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CNN NEWSROOM

De Blasio, Bratton Hold Press Conference

Aired December 22, 2014 - 15:30   ET

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


DAVID GERGEN, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: And I think if we're going to have a resolution of this, it's important not only to go to the police commissioner but they are going out to the south Bronx or go out to the legal defender units and they see something different. They see a lot of kids being aggressively approached by the police. I think there are also ways that New York has shown through community courts that you can make things better as a community court out in Brooklyn and place called Red Hook which has done an extraordinary job of trying to minimize -- give kids a choice.

OK, look. You're doing dope. You are doing a lot of stuff like (INAUDIBLE). You can get yourself cleaned up or you can go to jail for 30 days. Which problems you want to do? A lot of kids would rather get cleaned up and they do a good job with it.

BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN HOST: We need to take a quick break. I would love for you to stay here, David Gergen. And we have several other guests as well.

Again, you are seeing live pictures bottom right-hand corner of your screen as we are watching and waiting from police headquarters both to hear from the mayor of New York and the police commissioner.

Stay right here. You're watching CNN.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: Just past the bottom of the hour. You're watching CNN. I'm Brooke Baldwin. And we'll pop the live picture up of (INAUDIBLE). We can show you that we're watching and waiting from police headquarters here in New York City. We are watching and waiting for the Mayor Bill de Blasio and also from the police commissioner Bill Bratton speaking, addressing the heinous shootings, murders over the weekend of these two police officers in Brooklyn.

Here are their pictures. On Saturday broad daylight, in the middle of the afternoon, you have these officers, Wenjian Liu and Rafael Ramos just sitting in their patrol car when this gunman approaches, opens fire shooting and killing both of them. That gunman is Ismaaiyl Brinsley. He wrote on social media about killing police and he later turned the gun on himself.

Now, while there will be no criminal trial, the mayor is facing a myriad of accusations that he contributed to the officers' deaths. Here he is with Bill Bratton visiting loved ones homes today. Police union leaders say the mayor failed to support his force who were under a hail of criticism after the chokehold death in Staten Island father of Eric Garner.

So as we wait the news conference, rejoining me is CNN senior political analyst David Gergen, New York City councilman Mark Levine and former police officer and currently an attorney Marc Harold who is in Washington.

So as we watch and wait, I think, Mark, let me and it's important to just go back to you to reiterate. I mean, and I've had multiple guests on this show a former governor, very prominent government leader, pastor in Harlem both sort of saying who is the mayor talking to because they too were expressing criticism over the fact that he's not yet used language saying to directly New York Police officers I stand with you. You have a sense of his message today. What will he say?

MARK LEVINE, NEW YORK CITY COUNCILMAN: Well, the guys have been saying that all along, he'll reiterate it today. That's critical. And he will make the point I hope that there's no contradiction between advancing reform policies and policing in New York and supporting police unconditionally. In fact, the policies that reformers are advancing there, myself included, are good for communities, good for police, for example and when we install cameras as part of standard equipment for cops, that also protects police officers against, for example, bogus charges of misconduct. Also helps build trust with communities.

We are going to be retraining the entire force, giving every officer three days of training on how to de-escalate conflict. That's good for communities. That's also good for cops. And we've decriminalized or in the process of decriminalizing possession of small amounts of marijuana in New York City. And that also helps police because it allows them to put their precious resources toward fighting true violent criminals and not someone who has half an ounce of weed in their pocket.

So he has to make the case today that there's no contradiction between wanting to create a safer and fairer city and at the same time supporting unconditionally, wholeheartedly, our brave men and women in uniform.

BALDWIN: I have a couple of thoughts, but let me just follow with you, David Gergen. I mean, you are watching or listening to the councilman speak. What do you think? We were talking about having spent time both with the mayor and the commissioner. I mean, Bratton, really, a cops chief. What should we hear?

GERGEN: I don't think you should get into substance today. I think this is more about a time when he needs to be calling and joining which Governor Cuomo asking for calm, asking everybody to step back a little bit. Have some reflection.

And I think before, the agenda that Mark laid out, I'm sure, has many, many good elements to it that need to be examined and I would support that. At the same time, I think right now, he needs to say it's time to open a new chapter for all of us. I need to go back and reexamine my own, what I've said in the past and why we have these tensions. Have I contributed in some way to this? And I'm willing to do that and I would ask others to do that.

BALDWIN: So to share in some of the elements and on others.

GERGEN: Yes. And I would ask others to do that as well. And let's see if we can come to a peaceful place. We're only going to get to the substantive changes that are need when we have a greater sense of peace and understanding of each other.

BALDWIN: We saw the pictures of the mayor and the police commissioner walking side by side visiting the homes of the officers, loved ones. Do you know anymore about any kind of communication the mayor has had with them, what was said, expressing his grievances, et cetera?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, the mayor and the police commissioner are both at the hospital on Saturday and they both visited with families this morning. And by all accounts, they were visibly shaken by the experience. These were husbands and sons and in one case a father. In one case a newlywed. And I think all New Yorkers are really in a state of mourning today. A real somber mood in the city among our leaders. It's -- I think we all feel as if we were attacked in some way. And I expect that to be a tone which will hear a new remarks at the press conference.

GERGEN: You can't ignore that there are still some people who are bitter on both sides. And I have had friends tell me today, they would total reject, there is police officers turned their backs on him should be fired. I don't think that's right.

BALDWIN: Who physically turned around in disrespect.

GERGEN: Yes. I don't think that's not right. And there are also people at the hospital that night who were chanting you got what you deserved.

BALDWIN: This is becoming incredibly political very quickly.

GERGEN: Incredibly deep and raw. And we have to find a way -- I don't think everybody can just repeating their same mantra. We have to change the language before we change the law.

BALDWIN: How do we change the language, right? That is one of the questions, Marc Harold is a former police officer. Just wondering in your own personal experience, and we talked a moment ago about, you know, the notion that, you know, there are issues or tensions, a divide between, let's say, city leaders and police. That's not new. It's not new in New York. It is not new, you know, in other places nationwide.

What kind of language would you, you know, we talk about changing the narrative, changing the language, what would you want to hear as a former officer? How do you overcome this distrust?

MARC HAROLD, FORMER POLICE OFFICER: Well, you know, distrust comes from not being familiar. I think what I'm hearing over and over and I do think we need to take a step back. There still needs to be funerals here. There is still needs to be respect for these particular officers. The politics are of course interwoven with all of this.

But I think this is a time for calm and to some degree, a time of reflection to respect these officers. But beyond that, I think what I'm hearing over and over and I'm not a New Yorker. But what I'm hearing over and over is this administration, this mayoral administration has distanced itself a little bit. It's not as well known to the brass, the rank and file police officer. There's not as much conversation.

A lot of this -- look, there's always going to be tension between politicians and law enforcement officers. You put in a career with a law enforcement department, you basically feel like you live there and politicians are just renting. They come. They go. The politics change with the electorate.

And look. Those city leaders have to go out and find a way to reach out to talk to these police officers, show that they understand the very unique nature of law enforcement and have those conversations. I think what we've had here is breakdown of personal relationships. And again, whether it's a union boss, whether it's an elected leader, politics of blame and fear get absolutely nowhere. It's not helpful. And to some degree, I do think we need to step back like the governor said at this point, have some calm and then move forward after these officers are buried.

BALDWIN: Let me loop back to you. And I think the point is taken and also I believe that the mayor has asked for the protests, at least in the New York area to pause. Let's, you know, bury these two police officers and everything. I have read and understood that is they respect those wishes and will be doing so.

Back to you, sir, and your point about changing the language. How should the language change?

GERGEN: Because we have a language of reconciliation and not a language some of us may have spoken out of turn in the past. I think the mayor has to say -- he ran a campaign that was seen by the police as anti-police. Let's just face it. And when he brought his son into the conversation, you know, during these protests and said I had to teach my son basically to watch out for police. That naturally angered a lot of police. And he has had an attitude that seems to be somewhat dismissive of how much has been achieved in the city.

But the police have to also understand there are grievances within the African-American community that need to be addressed and heard and the mayor is trying to give voice to those. I think the police also have to understand, you know -- I thought Pat Lynch was way out of hand the other day as head of the union to say blood is on his hands.

BALDWIN: David Gergen, Mark Levine, thank you so much and also Marc Harold for me in Washington. Appreciate all of you.

Again, we are waiting to hear and we will talk so much about it. We are still now waiting to hear from the message -- I'm sorry. I'm talking to my control room. Tell me again, Peter Kaplan? OK. Shall we stay with this? Are we getting -- forgive me. I'm just speaking to my producers in my control room. Just getting some different instructions. So you want to stay with this, guys? Because we have got a heads-up this will be starting shortly? OK.

We're going to go to break. We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: As we wait for the mayor of New York to speak from police headquarters minutes from now, I want to just play something for you. This is Mayor Bill de Blasio speaking earlier this afternoon.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MAYOR BILL DE BLASIO, NEW YORK CITY: They're suffering. They're suffering an unspeakable pain right now. It's impressive when somehow people can put on a brave face and in conversations we had you can tell there's a lot of fear of what the future will hold and we let them know that we would be there for them and people such as good people in this room would be there for him and we would forever forget them and never forget the sacrifice of Officer Ramos and Officer Liu who stood for all that is good in this society. And we have to understand the attack on them was an attack on all of us. It was an attack on our democracy. It was an attack on our values. It was an attack on every single New Yorker.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: Again, that was Mayor Bill de Blasio earlier this afternoon speaking at a charity function for police.

And as we wait for both the mayor to speak alongside the police commissioner here in New York, Bill Bratton, and you see members of the media, I can only imagine how crammed this room is here at police headquarters.

I have with me, Marc Harold, former police officer, current attorney live in Washington, Mark Levine, New York City councilman who has been very close contact with the mayor's office and has an idea of the message that the mayor will share with the community shortly and David Gergen, senior political analyst and, you know, studied criminal justice here in the city and is familiar both with the mayor and with the police commissioner.

And so, something we wanted to bring up that one issue has been because of this rift -- I don't know if that's the appropriate word, one-minute warning. All right, so one minute away. The question is, should the mayor attend the funerals of these officers? Do we know, Mark Levine, if he will?

LEVINE: He's got to. He has got to. It's a moment of healing. We don't believe either of the officers had signed this, I believe, very hateful letter asking the mayor not to attend their personal funeral. So I fully expect he'll there and it will be an opportunity for the city to come together.

GERGEN: It's important for the police to invite him and then he should go. It would be good if the governor was there as well and maybe even the attorney general of the United States.

BALDWIN: All to attend these officers' funerals.

GERGEN: Yes. And so, I think that, you know, Mayor Giuliani goes out to Eric Holder and Eric Holder went to Ferguson. He should come here. But the mayor, really, is important that he be there.

BALDWIN: And before we can begin, correct me if I'm wrong, Mark, but we don't have dates or times yet for the funerals of these officers?

LEVINE: Not to my knowledge. Not as of this hour. I expect it will be shortly after Christmas.

BALDWIN: OK. Let me read something as we're watching and waiting. We're talking about, you know, the hope and change of narrative, the change of language here and sharing the onus both for police and for the mayor, reading something from the aunt of one of the officers who shot and killed. This was Officer Ramos' aunt saying police need to come together quote "so that we can move forward and find a amicable path to a peaceful co-existence."

Co-existence. What does it mean to you, Marc?

HAROLD: Well, it's a hopeful sign. And incredibly courageous statement by a woman who is experiencing agony. It's hard for the average person to even comprehend. I do believe that there's an opportunity for the city to come together after this tragedy. And it very much depends on the words and actions of the leaders in the coming days. What happens at this press conference now? What happens at the funerals later on this week?

If we continue with hostile rhetoric labeling each other as enemies, well, we miss this opportunity. But if we point out that we all share common hopes and dreams, that all of us are revolted by this heinous act, that all of us want a fair and safer city, then, perhaps, just perhaps, something good can come from this.

BALDWIN: What are you thinking in these final minutes before we watch this?

GERGEN: I agree with Marc that it was a brave statement. Another part of the word co-existence for jumps out at you because it sure suggests we are going to be separate. And I think what we want to have as one community, one New York, as the mayor talked about in the past.

Here they are walking in now. Police commissioner, Bill Bratton. The mayor, Bill de Blasio. Let's take a listen. Standing side by side.