Return to Transcripts main page

Wolf

ISIS Had Not Control Over Texas Shooting; NYU Student Held in North Korea; Mike Huckabee Announces 2016 Run for White House; Hillary Clinton's Popularity Slipping; Nepal Earthquake Death Count Climbs. Aired 1:30-2p ET

Aired May 05, 2015 - 13:30   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome back to our viewers in the United States and are around the world. I'm Wolf Blitzer reporting from Washington.

[13:30:00] Let's get to our - back to our top story right now, ISIS has claimed responsibility for the attack in Texas, targeting a Prophet Mohammed cartoon contest. But while ISIS may have been the inspiration for the two shooters, there's no evidence that the terror group had any command or control in the incident. We're learning more information. Moments ago, we heard this from the White House press secretary, Josh Earnest.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOSH EARNEST, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: At this point, this is still under investigation by the FBI and other members of the intelligence community to determine any ties or indications that these two individuals may have had with ISIL or other organizations around the world. It's too early to say at this point. The thing we can say definitively is that because of the quick and professional and brave work of local law enforcement officers, the attempted terrorist attack was foiled.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: Interestingly, the White House now officially calling it an attempted terrorist act.

Turning overseas right now, today, we're hearing for the first time from a New York University student detained last month by North Korea. Won-moon Joo is being held for deliberately illegally crossing into the country. He said he wanted to be arrested and hopes his actions will improve tensions between North and South Korea.

CNN's Will Ripley has this exclusive interview from Pyongyang.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

WILL RIPLEY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, we first learned about this young man's detainment hours after we arrived here in Pyongyang and we requested to interview him. That request was granted earlier today. And the whole case just got more bizarre once we talked to him. 21- year-old Won-moon Joo says had he was attending NYU but decided to take a road trip from New Jersey to California to look for work. But when he couldn't find a job, he had another idea that was to cross from California to China and then to hike across the North Korean border, across through two barb-wire fences, follow a large river and turn himself in to North Korea soldiers. He says he wanted to be arrested.

WON-MOON JOO, NYU STUDENT: Well, I thought that by my entrance illegally, I acknowledge, I thought that some great event could happen and hopefully that event could have a good effect in the relations between the North and South.

I hope that I will be able to tell the world how an ordinary college student entered the DPRK illegally but, with the generous treatment of the DPRK, that I will be able to return home safely.

RIPLEY: Joo says he's being treated humanely. He has his own room, bathroom, three square meals a day, but doesn't have access to a telephone. This interview was his first opportunity to let his friends and family know he's OK and also possibly send a message to the one government agencies that may be able to help secure his release. See, Joo is a permanent resident of the United States. His family lives there. But he remains a South Korean citizen. It's now up to that country to figure out how to get this young man home.

As you know, Wolf, it's a complex situation. North and South Korea remain technically at war. They have a heavily fortified border and no diplomatic ties. But now, if South Korea is unable to intervene, this 21-year-old, who has been living in the United States since 2001, is in the very real danger of ending up in a North Korean prison -- Wolf?

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: Will Ripley reporting from Pyongyang, North Korea.

Not every day we have a reporter on the scene in North Korea. He'll have a lot more today on "The Situation Room." By the way, CNN cannot verify if North Korean officials told the NYU student to make any of his comments.

The secretary of state of the United States, John Kerry, arrived in Mogadishu capital of Somali today. He's the first American secretary of state ever to visit the country. The State Department says Kerry went to show his support for the country's ongoing transition to democracy. In February, the U.S. named its first ambassador to Somalia since 1991. There is no U.S. embassy in Somalia right now. It was shut down a while ago. The U.S. does keep a small military contingent inside the country and diplomatic mission in nearby Kenya.

Just ahead, from hope to higher ground, the slogan from Mike Huckabee as he enters the U.S. presidential race. Our political panel getting ready to weigh in. The road to the White House and a lot more, that's coming up next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[13:37:52] BLITZER: The field of Republican candidates here in the United States got a little bit more crowded. The former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee officially kicked off his run for the White House today. Huckabee started by taking direct aim at President Obama. He says the president has not delivered on the hope and change he promised.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MIKE HUCKABEE, (R), FORMER ARKANSAS GOVERNOR & PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: 93 million Americans don't have jobs and many of them who do have seen their full-time job with benefits they once had become two part-time jobs with no benefits at all. We were promised hope. But it was just talk. And now we need the kind of change that really could get America from hope to higher ground.

(APPLAUSE)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: Let's bring in our chief political analyst, Gloria Borger; and chief congressional correspondent, Dana Bash.

Gloria, what does Huckabee's formal entry into the race mean among evangelical voters?

GLORIA BORGER, CNN CHIEF POLITICAL ANALYST; It means the field is getting really crowded almost like up to a half dozen or so that occupy the space that he basically had to himself in 2008. You know, he ran very successfully in 2008. He was the overall delegate runner- up in 2008. Did very well in Iowa. And so if he's going to have a serious presidential campaign he's going to have to do well in Iowa and a lot of folks standing in his way right now.

DANA BASH, CNN CHIEF CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: I think there's something we should underscore in that in the dozen or so Republicans likely to be running this time around he is the only one who's actually won a presidential primary contest in Iowa and he actually won seven at the end of the day -- seven others, so eight total, all together.

But as Gloria said, it was a different time. I was with him in Iowa in 2007 when it was him and Chuck Norris riding around in a pick-up truck trying to figure out who their supporters were. And now there are a lot of people like Mike Huckabee, in that vain, trying to appeal to the evangelicals, Christian conservatives. The thing you heard in the speech he was successful at and will be likely this time the populist message. He can relate to people on that level on the working class level, like no one else can, because in fairness to him it's authentic.

BORGER: He's been out making a lot of money.

BASH: That's true.

BORGER: He's not the populist that he was in 2008 because he's a lot richer than he was back in 2008.

BASH: Owns a million-dollar home in Florida.

[13:40:15] BORGER: Right. More power to him. It is a different race this time. One thing he has going for him the likeability. His campaign is putting out all those polls that show that among all the Republicans, Jeb Bush included, Mike Huckabee is well liked. We saw today in his announcement speech, he is probably, I would say, one of the top communicators in this Republican field. He's got a great way with a phrase. And, you know, that will do him well in these debates.

BLITZER: Did well in Iowa back in 2008. Let's see how he does this time.

Our latest CNN/ORC poll, Dana, shows that he's got 9 percent among Republicans, significantly behind Jeb Bush, who is at 17 percent. Not that far away from Marco Rubio and Rand Paul. Still very, very early as you look at that. It's wide open on the Republican side.

BASH: It is wide open. And I have to tell you, talking to advisors to Rubio and Walker, those who are doing well in the polls right now, they would actually prefer to be in Mike Huckabee's position. It seems counterintuitive but it's because, it is early, they know the dangers historically of peeking too early. Better to stay under the radar, get your sea legs with regard to the grassroots in some of these early states before you become such a big player when it comes to the polls that, you know, that you're not ready for it. On the flip side, when doing well, it means it's easier to raise dollars.

BORGER: They're kind of happy to have him in the race. They're feeling is the more the merrier at this point because they've got this big field and they believe their guy can distinguish himself and can do it early on and if Huckabee wants to get in that's just fine. The evangelical voters split up the Cruz people believe, for example, they have an advantage this time.

One problem Huckabee has is he doesn't do really well raising money. He's always had a problem raising money. More of these other candidates can go to more establishment Republicans and actually get some bucks out of them. And I think that's the problem for Huckabee.

But another point he makes, and Dana can speak to this, he says he's more electable beaten the Clinton machine in Arkansas once and he can do it again.

BLITZER: It's interesting he went to Hope, Arkansas. There was another man that went to Hope, Arkansas.

BORGER: You heard that.

(CROSSTALK)

BLITZER: Hope, Arkansas, is not only the hometown of Mike Huckabee but Bill Clinton. He's going to run on that anti-Clinton --

(CROSSTALK) BASH: Absolutely.

BLITZER: A very popular thing to do among Republicans.

BASH: It is. Going back to 2007, 2008 he tried that. Before the Iowa caucuses, everybody thought Hillary Clinton was pretty be a shoe in, and then Obama beat her and the rest is history. He started to hone the anti-Clinton, "I can beat the Clinton machine, I'm from Arkansas," message back then. It looks like, who knows, that is going to be much more of a sustainable message as he goes forward.

BORGER: His campaign is interesting to me. They took pains to point out that he's beaten women as he's run for elective office in the past, a lieutenant governor. So he's not one of the Republicans who doesn't know how to run against women. He knows how to run against women, whatever that means by the way.

BLITZER: It's just starting. Six Republicans officially in this race for the White House.

Gloria, Dana, thanks very much.

Still to come, they say politics is all about perception but, if that's the case, Hillary Clinton may have a bit of a problem right now. We'll have that story right after the break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[13:47:15] BLITZER: Advisors for Hillary Clinton's campaign hoped for a smooth rollout but in the last seven weeks, a few bumps in the road. A poll that shows Hillary Clinton popularity slipping. The percentage of Americans with a negative opinion was 42 percent in April up from the month when it was 36 percent.

Our Washington correspondent, Jeff Zeleny, with us right now.

She's taking a hit in the polls why.

JEFF ZELENY, CNN SENIOR WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT: One of the reasons the questions about the foundation. A month ago, we didn't know about any of these things.

BLITZER: The Clinton Foundation.

ZELENY: Right. The Clinton Foundation is the biggest thing here. But what the Clinton campaign hopes that voters distinguish questions about her from questions about the foundation. That's still an open question. I'm not sure how much they're going to link them. That's why she's taking a hit in the polls. So much new information has come out about exactly what the foundation was doing, who it was getting its money from, et cetera. This is the beginning. The questions are just the beginning.

BLITZER: Do they see her as trustworthy or not trustworthy?

ZELENY: Democrats overall think that she is, but that has taken a hit as well. The poll showed she now has 25 percent of Americans that see her as trustworthy, down 13 points from a month ago. A presidential campaign is definitely taking its toll here. But that's to be expected in some respects. She's been in a nonpolitical setting for a while. Her advisors are watching this. They're concerned but not alarmed.

BLITZER: In the next few weeks, she's going to be appearing before the congressional committee investigating what happened in Benghazi when four Americans, including the U.S. ambassador, were killed September 11th, 2012. She will be taking tough questions from members of the committee.

ZELENY: She is. That's probably going to be the week of May 18th, perhaps after that, but it's going to be unusually optically as well. I can't row call a presidential candidate going before a committee, swearing an oath to answer all these questions here, so her campaign believes that it's just something that she has to get it over with here. All the questions about private e-mail use and things are all going to be sort of returned here. This could be a difficult second month of her campaign. So many things out of their control.

BLITZER: The chairman of that Select Committee, Chairman Trey Gowdy, he wants her to appear twice in open session. Also wants to interview her behind closed doors. She says she'll appear once and that's it.

ZELENY: She said she'll appear once, stay as long as it takes, answer all their questions. She will not go in a private setting. She will only do it publicly. My guess is he'll agree to that, but we haven't heard from him so far because the House is in recess this week. He would be hard pressed to not agree to having her appear before the full televised committee.

BLITZER: She's speaking out today on immigration reform saying there should be a pathway to citizenship for illegal immigrants in the United States.

ZELENY: She is. I'm told she's going to distinguish herself from some of those Republican rivals, Jeb Bush, Marco Rubio, who stop a bit short from that. The speech this afternoon I think is definitely worth watching. News is going to be made there.

[13:50:12] BLITZER: Nevada and Las Vegas, right?

ZELENY: Right. That is one of those four early voting states.

BLITZER: Jeff Zeleny, thank you very much. Watching the Hillary Clinton campaign for us. Appreciate it.

Still ahead, the desperate attempt to recover more victims of the Nepal earthquake. Our CNN team reaches the epicenter of the quake. Our Arwa Damon is there with what they found when they arrived. You'll want to see this. It's amazing.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: Really remarkable video out of the city of Kobani in Syria. New drone picture show the sheer extent of the devastation, destruction, the city has suffered. For months, coalition forces bombed ISIS fighters trying to take the city. The battle destroyed about 70 percent of Kobani. This, according to Syrian Kurds, who are now back in control. Residents are slowly returning to the city but don't have the millions and millions of dollars needed to start rebuilding. ISIS fighters were pushed out of the city itself, but they remain about 25 miles out of town. Remarkable images.

The death toll from the earthquake in Nepal keeps growing higher. Official now say the quake has claimed more than 7,500 lives and more than 14,500 injuries. It certainly has not been easy recovering the dead and reaching victims at the epicenter because the lifeline to the town has been cut off by multiple landslides.

But CNN's Arwa Damon and her team have made the dangerous journey to get there.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

[13:55:25] ARWA DAMON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice- over): Massive boulders block the road. What would have been a lifeline for so many, shut down. We continue on foot. Throughout, the surreal juxtaposition of the stunning natural beauty of the landscape here and the power of its force. Uprooted, tossed trees, open, gaping crevasses.

(on camera): The porters are telling us to not all go up at exactly the same time because this stairway, rock way is not as stable as it used to be.

(voice-over): The porters also warning of constant tremors and falling debris.

We reach the area, seemingly deserted. Unlike other villages we've been to the last few days, there are no shelters pitched next to homes. Just the haunting remains of lives forever altered or forever lost.

This is the gravesite for three young women. A traditional necklace hangs from a stick, a sign one of them was married.

A unit of Nepalese troops arrived with basic tools, an attempt to excavate the cadavers of livestock buried under the rubble. But no aid other than three tents that were airdropped days ago have made it here.

There are few villagers around, making quick trips to wash clothes or salvage what they can.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)

DAMON: "Everyone else is out in the plains," she says. "They feel safer there."

And we soon find out why. Suddenly, the entire mountain shakes. (on camera): That was a sizable tremor. It was terrifying. It sent

people from the village still running down. I can't even imagine what the actual earthquake must have like.

(voice-over): As we uneasily move on, we see three landslides in the distance and run into Sunkeen Bishukama (ph)

(on camera): Did you just feel that shaking?

SUNKEEN BISHUKAMA (ph), NEPAL RESIDENT: Yes, I'm very afraid.

DAMON (voice-over): He and his brother are also trying to make their way to the city where his aunt and family live.

BISHUKAMA (ph): Nothing, we haven't any contact.

DAMON (on camera): The whole family?

BISHUKAMA (ph): Yeah.

DAMON: You know nothing about the whole family?

BISHUKAMA (ph): Yeah, yeah, really.

DAMON: Oh.

(voice-over): We arrive together. The air is filled with clanking and hammering as people take on rebuilding themselves.

Even here at the earthquake's epicenter, humanitarian aid has been inexplicably slow to arrive.

Indian army medics treat an injured child. Her head wound infected and needs re-stitching.

(CRYING)

DAMON: The mountainside is dotted with white stones, marking the graves of those who perished.

Sunkeen (ph): asks people if they have news of his family. A woman says, yes, a girl died there. The road leading to where his relatives lived a cascade of debris.

BISHUKAMA (ph): (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE). Pray God, they are OK.

DAMON: Moments later, we find their tent. His aunt runs out and throws herself into his arms as he tries to reassure her that at least they are alive. Tears pour down his cousin's face. Here, the enormity of what the nation has endured evident, even on the faces of those too young to fully understand.

Arwa Damon, CNN, Nepal.

(END VIDEOTAPE) [13:59:32] BLITZER: What an amazing story. 7,557 confirmed deaths. 14,536 injuries. Government officials in Nepal fear that the death toll, certainly the injury toll will go up.

To find out how to help the victims of the Nepal earthquake, go to CNN.com/impact, and you will be able to impact your world. CNN.com/impact.

That's it for me. I'll be back at 5:00 p.m. eastern in "The Situation Room."

For our international viewers, "AMANPOUR" is next.

For those in North America, "NEWSROOM" with Brooke Baldwin starts right now.

BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN ANCHOR: Wolf, thank you.