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Wolf

114th Congress Gavels Into Session; House Members Voting For Speaker; Two New York Police Officers Shot; Was Crew Warned on Flight 8501; Police Shooting Arrests; AirAsia Search

Aired January 06, 2015 - 13:00   ET

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

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WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, I'm Wolf Blitzer. It's 1:00 p.m. here in Washington, 6:00 p.m. in London, 8:00 p.m. in Jerusalem, 9:00 p.m. in Moscow. Wherever you're watching from around the world, thanks very much for joining us.

We start this hour with the opening of the 114th U.S. Congress. And for the first time since 2005, Republicans control both the House of Representatives as well as the U.S. Senate. This is a Congress that will deal with Obamacare, the Keystone Pipeline, immigration reform, a host of international issues including Syria, Iraq, ISIS, Russia, North Korea and a whole lot more.

Here's a breakdown. Republicans gained nine seats in the U.S. Senate. They now hold a 54 to 46 majority in the Senate. When you factor in the two independents who caucused with the Democrats, that brings the Democrats up to 46. Senator Mitch McConnell is now the Senate majority leader.

Here's the breakdown in the House of Representatives. Republicans hold a 246 to 188 majority after picking up a 13-seat net gain in the midterm elections in November. So, are the American people hopeful things will be different in this new U.S. Congress? Not really. In our brand-new CNN ORC poll, look at this, 37 percent of people polled say the Congress will get more done. But here's the telling number, 47 percent of the people questioned think this Congress will be just as ineffective as the last one. And, remember, the last Congress had a pretty dismal approval rating among the American people.

There's a flurry of activity in both chambers today as new members and old members are sworn in. Our Chief Congressional Correspondent Dana Bash is watching the House of Representatives. Our Chief Political Analyst Gloria Borger is over on the Senate side.

Gloria, let me start with you. The Kentucky senator, Mitch McConnell, he's now the majority leader. We know -- I assume we know what his first priority legislatively is going to be, right?

GLORIA BORGER, CNN CHIEF POLITICAL ANALYST: Yes, we do, Wolf. We know that he wants to pass the Keystone Pipeline. It's been a very contentious issue between Democrats and Republicans. He knows he's got the votes to do it. The question is whether the president will veto it. I just spoke with Democrat Jeanne Shaheen not too long ago. And she told me that the presumption is, as she believes, that the president would veto it although he has not announced that directly. The question is, could they override a veto or could the Democrats sustain a veto?

He's also going to try and pick apart parts of the president's health care law. And I have to try and figure out a way to not fund the president's executive order on immigration without taking away all the funding for the Department of Homeland Security. That's just to start, Wolf. There are going to be budget issues. They're going to want to cut spending. They may even want to start reforming the tax code.

So, while there's going to be a bi-partisan meeting with the president, with the understanding that there are some smaller things they could get done on roads and bridges and trade, perhaps, the big picture, I think, Wolf, is that the American public is right, that there isn't much hope for bi-partisanship in the way that some voters might want.

BLITZER: Yes, that's a good point. Let me bring Dana into this conversation. Dana, Republicans, they are obviously even more powerful in the House of Representatives. They have an agenda. What is their immediate priority?

DANA BASH, CNN CHIEF CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, you know, their immediate priority is to prove that they can govern. And you heard Gloria talk about what they're going to do on the Senate side with Keystone Pipeline and others. They understand, particularly the Republicans who are now in control of the Senate, that all eyes are on them because they're -- they have been able to say, well, we can't do much because we only have one chamber of Congress and that has been the House for the past four years. They can't say that anymore. They've got a pretty comfortable majority, not a filibuster-proof majority but a comfortable majority in the Senate.

And listen and talk to any Republican leader in the House or the Senate, they understand that they have got to show that they can get things done. Because if they don't, it will be -- there will be no one to blame but themselves. And that is -- includes not just things that they know the president is not going to sign, perhaps the Keystone Pipeline, major changes to Obamacare, but things that he would sign like trade deals, like infrastructure projects.

So, that is the balancing act that Republicans have to do. And what we're seeing on the House floor right now is perfect example on day one, Wolf, of how that is going to be not so easy still for Republican leaders, because we're having a very long, formal roll call vote to elect the House speaker. And John Boehner has challenges from three Republican colleagues. And the question is going to be, how many defect? And that is a preview or precursor to the continued trouble that he is going to have.

Now, there are a lot of freshmen who owe the speaker because he campaigned with them, he raised money for them, so -- and he has a more comfortable majority than before. But it's still not going to be smooth sailing and a completely united Republican Party. No question about that. And that's evidenced by what's happening on the House floor.

BLITZER: Yes, there will be divisions among the Republicans and there will be divisions among the Democrats as well. Dana, stand by. Gloria, the former Democratic majority leader, now minority leader, Harry Reid, the senator from Nevada, he's missing today. He was hurt in an accident exercising last week. He posted this picture on Twitter and he said this, working from home on doctor's orders, just wrapped up a good meeting with my leadership team. His face looks pretty awful right now.

BORGER: He's pretty banged up.

BLITZER: Obviously, not good enough to show up in the Senate. Tell our viewers what we know.

BORGER: Well, look, he was exercising with an exercise band which apparently snapped and he fell. And as you can see from that picture, Wolf, he looks -- he looks pretty banged up. Obviously, he wanted to let the American public know that while he's not here in the capitol today, he's actually doing his job. But he's going to have a huge adjustment. He's going to figure out how he behaves because now he's not the leader of the majority anymore. He's the leader of the minority. And there are lots of Democrats who were unhappy with his leadership in the Senate. And I think they'll probably be more likely to make their unhappiness known this time around.

So, I think that, you know, Harry Reid now has a very -- you know, Dana was talking about the balancing act that Republicans have to do. Harry Reid has a balancing act he's got to do with Democrats because there are going to be a lot of Democrats who say, you know what? We need to work with the Republicans on certain things. And there are going to be other Democrats, particularly to the left like Elizabeth Warren who's increasingly popular. And now, a member of the Democratic leadership here in the Senate, who are going to say, you know what? We need to stand up for something and block these Republicans.

So, again, it's going to be a calibration that Harry Reid has to make and an adjustment for Harry Reid and all of those Democrats who are used to ruling the roost around here because they don't anymore.

BLITZER: All right, Gloria, stand by. Quickly, Dana, before I let you go. The process for the speaker, John Boehner, to be reelected, they're having this roll call on the floor of the House of Representatives right now. By all accounts, he will get reelected, right?

BASH: It certainly seems that way. We're not even at the middle of the alphabet as the members stand in their -- stand from their seats to vote. So, we can't formally say that. But going into this vote, the leadership allies of Boehner felt pretty confident that they were going to be able to overcome this rebellion because, again, they have some breathing room. There are so many Republicans that they can afford to lose probably about 27, 28, depending on how many are voting and he could still become the speaker. So, they do feel confident. But as we have said so many times before, we have learned to expect the unexpected from the House Republican conference. So, we're still watching.

BLITZER: Yes, that would be quite dramatic if, in fact, he doesn't get reelected on that first ballot. That would be a very, very dramatic moment. We'll see what happens. Dana, stand by. Gloria, stand by as well.

Let's talk a little bit more now about the Republican wish list, and they will be the majority in the Senate and the House, the prospects of getting a lot done or anything done in this new 114th Congress. Let's go back to our brand new CNN ORC poll, 28 percent say Republicans will run the Senate better than Democrats, 24 percent say they'll be worse, 46 percent say it'll be more of the same.

Joining us now, our CNN Political Commentators Ana Navarro and Hilary Rosen. You think anything serious is going to get done in the next two years?

HILARY ROSEN, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: You know, I'm optimistic that they want to get things done. And I think that the president, in some respects, has some freedom now to work with Republicans that when Harry Reid was the leader he didn't have because the Democratic progressive left or the conservative Democrats were constantly battling with each other. The president now has Republicans to deal with. And it's kind of a mano a mano opportunity. Whether or not anything happens, though, you know, the left and right flanks still control a significant number of votes.

BLITZER: And we did report -- Jim Acosta reporting the president has now invited the Congressional leadership, Ana, the Republicans and the Democrats, to come over to the White House next Tuesday to start maybe seeing if there can be a dialogue.

ANA NAVARRO, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: And I think that's a constructive step by the president and, frankly, they should find some common ground because what we are seeing over and over again is that the American people are tired of Congress and Washington, which includes the executive branch not working together and not addressing the big issues that this country has. It's enough already. I'm optimistic that in 2015, something will happen. I think this year is very important. Next year will be all about presidential politics, 2016. So, this is the year when there's no elections, when they've got to focus. And, yes, there's going to be some fighting but they should pick a few issues, three, four, five issues, where they can agree and get it done.

BLITZER: Here's a question. A lot of Democrats have been asking me and I'm going to ask you because you're a good Democrat, Hilary. Why is there no challenge to Nancy Pelosi becoming, once again, the leader of the Democrats in the House and Harry Reid being the leader of the Democrats in the Senate after both of them presided over major shellackings in the midterm elections for the Democrats?

ROSEN: Well, there were a few senators who pushed back on Harry Reid. You know, Jeanne Shaheen, Gloria mentioned before, was one of them. But Nancy Pelosi, people just don't understand how beloved she is. Her members trust her. She's constantly thinking about their interests. She raises them a lot of money at times when they feel vulnerable. She essentially protects the majority of her incumbents and they like that. And other than that, she's just smart and thoughtful about good policy. And they appreciate that.

BLITZER: But the --

NAVARRO: I think the Congresswoman that was just elected from Florida, Gwen Graham, Bob Graham's daughter, who just voted against Pelosi, the Democrat, it was a campaign issue in that district in Florida.

BLITZER: There is some opposition to Nancy Pelosi because the Republicans now --

ROSEN: Not as much. I bet Nancy Pelosi gets more -- you know, she won't lose as many votes in her caucus as John Boehner will lose in his caucus.

NAVARRO: But, you know, I'm fine with that happening in the Republican Party. I think -- I think, frankly, it's healthy, it's Democratic. Go ahead. Send your messages. But then, come together and be adults and get to work.

BLITZER: And the notion of Nancy Pelosi, on her own, saying, you know what? I presided over a debacle. The Republicans have the biggest majority in the House of Representatives for 70 or 80 years or whatever, maybe it's time for someone else to take the leadership. The notion of her saying that to her fellow Democrats or Harry Reid saying that to his fellow Democrats in the Senate is --

ROSEN: Nil.

BLITZER: OK.

ROSEN: It's nil. The notion is nil. Power is not seen, generally, that way in Washington. I think power is essentially taken rather than given. And, you know, I don't think that those two are any different. I don't think that takes anything away from leader Pelosi. But it's just -- you know, she has the support of her caucus and she's going to stay in as long as she does.

NAVARRO: And (INAUDIBLE.)

BLITZER: And Harry Reid has the support of his caucus in the Senate despite those political setbacks.

ROSEN: Notice -- I'll just say one thing. Notice that little picture. Nobody's commented on this today. Elizabeth Warren, who Harry Reid made a big deal about inviting into the leadership, was not in that picture. That's interesting.

BLITZER: All right. We'll watch it. All right, guys, thanks very, very much.

We're getting some new information into the CNN NEWSROOM on last night's shooting of two New York City police officers. We're going to have much more on that new information coming in right after the break.

Also, we're closely watching the votes on the floor of the House of Representatives for John Boehner. Some in his own party saying they don't want him to remain as speaker of the House. They claim support for John Boehner, the ouster, is growing. We'll take a closer look.

There are also new reports coming in about the crash of AirAsia Flight 8501. Was the crew warned about the severe weather they were about to encounter? Lots of news happening this hour. Stay with us. We'll be right back.

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ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.

BLITZER: We have breaking news coming into CNN on the shooting of those two police officers in New York City, in the Bronx last night. Let's bring in CNN's Ashleigh Banfield. She's in New York watching what's going on.

Ashleigh, update our viewers. What do we know?

ASHLEIGH BANFIELD, ANCHOR, CNN'S "LEGAL VIEW": So, Wolf, I mean, 15 hours since this shooting and this story has developed so quickly. The police now have three people in custody and they say one of them is the man on your screen, the alleged shooter of two New York City police officers. Two officers, by the way, who spent all morning in the hospital, one of them in critical condition after he was treated, surgery for gunshot wounds to his arm and his lower back, and another who is stabilized who also had gunshot wounds to his chest and his arm. Both are expected to make a full recovery.

The two officer named Andrew Dossi and Aliro Pellerano were apparently at the end of their shift last night, about 10:30 at night New York time last night and were on their way home when they call came in that there was a robbery. They jumped back in the car, plain clothes, and responded. And, of course, as you see from the video that we've been showing, the surveillance video showed one shooter who was armed with an older style revolver literally opened fire. And after this scene was taken and broadcast all over the air waves, a clear shot of that alleged shooter's face, and, by the way, a $12,000 reward for any information that led to his capture, because police say that man on your screen is the one who's raising his arm with that gun and shooting and landing those shots at those two police officers.

He has been apprehended. You can only imagine now the flurry of charges that these men will face. Unclear why there are three, Wolf, three people in custody, because the reports have always been that this man is the alleged shooter. He had an accomplice, a 28-year-old man who apparently shortly after the shooting checked himself into a hospital for a gunshot wound to the back. It didn't take long before the police were able to connect that person at the hospital as an alleged accomplice in this shooting. And then, of course, it wasn't long before they were actually able to identify the person who actually held the gun, fired the shots and then were able to actually track him down. Again, unclear who the third person in custody is, but police say

they've got three men in custody. And I can only assume that some of the charges they will face are, yet again, armed robbery and this time potentially it could be an attempted murder of a police officer. Those are extraordinarily serious charges. Whether the accomplice will -- the alleged accomplice will face that as well because this could have been considered a conspiracy, certainly could be considered a felony attempted murder because the underlying felony here would be the robbery. I can also tell you this, though, that 28-year-old man, who went to the hospital last night to get treatment for the gunshot wound in his back, was also on parole for robbery. So no matter what, that person will more than likely be going back to prison for quite some time.

But certainly very fast developments. Fifteen hours after it all happened, they've got the guys they think were behind this.

BLITZER: And it happens, Ashleigh, at a time when there's an enormous amount of tension between the mayor of New York City, Bill de Blasio, and the NYPD. So many officers, police officers, they think he's undermined what they're trying to do. Is that getting any better, that situation in New York, or is it still as tense as it was over these past several days?

BANFIELD: Well, that's exactly the question everybody's asking. And it seems moment to moment. And the mayor, Bill de Blasio, who's in the center of your screen, took absolutely no time before issuing statements. I'm going to quote him. "This is another indicator of the dangers our officers face in the line of duty." He also talked about the bravery and the courage. His quote was, "these officers are extraordinarily brave and this was part of their commitment." He reiterated the fact that these officers were at the end of their shift and on their way home. Not only that, but as they jumped back in their patrol car and responded to this very late robbery call, other officers also responded to this. And the people who took them to the hospital were their fellow officers, other plainclothes officers who responded were the ones who transported these injured officers to the hospital where, as you heard, one is in critical condition having undergone that surgery for those bullet wounds.

BLITZER: Ashleigh Banfield reporting for us from New York. Ashleigh, thanks very much.

BANFIELD: Sure.

BLITZER: We're going to stay on top of the breaking news for our viewers.

But there's other news we're following, including Indonesia. It's now being called a supermarket of disaster. That quote from one of the forensics commanders working the recovery of AirAsia Flight 8501. Now investigators are looking into what the flight crew knew about the dangerous weather they were actually flying into.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) BLITZER: Off the coast of Indonesia, the challenges are mounting in the search for Flight 8501. Searchers are facing more rough weather today. Now murky conditions have completely - yes, completely halted the work of all the divers. Despite that, two more bodies have been recovered. That brings the number found to 39 out of 162 people that were aboard the aircraft.

This is a new look, by the way, at the American efforts aboard the USS Sampson. The destroyer is one of two ships the U.S. Navy has deployed in the Java Sea.

And joining us now, our aviation analyst, Miles O'Brien, who's taking a closer look at all of this.

It's shocking to me the crew did not receive the weather report before they took off, that there was pretty extreme weather going on. Apparently they didn't give them a briefing on that -

MILES O'BRIEN, CNN AVIATION ANALYST: Well -

BLITZER: That's the latest information coming in.

O'BRIEN: They didn't receive it in the way the Indonesians wanted them to receive it. Which is to say the pilot had to walk down a hall, go to an office, knock on a door and receive a face-to-face briefing, which at 2:30 or 3:00 in the morning, who knows if that was even possible at that airport. And if you think about it in the 21st century, with all the means we have, Blackberry, iPhones, iPads, to receive information, seems a little bit anachronism to have to do that. They did - the airline says they received all the data that they would have gotten if they had made - gone through that ritual, but they received it electronically. It was printed out and they got it in their hands.

BLITZER: But if there was really extreme weather that they were talking about, and that was in the forecast, why did they take off?

O'BRIEN: There was nothing in that forecast that would tell you not to take off as an airline pilot. There were thunderstorms and they were very clearly stated and laid out on the forecast, but they were 300 miles away from where they were taking off. There was nothing that said, don't go.

Now, what we should be focusing on is the decision to deal with the weather as it happened in-flight. Forty minutes in, when there were these towering thunderstorms on the horizon for the crew, how they reacted, what they did, that's the key stuff to think about here.

BLITZER: What's taking so long in releasing the actual communications between the cockpit and ground control? We haven't heard those audiotapes or even gotten a transcript of it.

O'BRIEN: I'd love a transcript of that. I'd like to hear that. I'd like to see some primary radar information from the military radar to indicate if this aircraft broke up before it went in. Again, we're in this situation where it's kind of a dearth of information. It's not typical, the kind of investigative pace that we would expect in the U.S.

BLITZER: And this other notion, and we discussed this, but it's still pretty shocking, apparently that flight, that AirAsia flight, was not authorized, licensed to fly on that particular Sunday. They could fly four days a week but never fly on Sundays, but they took off on a Sunday.

O'BRIEN: Yes, never on a Sunday. I think there's a song like that.

BLITZER: Yes.

O'BRIEN: But, you know, the - I think we have to be careful about this. The separation was still maintained by air traffic control. Yes, it might have marginally increased the air traffic control workload. But what this really is, is kind of a contributing issue. Was the airline cutting corners? And if they're cutting corners there, were they cutting corners elsewhere on things perhaps a little more important, like maintenance or, for example, how the pilots received their briefings, for example? And the other issue here is, were the regulators doing their job properly? How was this that this happened? How was that plane allowed to take off if the I's were not dotted and the t's were crossed? Aviation is a lot of little things. You have to get a lot of little things right. And when it may seem like it's inconsequential, but in the grand scheme of things, you want to get all those things right.

BLITZER: And they still have not heard any of those pings from those two black boxes, right?

O'BRIEN: No. I can't believe we're still listening for pings in this day and age, right?

BLITZER: Yes, can you imagine. All right, thanks very much, Miles O'Brien, helping us better appreciate what's going on.

O'BRIEN: You're welcome.

BLITZER: One hundred and sixty-two people were aboard that aircraft.

Republicans take over now both houses of the U.S. Congress. Will John Boehner remain the speaker of the House? The votes are coming in right now. Some members of his own party, small numbers but some, are saying they want him out. We'll have an update. Our live coverage continues right after the break.

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