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New Day Saturday

French Officials: Suspect May Have Terror Ties; North And South Korea Hold Talks Over War Threats; Trump Calls Up Alabama Senator During Event; Winds, Drought Fuel Fast Spreading Flames; Dow Plunges 531 Points; Baylor Recruit Sentenced for Sex Assault. 8-9a ET

Aired August 22, 2015 - 08:00   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN ANCHOR: Exclusive images here as Americans take down a suspected Islamist gunman on a train to France. This morning we see and hear from those men.

CHRISTI PAUL, CNN ANCHOR: And that's propaganda blasting for days from the loud speakers at the demilitarized zone in North Korea. This as leaders from the North and South are sitting together today at the table in a rare session to see what can be hashed out.

BLACKWELL: And thousands of firefighters now called in to battle these raging wildfires out west. U.S. soldiers, even civilians are being called in to help.

Good Saturday morning to you. Always good to start the day with you. I'm Victor Blackwell.

PAUL: I'm Christi Paul. We so appreciate your company this morning. Listen, we want to begin this hour with new details about the possible terror attack that was thwarted on that Paris-bound train. French officials say the suspect was carrying a coalition assault rifle and automatic pistol, several chargers and a box cutter.

Now Belgian officials have opened an anti-terrorism investigation into this incident as French investigators are trying to confirm possible ties the suspect had to radical Islam.

In the meantime, CNN has exclusive new video for you. Look at this captured by one of the men who took down that gunman. This is the aftermath of the vicious attack there. The suspect is on the floor, his hands tied behind his back.

At one point you can see that rifle that he carried lying in his seat. But there again is that suspect who they were able to take down. Senior international correspondent, Nic Robertson is following this story from Lille, France.

Nic, first of all, what do we know about the investigation into this thus far?

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, we heard within the last couple of hours from the French interior minister who said several things. That the attacker, the gunman, is telling them he's 26 years old, a Moroccan that lived in Spain 2014 and was living in Belgium this year.

The interior minister sort of cautioned that until this information checks out. They won't know that these are facts for shoe, but they are saying that they believe the Spanish authorities back in February in 2014 tipped off the French authorities that this man was on their radar.

They were aware of him and his ties to radical Islamists. Another European counterterrorism sources also told us that this man has ties to ISIS. The fact that he was living in Belgium this year and the train was coming from Amsterdam in Holland through Belgium, stopped in Brussels.

And just before it passed across the border here into France, that's when the attack took place. It raises a question, did the gunman get on in Brussels? That's not clear at this time, but it is interesting here that we have the Belgian authorities also watching their own counter terrorism investigation into this as well.

Of course, the attack did take place on their soil, but the train coming to a rest in a station just across the border here in France -- Christi.

PAUL: We heard earlier this happened officially been classified as terrorism. Do they believe there's another motive or are they just being very cautious in how to characterize this?

ROBERTSON: Well, the Belgian prime minister called this a terrorist attack. They say there's caution until they can get some clarification and check what this suspect is actually telling them.

But the facts are this at the moment, that this man had in his possession when he was stopped from shooting, trying to shoot people on this packed passenger train at a peak hour late yesterday afternoon.

He had on him a weapon with nine magazines. Now the magazines for that weapon can hold up to 30 bullets each. So he had a weapon with potentially 270 bullets there. He also had an automatic pistol, one round with that and a box cutter.

So this man was intent on a mass casualty attack. That's how it appears at the moment. So given the fact that he has this past track record or history and it is known to counter terrorism officials with ties to radical Islam.

[08:05:05] That certainly is raising the very clear concerns of a terrorist attack. And the French have taken this suspect into questioning in Paris to their external security headquarters in Paris -- Christie.

PAUL: And real quickly, Nic, three people hospitalized. Do we know their conditions? ROBERTSON: We know that this hospital here behind us, Mr. Stone was one of the first soldiers to move forward to take down this attacker. He was injured, cuts to his head, cuts to his neck, but it's his thumb that sustained we are told a serious injury.

We have a hand specialist here who tells us he's been in surgery over the last few hours. We don't know if he's out from surgery yet, but we do know he was brought here. We do understand that he was brought here to this hospital to get that surgery for his thumb given the best possible care that the French can give him at this time.

PAUL: All right, Nic Robertson, great update and information for us. We appreciate it so much. Thank you.

BLACKWELL: All right, let's learn more about those three American men being called heroes there in Europe, of course, also at the White House. Let's go to Nick Valencia who is standing by with details of these three men. No doubt they saved lives on that train -- Nick.

NICK VALENCIA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely. European officials are convinced this could have turned out much differently, especially when the gunman already fired several gunshots inside that train by the time the three Americans were able to subdue him.

We'll take you back to Friday where this incident happened on a high- speed train traveling between Amsterdam and Paris, France. These three Americans were in Europe to visit friends and were sitting on a train when they see a train conductor frantically running through the train carriage.

Behind him emerges a shirtless man with a rifle hanging from his shoulder armed with a box cutter and several other devices we are told. Now the Americans spoke to reporters shortly after this incident for the first time describing what happened.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANTHONY SADLER, SUBDUED ATTACKER ON TRAIN: I'm really proud of my friend that he just reacted so quickly and so bravely. My friend was the first one over there. Even after being injured himself, he went to go help the other man who was bleeding also. Without his help, he would have died. That man was bleeding from his neck like profusely and he just went over there and saved his life as he was bleeding himself.

ALEK SKARLATOS, SUBDUED ATTACKER ON TRAIN: He ran a good ten meters to get to the guy and we didn't know his gun was working or anything like that. Spencer was running any way and if anybody would have been shot, it would have been Spencer and we are lucky nobody got killed, especially Spencer.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VALENCIA: Truly incredible. They are talking about Spencer Stone, the U.S. Air Force man, who is currently hospitalized. We understand that he suffered a major injury to his thumb nearly lost his thumb. We also mentioned Anthony Sadler, he was on that train as well as Alex Skarlatos, who is a National Guards man, they are being credited with stopping what could have been a major terrorist attack -- Victor.

BLACKWELL: All right, Nick Valencia, thanks so much.

VALENCIA: You bet.

PAUL: Want to go some breaking news right now out of the Korean Peninsula, new pictures to share with you of the North Korean military, here it comes, standing by apparently, ready to attack South Korea if given the word. There they are.

Top officials from both sides are meeting behind closed doors to prevent this situation from turning out to an all-out war, but that's the scene near the border right now after North Korea told the South to stop blasting anti-Pyongyang propaganda over loud speakers near the border.

The two sides exchanged fire and the U.S. and China are monitoring that situation very closely as you can imagine. CNN correspondent, Will Ripley is live from Beijing right now.

Will, we know that China has always been ally of North Korea. They seemed a bit disengaged at this moment, however. What are you hearing from there?

WILL RIPLEY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: You're right, Christi. They are disengaged. It's significant, the political climate right now because clearly China remains North Korea's benefactor, certainly financially the North Korean economy would collapse without trade with China.

But politically, South Korea's president, President Park is going to be coming here to China for a military parade next month, but there's no indication if Kim Jong Un of North Korea will be coming to attend the same parade.

In fact, he's never visited the country here. We are seeing China noticeably disengaged when it comes to comparative previous incidents where North Korea has been involved in flare-ups on the Korean Peninsula and China has stepped in and ease the situation.

All we are getting right now is a statement, this one coming out from the foreign ministry. I'll read you a portion of it, quote, "As the Korean Peninsula's close neighbor, China is paying great attention to the situation on the peninsula and is deeply concerned about the developments in the recent days. China is willing to work together with all parties toward peace and stability of the peninsula."

[08:10:06] So notice that they are not mentioning North or South. They are talking about the peninsula as a whole and a big political visit from the South Korean president here to Beijing in just a matter of weeks -- Christi.

PAUL: Is there any indication of what would happen with China particularly if there is no resolution, if there is no reconciliation from this meeting?

RIPLEY: Neither side I would imagine the North or the South or China or the United States wants to see a full blown military conflict on the Korean Peninsula. The worst incident in recent memory was five years ago in October 2016 when there were two separate incidents, clashes between the North and the South including an alleged torpedo attack.

Fifty South Koreans died that year. This year, nothing like that so far, but there were those landmines back on August 4th where two South Korean soldiers almost died when they stepped on North Korean landmines.

So that's why South Korea started broadcasting these propaganda messages on those giant loud speakers, which of course, infuriates Pyongyang, which keeps its population quite isolated from any outside influence.

So in those meetings that are happening right now, you can bet that those key incidents, the propaganda speakers, the landmines, those are being discussed and the question is, is there going to be a concession made that will allow this situation to deescalate or will it escalate? Will we see more military action like the trading fire that we saw on Thursday of this week?

PAUL: All right, Will Ripley, we so appreciate hearing what's happening there. Thank you so much.

BLACKWELL: It was a big show in the south or should we say huge? Tens of thousands turned out in Alabama to hear Donald Trump's message as he said to make America great again.

Coming up, we're going to talk about the reaction to this event and the impact and how, how did Donald Trump get 30,000 people there in their football stadium.

Also, western wildfires, they are spreading quickly. President Obama now is stepping in as this situation is growing more dire. We are going live to Washington State, one of the hardest-hit states still ahead.

And the Dow down 531 points on Friday ending a losing week. What does this mean for your 401(k)?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[08:15:47]

BLACKWELL: Let's turn now to 2016 and the race for the White House. Here's "Sweet Home Alabama" with Donald Trump drawing a crowd of 30,000 in Mobile. Look.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Wow, wow, wow! Unbelievable. Unbelievable! Thank you. (END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: One city official called it the greatest event Mobile has ever put on besides Mardi Gras. Meanwhile, during the stop Trump spoke of recent controversies with his opponents and was joined on stage by Alabama's senator, Jeff Sessions, who shared a few complimentary words about the GOP frontrunner.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SENATOR JEFF SESSIONS (R), ALABAMA: Donald, welcome to my hometown, Mobile, Alabama. The American people, these people, want somebody in the presidency to stand up for them, defend their interest in the laws and traditions of this country. We welcome you here.

Thank you for the work that you've put into the immigration issue. I'm really impressed with your plan. I know it will make a difference. And this crowd shows a lot of people agree with that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: We've got with us now CNN politics reporter, Jeremy Diamond. Jeremy, 30,000, that's a Beyonce number. You've got tens of thousands of people in this stadium now for a political rally. And it seems, not only is Donald Trump getting the crowds, but he's shifting and carrying the narrative in the primary race.

JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN POLITICS REPORTER: No doubt about it. A week ago Donald Trump was at the Iowa State Fair also drawing big crowds. And then the next day he released his immigration policy proposal, the most detailed policy proposal he's released yet. And this whole week has been dominated by the Trump narrative.

But in a different way, instead of focusing on the rhetoric, it's been on policy and immigration issues. The other candidates were forced to kind of explain their immigration proposals and explain whether or not they were given birthright citizenship and you saw that continue with the anchor baby term that Trump used.

And others were forced to use or disregard it or to dismiss it altogether. So it's been a really interesting week and it's a momentous week for the Trump campaign as they're kind of becoming a much more serious campaign in terms of policy and in terms of really defining the race, not just on rhetoric, but on policy grounds.

BLACKWELL: Well, whatever he's doing, it appears to be working. We'll look at the latest Quinnipiac poll. Trump is polling ahead of Republican rivals there in Florida. He's leading and that's where Jeb Bush was once the governor for several terms. Four points ahead of him.

We know that in Texas he's leading both Cruz and former Governor Perry there. I mean, what are we expecting to see, and maybe we have seen some of this already, in response as Governor Scott Walker and former Governor Jeb Bush try to shift for his campaign to fizzle out, but we have not been seeing that. DIAMOND: Yes, we've really seen a shift from Governor Jeb Bush this week. Bush who in the past who has kind of tried to put Trump aside to dismiss what he's saying, call out his rhetoric but kind of try to take that and pivot and move to the real issues that he wants to talk about.

But this week we have seen a shift. We have seen him go after Trump. In terms of his policies, they are wrong so that he's not a conservative. He's repeatedly slammed him this week for supporting Democratic proposals in the past, like Trump used to support single health care, for example.

And then during the events actually, a pro-Jeb Bush super PAC flew a banner that said Trump for higher taxes, Jeb for pres. So we are seeing a shift there and Scott Walker was forced to address a lot of what Trump was saying this week, kind of put into a corner as to whether or not he supported the birthright citizenship question.

We are seeing a shift where Trump is not just being dismissed but seen as a real threat, I think, as pundits and political analysts and other campaigns realize the staying power of the Trump campaign.

[08:20:10] BLACKWELL: Yes, he said that previous to this event at the news conference, I'm not going anywhere, folks. And I think the other candidates believe that now. Jeremy Diamond, thank you so much.

DIAMOND: Thank you.

PAUL: Well, take a look at what our friends in the west are dealing with.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's so sad because I love where we live. I love the grandeur, the beauty, the wildlife.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PAUL: That's desperation there as the flames are rapidly spreading. The emergency measures now being taken to prevent more disasters.

BLACKWELL: Plus, are North and South Korea on the brink of war? We'll ask our correspondent at the border there what leaders are discussing this morning.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PAUL: You hear those winds there? That's what's happening in the west right now. One of the toughest seasons they have seen in many years. In fact, the governor of Washington said there are 390,000 acres burning. This is an unprecedented catechism in our state.

And we want to take you to Stephanie Elam. She is following the latest developments. President Obama approved an emergency declaration to get more aid to places there. Stephanie, what are you seeing this morning? [08:25:03] STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Christi. You're talking about a beautiful part of our country here burning, the western region of the country really feeling the pain from these fires.

And here where we are not far from a beautiful lake, there you can see behind us, we have a road block here, there are evacuations in place, and that's because fire continues to rage.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ELAM (voice-over): Across the country, more than 250 wildfires that are burning in 17 states.

JOHN PELISSIER, OREGON DEPARTMENT OF FORESTRY: They are all extreme, they are all big, really bad and all over the place.

ELAM: In hard hit Washington State, 390,000 acres are on fire. More than 3,000 firefighters and 26 planes are battling the flames.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's all hands on deck, as you can imagine with so many fires, it's tough.

ELAM: On Friday President Obama signed an emergency declaration allowing federal resources to move in. As firefighters work to save homes and evacuate residents from harm's way.

TODD PECHOTA, OKANOGAN COUNTY EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT: They are committed. They are tired, they are working long hours. They are not getting sleep. They are getting chased from one house to another. But they are giving it their best and are doing a great job.

ELAM: In Okanogan County, what was once a three-story home is left smoldering and reduced to ashes.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I don't ever remember something like this and I've lived here my whole life.

ELAM: Some of the evacuees are camped in a Home Depot parking lot.

SANDY TUMBLESTON, EVACUEE: It's so sad because I love where we live. I love the grandeur, the beauty, the wildlife.

ELAM: With resources stretched thin, about 200 active duty soldiers from Joint Base Lewis McCord are joining the fight against the fires. The situation is so desperate the state is now asking volunteers to help dig fire lines. And these residents help knock down flare ups close to their homes with boots and shovels.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Everything is stretched thin around here. This is what we do, we go out to protect our own, our friend, everything.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We all come together when we have to.

ELAM: The state is mourning the deaths of three firefighters who died earlier this week in Twisp when flames over took their vehicle after it crashed. Four others were also hurt, one critically.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You know the danger is always there. You just hope it never happens and when it does, it's tough.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ELAM: And right now it is cool in the 50-degree range here, but during the day and throughout the week temperatures will be in the 90s to make it very hard to fight fire. Combine that with the fact there's a stiff breeze out here and the fact that the western region is just so in drought that it makes it prime conditions for these fires to run rampant right now.

PAUL: Thank you, Stephanie, for the update.

BLACKWELL: North and South Korean officials are meeting right now to figure out if there's a way to prevent a shooting war there on the peninsula. Will they come to an agreement?

Also, Apple is down, Microsoft is down. The Dow's big board had a big hit on Friday, 500 points in a single day, roughly 1,000 for the week. So what does this mean for you?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[08:31:33] BLACKWELL: All right. Let's go to the Korean Peninsula now at the bottom of the hour, where we may soon know whether an all- out shooting war will begin or if it will be prevented? North and South Korean officials are meeting behind doors. And the North Korean jets are already standing by in case North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un gives the order to attack the South.

CNN's Kathy Novak is near the demilitarized zone there. Kathy -- these meetings have been going on for some time now. What are we hearing about it?

KATHY NOVAK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well Victor -- they are still happening behind closed doors. South Korea's military is still on high-alert for any further provocations from North Korea. But there's some hope that there may be a diffusing of tensions because these high-level people were able to actually come together and agree to meet at all.

But the sticking point has been that South Korea has been refusing to stop broadcasting propaganda across the border. We'll have to wait and see if out of this meeting anyone agrees to backs down because so far North Korea has been threatening to attack South Korea. And South Korea has been ready for that and saying it will retaliate strongly if that does, indeed, happen -- Victor.

BLACKWELL: Kathy -- tell us about what the response and reaction has been there in Seoul because we know it's a huge city not too far from the border. What has been the general response?

NOVAK: Well, on one hand, Victor, this kind of bellicose rhetoric comes from North Korea often. So citizens are used to it. But it seems that there are a number of factors playing in here. The joint exercises with the U.S. military, the land mine attacks, the propaganda warfare, this exchange of fire on the DMZ. So it's getting a lot of play and local media people are certainly aware of it. We have seen some protests in Seoul, but in the capital city many people are going about their business.

However, here where I am near the DMZ it's a very different picture. Actually we saw people being told to leave this area today because of the threat of imminent danger and other residents nearby had been evacuated from the towns that they live in because they are close to these high-risk areas. So there certainly is still a lot of fear, a lot of concern. And a little bit of hope that maybe something just might come out of this meeting that is still going on, Victor.

BLACKWELL: All right. Kathy Novak there along the DMZ watching it closely -- thanks so much.

PAUL: Meanwhile, escalating tensions and that heated rhetoric and the troops brace for war, how have things gotten to this critical point in the Korean peninsula? Let's get some perspective from CNN's Tom Foreman.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TOM FOREMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The DMZ is 160 miles long and cuts through the Korean Peninsula. And despite being called a demilitarized zone, it's one of those heavily guarded military barriers in the world. About a million active duty troops to the north, about 600,000 to the south and big reserves as well -- all on a footing for war really for the past 60 years in case there might an invasion from the other side.

Now we have seen some new skirmishes and the latest point of contention is this, the high-tech speakers that the South is using to broadcast messages into the North.

How could this make such a difference? Well, you have to consider the power of these speakers and the nature of the messages. These speakers -- one unit for example set in the mountains along the South here would have the capability of reaching by day about six miles into the North; by night about 12 miles in when the sound carries a little bit better.

[08:35:04] The messages that have been sent recently have been very sharply critical of the Northern leadership. Sometimes they use defectors to the South to call out to their former countrymen. And the North feels a little bit powerless to do anything about this in terms of the quid pro quo because even though they have their own speaker systems, theirs only carry about a mile and in some cases that will not even get them across the DMZ itself. That's one of the reasons why the North has reacted so badly to the use of this technology and said that has to stop or this will keep escalating.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PAUL: Let's talk to CNN military analyst Major General James "Spider" Marks; and Gordon Chang, a Forbes.com columnist and the author of "Nuclear Showdown: North Korea takes on the World".

Thank you gentlemen for being with us.

Major General, we'd like to start with you. We're talking about, you know, Kim Jong Un in regards to the fact that he's still somewhat of a mystery to a lot of people. Nobody really knows how far he might go. But do you see this as perhaps him just wanting attention as he is known to want when the world is so preoccupied perhaps with ISIS and Syria and Iran?

MAJ. GEN. JAMES "SPIDER" MARKS, CNN MILITARY ANALYST: You know, Christi -- thanks very much. What we see on the North Korean Peninsula is not new. I mean the North Korean regime has always sought attention and has always been provocative.

So what we see in the North is behavior that we have to take very, very seriously. But at the same time we understand what they are trying to get. What they are trying to get is concessions. If they act poorly and if we can now collectively -- we collectively -- the U.S. has a very large military presence and the South Korean military is extremely professional. We are completely linked.

If we can get the North Koreans to back off, we therefore will give them concessions. So this is behavior and a pattern we have seen before. And the key thing is, I think the short answer to your question is, there's very little that we know about Kim Jong Un other than through the behavior that we have seen over the past several years since he's been in charge.

PAUL: And you're right.

Gordon, these are not two countries known for diplomatic relationships. So the fact that they're sitting down at a table with leaders together is quite rare. What do you think the conversations are that they're having? And they have been meeting, as I understand it now for about three hours. How long do you think this could take?

GORDON CHANG, FORBES.COM: Well, I don't think they will come to an agreement today. I could be wrong, of course. They will be adjourned. They'll have further discussions. The important point here is that Kim Jong Un is not going to attack South Korea today because the United States and South Korea are at a high degree of readiness because of these Ulchi Freedom Guardian exercises. These are going to go on for another week or so with other countries.

And that means the United States right now is prepared for anything that could occur. So I think that essentially we will see a little bit of drama at Panmunjom. But these will carry on for a little while because Kim Jong Un right now is just trying to milk this for all its worth.

PAUL: Well. And we have seen pictures -- and if we have them, if we can put them up please. We did get some new pictures in the last hour of some military forces who are apparently congregated now along the DMZ here. So that's coming into us here in just a moment. There they are, this is on the North Korean side, as I understand it. So Major General, we see this, we know that South Korea is urging all residents living near that DMZ area to evacuate. Is that normal?

MARKS: It is normal. Frankly this happens as a matter of routine. This series of exercises that Gordon referred to take place annually and then throughout the year there are other exercises. This is really the culmination of a number of exercises working their operations plan for the potential invasion from the north.

So this is kind of business as usual, but clearly it's such a tinderbox. North Korea has such a huge army. South Korea is incredibly ready and it is very vitriolic around the DMZ. So caution has to prevail.

I think the key thing in terms of what Pyongyang needs to worry about is that there could -- look at the pictures. Look at the pictures of Kim Jong Un when he's sitting around the table with his general officers. What do you see? You see this young leader on one side of the table in a confrontational pose and all of his senior leaders are sitting there furiously taking notes. There's little collaboration.

This is a big problem for North Korea. And I think the big challenge that Seoul worries about is an implosion when North Korea finally gets done with all of this. Now they have to absorb 25 million North Koreans that haven't known a normal life in quite some time.

PAUL: And Gordon, really quickly, if there's no resolution to this -- no reconciliation, what is next?

CHANG: Well, I think that there's going to be (INAUDIBLE) tension. But, you know, at the end of the day, I think the real problems are in North Korea with the regime tearing itself apart. And every day that there's peace on the Korean Peninsula is a victory for South Korea, which is just getting stronger. And the regime in North Korea is getting weaker.

PAUL: All right. Gordon Chang and Major General James "Spider" Marks -- appreciate both of you so much. Thank you.

[08:40:06] CHANG: Thank you.

MARKS: Thank you Christi.

BLACKWELL: All right. So I'm sure you've seen this by now. Markets around the world hit by a massive sell-off including here in the U.S.

The Dow Jones on Friday 530 points off on the day, more than a thousand for the week. How could this affect your bottom line?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PAUL: All right. There is -- there are the pictures I should say, oh my goodness, what a tough week for the stock market. The Dow Jones plunged 531 points just yesterday, more than a thousand for the week collectively. This is the worst weekly sell-off since 2011. Let's talk to Robin Wigglesworth from New York right now, U.S. markets editor for the "Financial Times". Mr. Wigglesworth -- thank you so much for being with us.

When you first saw collectively the numbers here at the end of the week, what was your first thought?

ROBIN WIGGLESWORTH, "FINANCIAL TIMES": Well, we knew it was going to be a bad week. I don't think we realized at least at the start just how brutal it was going to be. By Friday it was just carnage. I think quite a lot of people were engulfed (ph) at some point during the day.

PAUL: European and Asian markets we know are experiencing let's say some market misery. Do you think that we're looking at a real global economic problem that could be long-term here?

WIGGLESWORTH: Well, the interesting thing is I think typically, at least in recent years, you know, the problems being in the U.S. because of the financial crisis or in Europe because of the European crisis. In Germany the emerging markets and the developing world have been (INAUDIBLE) along caught that from the developed world.

[08:45:04] This time around it's another emerging markets issue primarily across the board in Russia and Brazil where lots of countries are struggling. It's going to be interesting to see if this becomes another rerun. You have had crises in the developing world before. In 1998 half of Asia went bust. This time Asia and the developing world are half the global economy. So you know, if they catch the flu we're going to notice it.

PAUL: Ok. So a lot of people might be looking at this and say, you know what? This might be a good time for me to put more money into my 401(k). To that what do you say?

WIGGLESWORTH: I think people should always be careful. I suspect that, you know, right now the future indicating the market is going to fall again on Monday and quite heftily so. At some point it will be time to save up a bit more money, but right now I think people should be, yes, saving for a rainy day. Stick it in the bank account.

PAUL: Stick it in the bank account. All right. Robin Wigglesworth -- appreciate your thoughts here on this. Thank you.

WIGGLESWORTH: Thank you.

PAUL: Absolutely.

BLACKWELL: Frustration is building today in North Carolina. Protests at points become violent after a mistrial of a Charlotte police officer who shot and killed an unarmed black man.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[08:49:56] BLACKWELL: Two people are in jail after peaceful protests turned violent in Charlotte, North Carolina. Protestors, many of them outraged that a jury could not reach a verdict in the case against Officer Randall Kerrick. He's been charged in the shooting death of college football player Jonathan Ferrell after a September 2013 car wreck. Now this case became part of the national conversation about the killing of unarmed black citizens by police.

Let's talk more now with Somerville mayor, Joseph Curtatone. Mayor Curtatone, it's good to have you this morning.

MAYOR JOSEPH CURTATONE (D), SOMERVILLE, MASSACHUSETTS: Good morning Victor.

BLACKWELL: I want to show a couple of photos here. Let's put them up on the screen if we can guys. We have a huge Black Lives Matter banner -- here it is, draped on the front of the Somerville city hall. You had this put up on Wednesday. Explain why.

CURTATONE: Well, the banner is more than a statement. It's an affirmation of our community's values to uphold fairness and equity for everyone and their treatment and service in a public institution. And affirm our role in an important national conversation.

It's also a question that we're asking ourselves, what should we be doing? Have we done enough? And what role do cities play in ridding our public institutions -- (INAUDIBLE) institutions of structural racism?

BLACKWELL: You know, as we have heard from the Black Lives Matter movement that the words are nice but what people are looking for is action. What actions come behind your answer was there and this banner that is hanging there in front of city hall?

CURTATONE: Yes, I think that's very important to keep in mind. Words are empty without concrete action. And the first action is really self-vigilance and examination, which is humbling and difficult to ask ourselves and to really self-examine our institution, but an important one that we're going to do.

So to further that whether it's new or against training, anti-racial training or not, the police department and all the agencies, a community-wide conversation. People need to understand that this is going to be a community-wide effort from the city of Somerville, not just from its elected officials so whether it's investment in how we retrain or training our staff -- not just in our police department but in all our public institutions. Our hope is that the private institutions in the community will participate as well. Those are just some of the steps.

BLACKWELL: There has been a lot of support for the decision to hang the banner but I'm sure you would have expected there's been some criticism. One person saying "The banner excludes everyone else that is not black, doesn't it?" Another one tweeting, "What should be celebrated is all lives matter."

What is your response? Have you heard anything like this there in Somerville? CURTATONE: Yes, we have. And I want everyone to understand, whether

you agree or don't agree for that reason that we are fighting for all lives. And, of course, all lives matter. And we're in a country with a long troubling history, racial history, from slavery to mass incarceration, which is a new Jim Crow.

And I find that when people make that argument to default to push against all Black Lives Matter because we're being accused of unfairly painting everyone who wears a badge with being bad or being racist. That's not the point. We're really focused in our institutions. Of course not every individual is bad, not every officer is a bad officer. We are very proud of our law enforcement officials. But the statistics don't lie.

The images that you're putting up, the videos you're showing, in our country the statistics show that black Americans are disproportionately arrested, jailed and charged to longer prison terms. They are disproportionately killed by those entrusted to enforce the law. So it's a harsh reality to face. And it gives us this trumpet to do that.

But we should hate discomfort and inconvenience as much as we hate -- I mean we should hate injustice as much as we hate discomfort or an inconvenience.

BLACKWELL: All right. Joseph Curtatone, mayor of Somerville, Massachusetts. Good to have you on the show this morning.

CURTATONE: Thank you -- Victor.

BLACKWELL: All right -- Christie.

PAUL: All right. We're going to have a conversation about a Baylor University football player who is sentenced for sexual assault. And the question a lot of people are asking now. Why did the university green light his recruitment if they knew about this history?

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PAUL: Well, Baylor University says it is conducting an investigation or will do so into the school's handling of rape allegations against a football player who was allowed to transfer into the program.

BROWN: And here's the latest here. Sam Ukwuachu was sentenced yesterday after being found guilty of assault.

Kristen Ledlow joins us now with more on this case. The question here is, what did or didn't the team know and when?

KRISTEN LEDLOW, CNN SPORTS: Right. And that's the question. That's why there's an ongoing investigation and this story continues to develop as well. Now Ukwuachu will serve six months behind bars and 10 years' probation for sexually assaulting a fellow Baylor student back in 2013.

But critics are questioning how he even got on Baylor's campus in the first place. The 22-year-old former all American was dismissed from Boise State back in 2013 for violating unspecified rules before transferring to Baylor. Now he didn't play at all last season and head coach Art Briles never gave a reason why. Briles does maintain that he was not aware of Ukwuachu's past, including the sexual assault allegations.

But meanwhile, Baylor has released a statement saying in part, "Maintaining a safe and caring environment is central to Baylor's mission and at the heart of our commitment to our students, faculty and staff."

Now, Ukwuachu actually graduated from Baylor in May and he was taking graduate courses before the trial and still had a year of eligibility to play football after graduation according to NCAA rules.

So guys, that is as of right now, everything that we know and like I said, the story continues to develop.

BLACKWELL: Is the expectation that Baylor looked past these instances and to bring him on because he's that good of a player?

LEDLOW: Right that is the question. And right now, that's obviously why you guys are talking to legal analysts along the way as all these questions continue to be answered and, you know, the story unfolds.

[09:00:07] BLACKWELL: All right. Thank you -- Kristen.

PAUL: Kristen -- thank you so much.

LEDLOW: Thanks -- guys.

BLACKWELL: All right. We'll see you back here at 10:00 Eastern for another hour of NEWSROOM.

PAUL: "SMERCONISH" is now.