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Woman Wounded In Second Jerusalem Stabbing Today; Police Kill Knife Attacker At Damascus Gate; Secretary Of State Kerry To Visit Middle East; Live With Lincoln Chafee; First Numbers from CNN's Democratic Debate; Lincoln Chafee Talks Debate. Aired 1-1:30p ET

Aired October 14, 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. Thanks very much for joining us.

ANNOUNCER: this is CNN breaking news.

And we begin with the breaking news out the Middle East. In just last few hours, two more stabbing attacks in Jerusalem. Police say a 50- year-old woman is now in serious to moderate condition after being stabbed at a bus station. They have the attacker who was shot but his condition still unclear at this moment.

Meanwhile, a second attempted stabbing outside one of the holiest sites in Jerusalem. The Israeli police say a man dressed in battle fatigues lunged at border police with a knife at the Damascus de Plaza (ph) and another unit shot and killed him. But these kinds of incidents seem to be part of an alarming new trend underway.

Just yesterday, there were five bloody and gruesome attacks. Our Senior International Correspondent Ben Wedeman is joining us on the phone right now. First of all, about this latest attack at the bus station in Jerusalem where you are right now, Ben, what do we know? I assume this was an Israeli woman who was stabbed by a Palestinian attacker? Is that the assumption?

BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (via telephone): It's our understanding from the Israeli medical service, the MBA (ph), that she's a 50-year-old woman who received a knife wound in her upper torso. She is, as we said, in (INAUDIBLE) but stable condition. This as a result of a man, we don't know his identity yet, who stabbed her. And as we -- the statement we received from the Israeli police is the -- is that he has been neutralized.

And as has been the case in so many of these attacks, we've already seen a video that's gone viral of this attacker being shot. We don't know, at this point, his condition. But, certainly from the video, it looks like he's been seriously wounded if not dead.

And, of course, that just follows two and a half hours after this attempted attack, stabbing attack, at the Damascus Gate where a 19- year-old resident of Hebron in the southern west bank apparently was acting suspiciously as the Israeli border police approached him. And when they did so, he took out a knife, which the Israeli police have posted a picture of on their Web site, and he tried to lunge at the soldiers.

Now, they opened fire but he managed to evade that group. And right in front of the Damascus Gate, itself, he was finally shot and killed by the border policemen which witnesses say they fired well over a dozen of rounds in that final moments of his life. He's now dead. I watched the medical personnel wrap his body in a black plastic body bag and carried him away.

In the course of this incident however, because there was so much gun fire, one tourist was lightly injured. He was treated at the scene. A local resident more seriously injured was taken away. Now, Wolf, this comes just hours after Israel began to implement new security measure to try to stop this wave of stabbings and other attacks. What we've seen -- what we saw this morning was the beginning of the enclosure -- of a closure on Jebot Macabre (ph) where three of the attackers from yesterday come from.

But this evening, as we were coming as we were coming from Damascus Gate making our way to the bus station, we saw new checkpoints being put into place, cars being stopped. We saw lots of young Palestinian men being frisked, at gunpoint in one instance. But in that instance, he was allowed to go away. But tensions higher than I've seen. The last time I saw it like this was at the darkest days of the (INAUDIBLE) when there was a wave of suicide bombings in Jerusalem -- Wolf.

BLITZER: Ben Wedeman in Jerusalem for us. We're going to get back to you, Ben. I understand the Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbas, expected to be delivering a major speech to the Palestinian people momentarily. We'll monitor that as well.

In an effort to stop the weeks of violence from spiraling into a full scale uprising, Israel, as we just heard, has launched one of its largest security crackdowns in years. Government forces now setting up check points in the eastern part of Jerusalem restricting access to Palestinian neighborhoods after a wave of these attacks.

[13:05:03] In addition to Israeli authorities being now allowed to demolish the homes of attackers, there will be no rebuilding, the Israeli government says, on those demolition sites. Three hundred soldiers now backing up police across the country. Mark Regev is the spokesperson for the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu. He's joining us live from Jerusalem.

Mark, thanks for joining us. Does this latest attack, two attacks, in Jerusalem today show that the latest Israeli security measures aren't working?

MARK REGEV, SPOKESPERSON, ISRAEL GOVERNMENT: No, on the contrary, we believe that the mechanisms that we're putting in place will make the situation safer, more secure, and, ultimately, we hope lead to a de- escalation. The idea is to beef up the security presence in Jerusalem that deters violence and also can deal with the violence, if it does break out, effectively.

Ultimately, we've had over 30 violent attacks this month. We've had eight Israelis killed. We've had some 70 Israelis injured. And we have to, as a government, do what needs to be done to protect our people.

BLITZER: The argument is that the frustration level among young Palestinians is great because there seems to be no more peace process right now. Israeli Palestinian peace negotiations, they have completely collapsed. Is there any discussion underway at all with the president, or the Palestinian authority, Mahmoud Abbas, to try to revive those peace talks so maybe there could be some hope?

REGEV: There's always communication between us and the Palestinians. And, as you know, my prime minister said publicly just last week, he said he's ready to resume peace talks with the Palestinians immediately and without any preconditions whatsoever.

But it must be understand, Wolf, that these attacks have got nothing to do with the peace process. I mean, the people who are coming with knives in Jerusalem and trying to murder innocent civilians, they're not interested in restarting the peace talks. They're not interesting in reconciliation. They're interested in killing Jews. That's their goal. They are the antithesis, the opposite of peace.

And it must be understood, they represent a larger regional phenomena like ISIS, an extremist phenomena, a reactionary phenomena and a realistic phenomena. And they have to be defeated. And the pity is and the failure here is of the Palestinian leadership which has refused to condemn these attacks, has refused to disassociate itself from these attacks, whose leadership has been praising some of these brutal terrorists. They must be held accountable.

BLITZER: So, what are you going to do about it?

REGEV: Well, we're encouraging foreign governments. And I'll say it now on CNN. If the Palestinian authority wants to be considered a responsible partner in peace, it's time they stood up and unequivocally (ph) condemned this sort of terrorism. You can't go around the world saying you want peace and reconciliation. But when these sort of brutal knife attacks happen, not one, not two.

But, as I said, we've had more than 30 such attacks. When these sort of attacks happen, you expect moderate leadership to stand up and condemn these attacks. Yet, until today, we've not heard anything from the Palestinian government. And I think governments around the world should be holding the Palestinian leadership accountable.

BLITZER: Do you want the secretary of state, John Kerry, to come over there and talk to the Israelis and to the Palestinians to see if he can help? Because there is word, as you well know, that he's thinking about that.

REGEV: Well, the secretary of state is always a welcome guest in Israel. We've had many conversations with him and including recently. But ultimately, we believe, for this current wave of terror to de- escalate, first of all, we have to take the steps that we need to take to protect our people in beefing up the security presence in Jerusalem and other parts of Israel is crucial in that effort.

And, at the same time, the Palestinian authority finally has to stand up to the plate and condemn terrorism. We need Palestinian leadership to show responsible behavior. They cannot be praising these sort of attacks. That the Islamists are doing so. That Hamas is doing so. We understand. Why is the Palestinian authority praising these attacks? It's just unfathomable.

BLITZER: Mark Regev is the Israeli spokesman for the prime minister of Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu. Thank you very much, Mark, for that.

While it is certainly not yet 100 percent clear that secretary Kerry will make that trip to the Middle East, the question remains, if he does do so, would that really make much of a difference? Florida -- the former California Democratic Congresswoman and president of the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, Jane Harman, is joining us now.

Jane, you spent a lot of time immersed in this issue. Would it really make much of a difference if Kerry heads over to Jerusalem?

JANE HARMAN, DIRECTOR, PRESIDENT, CEO, WOODROW WILSON INTERNATIONAL CENTER: Well, it could. I'm pleased that he's considered doing it. He hasn't decided, from what I know.

But, you know, I was thinking about the fact that we invested, for years, the U.S., with the Jordanians in training a Palestinian security force which has kept the lid on violence, more or less, constantly for almost two decades in the west bank and in east Jerusalem.

[13:10:14] And I'm just speculating here but possibly the Palestinian government has said, no more. What a tragedy if that has happened. I do think Mark Regev is right, that Israel has to take steps, hopefully proportional steps, overdoing this is -- I would suggest not a smart idea. But Israelis who live in Jerusalem, which I just visited, and you're there all the time, in June, are necessary.

But if the Palestinian authority can regain the high ground and this Palestinian security force, trained by the Jordanians and us, could assert more effort to block these young kids from leaving, I assume the west bank, to come into Jerusalem. That would provide a higher measure of security for everybody, including them. And if John Kerry wants to encourage that, I think that's a great thing.

BLITZER: As you know, John Kerry, other top U.S. officials, they also blame Israel for an aggressive settlement policy in the west bank, in east Jerusalem, and they say that has really played a major role in undermining the prospect of reviving peace talks. Do you agree with them?

HARMAN: B.B. Netanyahu has -- who was elected recently, has formed a government in which a majority, I think, of his -- of his seats in Knesset support the settle -- his settlement policy. That is not U.S. policy. And I think steps that John Kerry could encourage to ratchet back Israel supportive settlements would contribute to a more peaceful atmosphere and, hopefully, a restart of the -- of the two state talks on a final -- the final outlines of two states.

BLITZER: And we know the president has invited Prime Minister Netanyahu to Washington early November for a meeting --

HARMAN: Yes.

BLITZER: -- at the White House. We'll see, A, if that takes place. If it does, if anything positive emerges from that. Jane Harman, thanks very much --

HARMAN: You're welcome.

BLITZER: -- for joining us.

Up next, we'll get to domestic politics here in the United States. Breaking down that huge Democratic debate last night with president candidate, Lincoln Chafee. Is he still in this race or about to drop out? What's going on? We'll talk to Lincoln Chafee when we come back.

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[13:16:43] BLITZER: The numbers are now in on the first Democratic presidential debate of this 2016 presidential campaign. The CNN hosted debate attracted 15.3 million viewers. That's the most ever for a Democratic debate.

During an event just a little while ago, the vice president, Joe Biden was asked what he thought about the debate.

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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What were your -- your thoughts?

JOE BIDEN, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I was proud of them. I thought they all did well. And, you know, part of what had to be done was to thank (ph) all of you (INAUDIBLE) has to be done. And we have to (INAUDIBLE) this thing work. You know, you've got to make it work. You've got to be able to (INAUDIBLE). And I thought every one of those folks last night (INAUDIBLE), I thought they all did well.

Thanks.

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BLITZER: Hard to understand what he was saying. He basically said he thought they all did a good job. He said, in his words, I think he said, we all have to make America better, as opposed to Donald Trump who says, we have the make America great again.

Political pundits describe Hillary Clinton as poised, polished, in command during last night's televised debate. Clinton and her rivals tackled issues ranging from gun control to income inequality to the war in Syria. She also defended herself against accusations of flip- flopping on major issues, and she confronted the controversy over e- mails head-on with some help, actually, from Senator Bernie Sanders.

CNN's John Berman has some highlights from the debate.

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JOHN BERMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It maybe have been the first Democratic debate, but it was clear it was not Hillary Clinton's first rodeo, running down a debate check list with surgical precision.

HILLARY CLINTON (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I would not ask anyone to vote for me based on my last name.

BERMAN: Her name, check. Her appeal to the grassroots and pragmatic wings of the party, check, check.

CLINTON: I'm a progressive, but I'm a progressive who likes to get things done.

BERMAN: Her gender, check, check, check.

CLINTON: I think being the first woman president would be quite a change from the presidents we've had up until this point.

BERMAN: Even apparently joking about an extended trip to the bathroom during commercial.

CLINTON: You know it does take me a little longer, that's all I can say.

ANDERSON COOPER, MODERATOR: That's right.

BERMAN: But on what might have been the biggest must-do on her list, addressing the questions surrounding the use of her private e-mail for national business, she had a surprising assist from her leading opponent, Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders.

BERNIE SANDERS (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: The American people are sick and tired of hearing about your damn e-mails.

CLINTON: Thank you. Me, too! Me, too!

BERMAN: Even earning a smile and a handshake.

Clinton didn't exactly return the favor, in one of the sharpest exchanges of the night when asked about Sanders' record of voting against certain gun control measures.

COOPER: Secretary Clinton, is Bernie Sanders tough enough on guns?

CLINTON: No, not at all. I think that we have to look at the fact that we lose 90 people a day from gun violence. SANDERS: What I can tell Secretary Clinton, that all the shouting in

the world is not going to do what I would hope all of us want, and that is keep guns out of the hands of people who should not have those guns.

BERMAN: Sanders, the self-proclaimed Democratic socialist, touted his battle against income inequality.

[13:20:04] COOPER: You don't consider yourself a capitalist though?

SANDERS: Do I consider myself part of the casino capitalists process by which so few have so much and so many have so little, by which Wall Street greed and recklessness wrecked this economy? No, I don't.

BERMAN: Former Maryland Governor Martin O'Malley, looking for a breakout moment, hit hard on foreign policy.

MARTIN O'MALLEY, (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Leading us into Iraq under false pretenses and telling us, as a people, that there were weapons of mass destruction there was -- was one of the worst blunders in modern American history.

BERMAN: As for former Virginia Senator Jim Webb, polling in the single digits and barely campaigning, he fought to be noticed.

JIM WEBB (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I've been trying to get in this conversation about 10 minutes.

I've been waiting for 10 minutes. I will say this.

COOPER: You're over your time (INAUDIBLE).

WEBB: I will -- well, you've let a lot of people go over their time.

BERMAN: While former Rhode Island Governor Lincoln Chafee seemed to struggle to answer questions about his record.

LINCOLN CHAFEE (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Glass-Steagall was my very first vote. I had just arrived. My dad had died in office. I was appointed to the office. It was my very first vote.

COOPER: Are you say -- are you saying you didn't know what you were voting for?

BERMAN: Perhaps the most telling moment, maybe aspirational, was when Hillary Clinton was asked to list her enemies.

CLINTON: Well, in addition to the NRA, the health insurance companies, the drug companies, the Iranians, probably the Republicans.

BERMAN: John Berman, CNN, Las Vegas.

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BLITZER: All right, let's get some more from some of those who were on the debate floor last night. The Democratic presidential candidate, Lincoln Chafee, is joining us now. He's a former governor of Rhode Island, former U.S. senator from Rhode Island.

Governor, thanks very much for joining us.

Were you -- were you pleased or unpleased with your performance last night?

LINCOLN CHAFEE, (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Well, I was certainly unpleased with the amount of time allocated. I had nine minutes out of a two hour debate. And there was some presumption that there would be a fair allocation of time. That didn't turn out to be accurate.

BLITZER: Why are you doing so poorly in all of the polls? You're basically getting closer to zero percent than you are even one percent.

CHAFEE: Well, certainly what happened last night is one indication of how the establishment does not want to hear the anti-war vote. They -- they just gave me nine minutes out of a two-hour debate. And it's the same thing elsewhere getting into the media, whether it's the Sunday shows or the like, it's -- I have a feeling that the establishment doesn't want to hear an anti-war voice.

BLITZER: How much money have you raised for your campaign so far?

CHAFEE: Well, I came into the race knowing the reality that Secretary Clinton was going to take all the money essentially. And if there was an insurgent candidate, there might be an opportunity to raise some money. Senator Sanders is that insurgent candidate raising the money. But for the rest of us, it's very difficult. I'm not raising much money. But I do have a budget and I'm living within it.

BLITZER: Because there's some word you've raised maybe $30,000. Is that right?

CHAFEE: Yes, but that's expected. That's totally expected when I got into this race. So I'm not going to raise a lot of money. I set a budget for myself, as I do in public service, and I live within it.

BLITZER: But you know you can't really run a successful campaign in Iowa or New Hampshire or South Carolina, Nevada, the first four states, with a limited amount of money like that. You have no chance with a limited amount of money like that. You're a sophisticated politician. You had a distinguished career in the Senate. You were elected governor of your home state. Why bother right now? If you have limited money, limited support, why keep going?

CHAFEE: Well, the main motivator is what I care about is happening in the Middle East and across the world with the wars, and that's the motivator for running and that's why I set my budget. I want to live within it and I want to continue to bring up the issues about what we're doing that it's going to affect future generations. I have three children and I care what's happening and I want to talk about the issues and I want to be a voice for prosperity through peace. I want to be talking about bring the different combatants to the peace table and I'm still looking forward to that opportunity that didn't occur last night with only nine minutes out of the two hours. BLITZER: Yes, but you're barely campaigning in Iowa or New Hampshire

or South Carolina and Nevada. And so the question is, why bother right now? Aren't there other ways you could get your voice heard on these sensitive issues like war and peace?

CHAFEE: No, that's not accurate. Rhode Island's very close to New Hampshire, so I've been there, I think, 30 times since I announced. I get to Iowa as often as possible. I'll be at the Jefferson/Jackson dinner in a couple of weeks. And so, no, I'm getting into Iowa and New Hampshire and I'm doing it on the budget that I've allotted for myself and I want to continue to talk about these issues that are important for me and future generations, I think. There's -- something's going wrong with what we're happening -- what's happening in the Middle East and we need to fix it.

BLITZER: Here's how two major newspapers reviewed your performance last night. "The Washington Post" titled their article, "how to disappear completely by Lincoln Chafee." "The Boston Globe" called it, "Lincoln Chafee's no-good miserable very bad night."

[13:25:08] Here's what worries me, governor, that, you know, because of your distinguished career, you're going to wind up looking silly if you keep going on like this. At what point will you decide, you know what, there are other things for me to do instead of a futile effort to try to get the Democratic presidential nomination?

CHAFEE: Well, that was certainly a lesson last night to appear there and only get nine minutes out of two hours. And it reaffirmed what I thought when I got into the race, and that the establishment just does not want to hear an anti-war voice, and that motivates me even more to continue this campaign. And, yes, I've had a distinguished career. I've served at all levels of government. I've been a United States senator and a governor. But these issues are so important and I want to continue to raise them. And I will.

BLITZER: Well, Bernie -- Bernie Sanders is anti-war. He makes that case and he's generating a lot of support. He's raising millions and millions of dollars. He's doing remarkably well. you're not, though, right?

CHAFEE: No, I disagree. I've been to many events with Senator Sanders and he rarely talks about international issues. And that's my issue that I'm talking about. Senator Sanders does not talk about what's happening in the Middle East and across North Africa at the times I've heard him. He does mention it, but very, very fleetingly.

BLITZER: So at what point will you drop out?

CHAFEE: I'm in it as far as I can continue to raise these issues. They're important and I feel strongly about that.

BLITZER: Lincoln Chafee is the former governor of Rhode Island, former senator from Rhode Island. Thanks very much for joining us.

CHAFEE: Thanks, Wolf. BLITZER: Up next, a day after the Democrats' big night, did Hillary

Clinton do what she needed to do? What about the Democratic challengers? We're going to break down the debate with our political panel.

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