displaying Nazi symbols and yelling anti-Semitic slurs. One video captured a physical altercation involving some demonstrators and another person.
The anti-Semitic demonstrations have lawmakers and officials speaking out on social media. Senator Rick Scott tweeted, "The hateful and anti-Semitic demonstrations reported in Florida have no place in our state."
Orange County Sheriff John Mina vows to thoroughly investigate any reports of criminal activity.
PAULA NEWTON, CNN ANCHOR AND CORRESPONDENT (on camera): I'm Paula Newton in Ottawa where the "Freedom Convoy: -- the truckers' protest -- continues to cause severe disruption. Now, these are truckers and some others who believe that it is time that all health restrictions end, and that includes vaccine and mask mandates. Now, there have been some incidents, although it has been mostly peaceful.
[07:40:00]
The prime minister, the mayor, the premier of Ontario all calling out what they say are hateful acts and symbols, and some harassment and vandalism.
The truckers say they have dug in and will not move until those mandates are changed.
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BERMAN: Joining me now is Holly Huffnagle. She is the American-Jewish Committee U.S. director for fighting anti-Semitism. Holly, thanks so much for being with us.
You've been tracking what's going on for the last few weeks and you say this is basically now just a daily occurrence.
HOLLY HUFFNAGLE, U.S. DIRECTOR FOR COMBATING ANTI-SEMITISM, AMERICAN JEWISH COMMITTEE (via Skype): Unfortunately, we are seeing more and more of these incidents in the past couple of weeks.
Even in January, there were neo-Nazis waving flags. And in Florida, there were synagogues defaced, and Chicago. Right here in Washington, D.C. where I am faced -- where I am based, there are Nazi swastikas on Union Station. There have been Jewish children spat on in New York. And, of course, just a couple of weeks ago, the horrific hostage situation in Colleyville, Texas.
But this is part of a larger picture of the last few years here in America.
BERMAN: Look, for generations, we've been asking why. Why is this happening? And you've been doing some polling on this and what you see is sort of a fundamental lack of understanding or appreciation that it is even happening.
HUFFNAGLE: So, we found in our report -- American Jewish Committee -- we've done a report for the last three years. We actually started this report after the Tree of Life synagogue shooting in Pittsburgh, just trying to figure out what's happening.
What do American Jews think? What does the general public think? Do they even know what anti-Semitism is? Are they even aware that it's rising?
And our polling has found that American Jews are very concerned about anti-Semitism. Nine in 10 think it's a problem in the United States. Eight in 10 believe that it has increased in the last five years. And one in four have actually been the personal target of anti-Semitism in the last year alone.
And yet, one-third of Americans don't even know the word anti-Semitism or aren't familiar with it -- couldn't define it. And only 44 percent of Americans believe that it's increasing. So we really do have this divergence right now.
BERMAN: Look, I was speaking to a professor a few weeks ago who said she thinks the term "anti-Semitism" does a disservice. We should just call it Jew-hating and people would have a better understanding of what we're talking about there.
Before I let you go, I do want to get your take. Whoopi Goldberg caused quite a stir when she said this on "THE VIEW." Let's listen.
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GOLDBERG: The Holocaust isn't about race.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No.
GOLDBERG: No, it's not about race.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Well, maybe --
(CROSSTALK)
GOLDBERG: But it's not about race. These are two white groups of people. How do we --
JOY BEHAR, CO-HOST, "THE VIEW": Well, they went after Black people, too.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: People see them as white --
GOLDBERG: But you're missing the point. You're missing the point.
BEHAR: Yes.
GOLDBERG: The minute you turn it into race it goes down this alley. Let's talk about it for what it is. It's how people treat each other.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BERMAN: Now to be clear, Jews in Germany and in Eastern Europe were victims of racial purity laws, quite literally.
Whoopi Goldberg apologized completely. She said she was wrong about that statement. But what did you hear there?
HUFFNAGLE: Well, we're thankful she apologized. Unfortunately, I don't know how many viewers of "THE VIEW" know about that apology. They might be remembering what she said. And that's always a challenge when lies can actually spread so much faster than truth.
But we know that race is a construct and the Nazis used that race -- used race as a way to annihilate six million of Europe's Jews.
And I think we're at a time right now where less and less Americans know about the Holocaust. We're seeing the Holocaust trivialized against anti-mask mandates, anti-vaccine mandates. And this is so important because as anti-Semitism is rising we have to have truth about where anti-Semitism can lead and that's why we need to speak this truth. And at least we're thankful that Whoopi apologized.
BERMAN: Well, thank you for speaking the truth. Holly Huffnagle, thanks for being with us this morning.
HUFFNAGLE: Thank you.
BERMAN: So, did you get today's Wordle? The creator of this hugely popular mind game just got a big payday.
KEILAR: Four tries today -- four tries. A success for me; bad for Jake Tapper. That's his standard.
So, OK, Sen. Ted Cruz, the voice of the oppressed white man, very offended over President Biden's commitment to nominate the first Black woman to the Supreme Court.
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SEN. TED CRUZ (R-TX): And I've got to say that's offensive. He's saying if you're a white guy, tough luck.
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[07:48:40]
KEILAR: Senator Ted Cruz joining other Republicans in criticizing President Biden's commitment to nominate the first Black woman to the Supreme Court.
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CRUZ: The fact that he's willing to make a promise at the outset that it must be a Black woman -- I've got to say, that's offensive. MICHAEL KNOWLES, CONSERVATIVE POLITICAL COMMENTATOR, AUTHOR, MEDIA
HOST: Right.
CRUZ: You know, Black women are, what, six percent of the U.S. population? He's saying that 94 percent of Americans, I don't give a damn about you. You are ineligible.
And he's also saying -- it's actually an insult to Black women. If he came and said I'm going to put the best jurist on the court and he looked at a number of people and he ended up nominating a Black woman, he could credibly say OK, I'm nominating the person who is most qualified.
KNOWLES: Right.
CRUZ: He's not even pretending to say that. He's saying if you're a white guy, tough luck. If you're a white woman, tough luck, you don't qualify.
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KEILAR: Joining us now to discuss is former senator from Illinois, Carol Moseley Braun, the first Black woman elected to the U.S. Senate in 1992. And she also served as a United States ambassador to New Zealand and Samoa. Senator, thank you for being with us this morning. We do appreciate it.
CAROL MOSELEY BRAUN, FORMER U.S. SENATOR FROM ILLINOIS, FIRST AFRICAN- AMERICAN WOMAN ELECTED TO THE U.S. SENATE (via Skype): Thank you so much. I'm delighted to be -- thank you for having me.
KEILAR: Of course.
So, I wonder what you thought about what Ted Cruz said there.
BRAUN: Well, as a Black woman and lawyer, I am not offended, and why Ted Cruz would be is a mystery to me. But it just -- you know, he's just spouting nonsense.
[07:50:04]
Of the 115 Supreme Court justices that we've had in the history of this country, 108 have been white males. So, you know, what he's upset about is really mysterious and stupid.
(LAUGHTER)
Sorry.
KEILAR: Mysterious and stupid, you say. So then, why do you -- do you have an idea of why he might be making that point where he's saying if you're a white male, now you're out of luck?
BRAUN: He's race-baiting and this is called -- this is the voice of white supremacy. Quite frankly, for him to say that -- we would have preferred to have Barack Obama appoint the first Black woman to the United States Senate. Of the 100 -- of the 1,850 senators, I was the first Black woman elected to the Senate.
And so, now we have a chance to put a Black woman on the Supreme Court. And the reason -- and it's not just because she's Black, it's because she would have had -- will have had a series of life experiences that will inform the decisions of the court in the same way, hopefully, that Thurgood Marshall was able to influence the Warren court.
So, you know, this is called progress. This is called making democracy real for people. And I just hope that we will continue and get a quick confirmation of one of the four that President Biden is considering.
KEILAR: So when -- you know, when you decided to run for Senate, as you well know and recall, your qualifications were questioned. What was that like for you, and what do you think that's like for this nominee?
BRAUN: Well, that's the first place they go, by the way, is qualifications. And quite frankly, these women who have been -- whose names have been floated are at least as qualified if not more qualified than Justice Brett Kavanaugh and Amy Coney Barrett. They've got -- they've got the credentials and they've played -- they've plowed the ground. If you think about it, they had to come through dealing with both racism and sexism and still were able to succeed.
So, if anything, these are people who should be congratulated and commended for their successes instead of taken down and pot-shotted over their credentials.
KEILAR: You know, Sen. Roger Wicker said that whoever is picked will have been a beneficiary of affirmative action. But perhaps one of the more eye-popping things he said was, quote, "We're going to go from a nice stately left-wing liberal to someone who's probably more in the style of Sonia Sotomayor."
Why do you think he sees Breyer as nice and stately and yet, in his opinion, the first Hispanic female justice is not, and he expects that the first Black female justice, whose identity we don't even know yet, will not be nice and stately?
BRAUN: I made the point earlier that this is the voice of white supremacy. They are -- they are pushing back. This is a backlash in terms of white supremacy in a time when we have seen a rise in anti- Semitism. It's all the same stuff. This is the evil that our last president unleashed on the country.
And it's called hatred of whatever. Whatever the other is, you're going to hate it.
And I just think that's just -- that's just wrong. We need to call it out for what it is -- that it's wrong -- and make the point that people should be judged on the content of their character and not the color of their skin.
And in terms of this appointment -- like I said, Black women -- there's never been a Black woman on the United States Supreme Court. We all, again, had hoped that Barack Obama would make that first appointment. He didn't get to do it because his nominations, among other things, were held up.
But the fact is that Joe Biden in doing this will be fulfilling a campaign pledge not only that he made but that the Democratic Party has made to Black -- to the Black community and to the whole country.
And again, I've got a different set of experiences. When I got to the United States Senate I brought a different set of experiences to that body that I hope were helpful.
We had had the Confederate flag patent renewed over and over and over again until I stood up and said wait a minute -- this is offensive to Black people who were held in slavery under the -- under this flag. And my colleagues finally got it and we wound up -- wound up denying the patent, thank goodness. But again, that was something that passed unnoticed and undiscussed until I got there.
And so, I think that having a Black woman on the United States Supreme Court will help to inform decisions there in ways that will help the country to grow and to be better and fulfill the promise of democracy. That is what this is really about. Are we going to have a democracy that works for everybody or just for some people?
KEILAR: Well, we are at a historic moment and I know that we will speak more here in the coming weeks.
[07:55:01]
Former senator Carol Moseley Braun, thank you for being with us.
BRAUN: Thank you so much for having me.
BERMAN: All right, shifting gears here.
Wordle -- you might have heard of it, at least if you're on Twitter you've definitely heard of it. The online game has become a viral sensation. Players get six tries to guess a five-letter word.
Well, guess what? It now has a new O-W-N-E-R. "The New York Times" purchased the game for a seven-figure price tag.
Joining us now is the general manager of games at the "Times," Jonathan Knight. Jonathan, I don't want to make this a hostile interview but you need to answer the question that every Wordle user wants to know. Will you commit right here and now that forevermore in perpetuity Wordle will be free to everybody?
JONATHAN KNIGHT, GENERAL MANAGER FOR GAMES, THE NEW YORK TIMES (via Skype): Thank you for having me. It's great to be here.
Yes. When the word -- when Wordle comes to "The New York Times" it will be free to play for everyone.
BERMAN: That doesn't answer my question. When it comes to "The New York Times" it will be free. How about five years from now, 10 years from now?
KNIGHT: I wish I had that kind of crystal ball but I don't.
BERMAN: So you won't commit that Wordle will always be free -- because it's free now?
KNIGHT: That's right, it is free. When it comes to the "Times" it will be free and -- yes.
BERMAN: This is being evasive. This is not a Shermanesque denial right now at this point.
KNIGHT: I just -- I -- yes, it's just hard for me to talk about anything five years in the future or 10 years in the future. So, you know, all I can say is that the game will remain free when it comes to "The New York Times."
BERMAN: All right, then the hostile part of the interview can be over now.
KEILAR: Well, I don't know. Now I want to ask one more question about it, which is Jonathan -- I mean, isn't that part of what's so wonderful about Wordle is that it's free for the masses? Anyone can play it.
KNIGHT: It is -- it is, absolutely, and that is not something that we would want to change and it's definitely one of the big reasons why it's so successful. And, you know, we're just excited to have this audience be introduced to "The New York Times" -- to introduce "The New York Times" to this game. And there's so much value we're going to get from that. So we're not thinking right now about limiting the game in any way.
BERMAN: It seems to me you guys got a pretty good deal, right? I mean, do you -- do you feel -- I know seven figures, which is millions by my count -- I'm not good with math -- but not tens of millions for something that literally is all Twitter talks about right now and has a vast following. It's not a bad deal.
KNIGHT: We're really excited. I mean, look, this game is really special. It's magical and it just doesn't happen very often that a game kind of captures the collective imagination. It's an easy puzzle to play.
It's quick -- it fits really well into your day. I wake up every morning thinking about it. I'm sure you do too if you play it.
And I love the fact that we're all trying to find the same five-letter word every day. So, it sort of brings everybody together at a time when we need that, and it's got a very special way that you share the game with your friends, families, colleagues.
And yes, we're just thrilled. It's a -- it's a magical little game.
KEILAR: It is magical and isn't it also -- it's just odd to me that it wasn't invented before, right, for how simple it is. KNIGHT: Well, I mean, like as often happens in games it's a collection of different ideas that have been done before but put together in a new and fresh way. And that's what Josh Wardle, creator, has done here.
It's -- you know, it's a small little game that feels like things that have been done before but the way you share it is incredibly innovative. And you have those little green and yellow squares that tell a little story, frankly, about how you solved the puzzle. And every little story is unique and yet, it doesn't give away the answer but it tells the story of how you got the answers. So that's just very clever.
It feels great. It's only one word a day. He specifically limited it and that sort of scarcity I think makes it special. It's six tries -- it's not five, it's not seven. There's just a lot of special little nuances that he pulled together in a great package.
BERMAN: You going to keep it to one word a day?
KNIGHT: We are absolutely not changing that. And look, we're -- I would say generally, we're super-committed to, like, continuing the things that make this game special.
BERMAN: Well, Jonathan Knight, I appreciate you being with us.
KEILAR: Can I ask one more quick question?
BERMAN: Well, only if it's like 20 seconds or shorter.
KEILAR: What is your opening word, Jonathan?
KNIGHT: Mine is raise, R-A-I-S-E.
KEILAR: Yes.
KNIGHT: I go with the vowel strategy.
KEILAR: Yes.
KNIGHT: I can't say that will get you a two. It tends to get me threes and fours pretty consistently.
KEILAR: OK, all right. Good to know.
BERMAN: That's really good. That's better than mine.
KEILAR: It's a good one.
BERMAN: All right. Jonathan Knight, thank you very much for being with us.
KNIGHT: Thanks for having me. Thanks so much.
BERMAN: NEW DAY continues right now.
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