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EARLY START

Key City Falls to ISIS in Iraq; U.S. Officials Assessing Trove of Intelligence; Amtrak Trains Back on Track; Renowned Climber Dies in Yosemite Accident. Aired 5:30-6a ET

Aired May 18, 2015 - 05:30   ET

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


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[05:31:09]

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN ANCHOR: Happening now, a key city falls to ISIS in Iraq. This morning, ISIS is on the move. Where will they strike next? Can the U.S. do anything to stop them? A live report moments away.

JOHN BERMAN, CNN NACHOR: U.S. intelligence officials analyzing data after a raid that took out a key ISIS leader. What else did they find on the mission? And how could it help in the fight against the Islamic State?

ROMANS: And at this very moment, you are looking at a live picture, Amtrak service resuming on the northeast corridor. That is the train taking out leaving New York going to Philly for the first time since Tuesday's deadly wreck. We're live for the latest on new safety improvements and the investigation.

BERMAN: A welcome sight for a lot of commuters.

ROMANS: Over the weekend, people were paying $700 to fly between New York and Washington, D.C. and now that's resumption of service to Philly, at least. Welcome back to EARLY START. I'm Christine Romans.

BERMAN: I'm John Berman. Great to see you. It's 32 minutes past the hour right now.

And developing this morning, a major victory for ISIS in Iraq, the city of Ramadi, which is the capital of Anbar Province, it fell to ISIS fighters. After months of clashes between Iraqi forces and ISIS militants, Iraqi officials says that ISIS forces burst into the city with armored bulldozers and at least ten suicide bombings.

Government forces now pulled out of the military base there. Iraqi officials and U.S. officials say the fight for Ramadi is not over. That may not be the fact on the ground.

For the latest, let's bring in our senior international correspondent, Nick Paton Walsh. Good morning, Nick.

NICK PATON WALSH, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: John, frankly devastating setback for the Iraqi government. Ramadi, a key city in Anbar Province, a third of Iraq's territory was in the sights to be the next place purge of ISIS. Quite the opposite has now occurred.

That attack began in the early hours of Sunday morning, 13 suicide bombers, bulldozers, forcing their way in and it seemed that even the weeks of fighting that have proceeded the final onslaught were not enough warning for the Iraqi government to adequately reinforce their forces there.

Pictures of the military in retreat saying they were unable to hold positions. Some say they lacked ammunition and the golden decision part of the withdrawal here, 500 said to have been killed in the fighting.

Fears in the 24 to 48 hours ahead that Ramadi will be purged of the Iraqi government of what ISIS often does when it takes population centers like this, a key moment for Baghdad to how to turn the tide back, very hard to retake an urban place like this.

The Iranian defense minister is saying he will allow Shi'a militia to move into the city now. They have been effective in the past, but the methods have been brutal at times.

A real turning point and certainly in terms of the information that ISIS often tries to win in circumstances like this. They are increasingly close to Baghdad and holding an area, which is predominately Sunni, a very complex task for Washington to assist their ally in Baghdad to turn this around -- John.

BERMAN: All right, Nick Paton Walsh, a troubling set back there for the Iraqi government, thanks so much, Nick.

ROMANS: This morning, U.S. officials are assessing a trove of intelligence seized in a special operations raid that killed a key ISIS commander. Officials say a dozen Army Delta Force commandos raided a multi-story building in Eastern Syria.

The Pentagon say the ISIS commander known as Abu Sayyaf died in heavy fire fight when he resisted capture. Officials say Sayyaf helped run the ISIS oil and gas operation.

That's how they fund, by the way, all of their operation. They steal the gas and oil. He had a military role as well. Pentagon officials say there were no U.S. or civilian casualties in that raid.

[05:35:10] U.S. troops captured Abu Sayyaf's wife and secured computers, mobile phones, documents, that officials now hope will prove to be a gold mine of intelligence data. National correspondent, Sunlen Serfaty, is at the White House with more.

SUNLEN SERFATY, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: John and Christine, the administration is characterizing this as a significant blow to ISIS, but there are a significant amount of questions that still remain. Who was the man the administration is referring to as Abu Sayyaf?

Who was he really? How big of a role and how much influence he had in ISIS? The basic question is what actually is his real name? Now some lawmakers on Capitol Hill are urging caution, especially when it comes to balancing the risk of a mission like this against the reward.

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REP. ADAM SCHIFF (D), CALIFORNIA: This was an extraordinary risk. If one of our people were captured, if we lost some of our special forces, there would be tough questions to answer whether it was worth it. I think notwithstanding the success of the operation, we have to ask those questions. Was the intelligence value we hope to gain and we are gaining worth this kind of risk?

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SERFATY: And other lawmakers are praising this sort of initiative coming out of the administration. Here is what the chairman of the House Intelligence Committee had to say.

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REP. DEVEN NUNES (R-CA), HOUSE INTELLIGENCE CHAIRMAN: Many of us have been advocating this strategy for a long time or using this tactic because this is a better way to gather intelligence versus just air strikes.

So it takes guts for the administration and our military to put action like this together. It was successful. We are happy that they got back and got back safely. Now over the coming weeks, we will know what they were actually able to gather.

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SERFATY: And U.S. officials say there was a lot of intelligence, reams of data that was picked up from the mission site including a computer which could have valuable information on how ISIS operates, how they raise their money, and how they communicate.

And that's, of course, in addition to the wife of this ISIS leader, who has been detained and now will be interrogated by the United States. Now lawmakers on Capitol Hill do expect to receive a briefing from the White House on this, this week -- John and Christine.

BERMAN: All right, Sunlen Serfaty at the White House.

We showed you pictures of an Amtrak train leaving New York from Philadelphia. That was the first time that a train has done that. Headed off in that direction since the disaster last week that killed eight people and injured more than 200.

The first train left from New York at 5:30 a.m. A northbound train leaves from Philadelphia headed up here at 5:53. Over the weekend, technicians installed new automated speed controls on the northbound side of the tracks at the curve where train number 188 crashed less than a week ago.

CNN's Jean Casarez joins now live from us Penn Station. Jean, that train left minutes ago.

JEAN CASAREZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It was so exciting. They let us go down to the tracks. The people came and boarded. It wasn't a lot of people, but 5:31 is when the train left the tracks. It was all aboard. There they went.

You know, we spoke to some passengers, one man saying that he was so excited that he finally would be able to get his train travel back. He said last week cost him over $1,000 because he had to fly to D.C. and several times. So economically, he is glad this has been restored.

We do know that the CEO of Amtrak said his workers have been around the clock to restore the infrastructure so these trains could start running today. We know the FBI is going to be on the scene today to look at what possibly happened to the windshield of the affected train.

If you look at it, it appears as though a projectile or a bullet. There will be FBI analysis on that. Ironically, another Amtrak train and another line, the Pennsylvania train reported and radioed in they had a projectile hit their train. The question is what happened to this train?

Because the engineer did not radio in the NTSB is saying, that anything hit the train. What did happen? They developed that through analysis and if so, the causal connection of something hitting that train and speeding up -- John, back to you.

BERMAN: It is one of the areas they are looking at right now. Jean Casarez for us at Penn Station where again a train left moments ago, the first train to ride that northeast corridor since the disaster one week ago, thanks, Jean.

ROMANS: A deadly shootout in Waco, Texas, a gunfire erupting at a restaurant Sunday between five rival biker gangs. When the bullets stopped flying, nine people were dead. Police say they heard there may be trouble at the Twin Peaks Restaurant and they were prepared.

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SGT. PATRICK SWANTON, POLICE SPOKESMAN: We were so concerned of the incidents that may occur here that we had active S.W.A.T. officers that were here on scene.

[05:40:06] I can tell you at this point that their action has saved lives in keeping this from spilling into a very busy Sunday morning crowded central Texas marketplace. So thank goodness the officers were here and took the action that they needed to take to save numerous lives.

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ROMANS: Restaurant workers and customers in that restaurant took cover in the freezer when the gunfire started. Only the bikers were among the dead and injured.

BERMAN: A U.S. Marine has been killed in a crash during a training mission in Hawaii. Twenty two Marines from Camp Pendleton were on board the MV-22 Osprey in Oahu. The hard landing mishap for the helicopter and caught fire. The 21 surviving Marines were all taken to hospitals. No word yet on their conditions or the identity of the Marine who died.

ROMANS: A cyber-security consultant told the FBI he hacked into the computer systems of up to 20 airliners and even managed to make one climb. Chris Roberts was detained by the FBI last month. He is being investigated for possible cybercrimes. His motive is to improve aircraft security.

He infiltrated the plane's computers using a modified ethernet cable to connect his laptop to an electronic box beneath his airline seat that controls the entertainment system.

BERMAN: The Defense Department has identified the six U.S. Marines killed last week when their helicopter crashed during a humanitarian mission in Nepal. Four of the Marines were based in Camp Pendleton, California. Two others based in Okinawa, Japan. Two Nepalese servicemen were also killed.

Nepal's home ministry says that the two huge earthquakes that hit were the deadliest to ever hit that country. The death toll currently stands at nearly 8,600.

ROMANS: All right, 42 minutes past the hour. Time for an EARLY START on your money this morning, U.S. stock futures barely moving, but Friday, the S&P closed for the record high last Friday. The stocks powering ahead despite weak spots in the economy. It is the best job market in seven years. Housing has been improving here this spring.

If you spend $127,000 on a car, you expect it to be able to drive. According to "Consumer Reports" the new top of the line Tesla Model S sedan is sometimes undrivable.

The testers at "Consumer Reports" were locked out of the car because of the retractable handles were unable to work. Even so the magazine says once they got inside, the Tesla Model S turned out to be one of the best cars it has ever tested.

BERMAN: If you can open the door, it is a great car. It's a small thing.

ROMANS: It's $127,000.

BERMAN: I'm big on how big the coffee holder is in the car. I bet it's awesome.

ROMANS: I will find out if there are cup holders.

Hillary Clinton back on the stump today, the former secretary of state heads to Iowa. Will she answer her Republican critics? Will she answer reporter questions at all? BERMAN: Don't count on it.

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BERMAN: Hillary Clinton back out on the campaign trail today. She will be back in Iowa after fundraising for about ten days. The former secretary of state will meet with supporters at a grassroots house party in Mason City. The Clinton team is putting a special focus on Iowa. Hillary Clinton finished third there in the caucuses in 2008.

ROMANS: Quick, Mason City. What county?

BERMAN: I know there are 99 counties, but I don't know what county in Mason City.

ROMANS: Saratoga County.

Let's take a look at what is coming up on "NEW DAY." Chris Cuomo joins us now. Hi, Chris.

CHRIS CUOMO, CNN ANCHOR, "NEW DAY": That's not unfair. John Berman, you are the champion.

BERMAN: It was not a question on "Jeopardy," which I won last week, Chris.

CUOMO: The question for me would have been where is Iowa? It's good to see both of you. We have the latest on Amtrak now six days after the deadly train derailment. The first train is now going to roll out of New York's Penn Station.

The issue of safety remains. The question is whether Train 188 and the horrible crash will be a turning point or not. We are tracking those responsible for change. We have a key lawmaker on today. So please tune in to see what he says happens next.

Two important developments that are going on there is what Amtrak just did with the track and what the FBI says about the possibility something hit the train's windshield. Is that relevant or true?

Also abroad, a key Iraqi city has fallen into ISIS' hands. Does this mean we are losing? The coalition is losing the war? We have the state of play on the ground from those who have been there.

This as a top ISIS commander, who was killed during the U.S. raid in Syria, does this matter? Is this a big deal or not? We will debate that and more at the top of the hour, my friend.

BERMAN: Looking forward to it, thanks so much, Chris. As for us, we will be right back.

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[05:52:09] BERMAN: Tragedy in Yosemite National Park, a noted extreme athlete is dead this morning after attempting a 3,500 feet BASE jump. Authorities say that Dean Potter's body was found Sunday. Park officials say that he and his friend, Graham Hunt, tried to clear gap in the granite cliffs, but smashed into the rock. Graham was also killed. BASE jumping is illegal in Yosemite.

ROMANS: As we head into the busiest summer driving season, gas prices are heading due north. AAA says the national average is $2.71 a gallon. That's up from $2.47 a month ago. It is 94 cents lower than a year ago. I know people have been complaining recently. Industry analysts expect gas price hikes to slow. It will not get worse than it is now because of increasing supply.

BERMAN: We have a new brutal chapter for fans of the Los Angeles Clippers. The Houston Rockets won game seven in the NBA playoff series, 113-100 and they will play in the western conference finals. The Rockets fought back from a 3-1 series deficit to win.

They were down by 19 points in game six. Rockets play the Warriors in the western conference finals on Tuesday. There is James Harden and his beard. They will both be in that game.

LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers will take on the Atlanta Hawks in the Eastern Conference finals starting Wednesday. The Hawks have not won a championship since the '50s. I don't think the Cavaliers have ever won. So history will be made one way or the other in the NBA playoffs.

ROMANS: All right, do you want pointers from the CEO of the world's most valuable companies? Career advice for John Berman from Apple's CEO Tim Cook, that is next.

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ROMANS: Good Monday morning. I'm Christine Romans. Let's get an EARLY START on your money this morning. U.S. stock futures barely moving, but the big move was last week. The S&P 500 was ending last week at a record high.

A lot to consider this week especially housing data, existing home sales expected to hit levels not since 2006. That's because of strong jobs growth, low interest rates and losing lending standards.

Follow in the footsteps of Steve Jobs. That was the message from Apple CEO Tim Cook to George Washington University graduates. Cook said he used to believe work was work and he would have to change the world in his own time.

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TIM COOK, CEO, APPLE: Steve didn't see it that way. He was an idealist. In that way, he reminded me of how I felt as a teenager. In that first meeting, he convinced me that if we worked hard and made great products we, too, could help change the world.

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ROMANS: They certainly did. Target shunning processed food. According to the "Wall Street Journal," Target met with Campbell's Soup, General Mills, and Kellogg. The message from Target, Target doesn't want to put as much money into pushing their product. They will shift to healthy fresh food to match changing tastes in America.

ROMANS: All that does is make me hungry.

Amtrak back in business this morning, the first train out of Philadelphia since last week's deadly crash left moments ago. There are new safety measures in place. "NEW DAY" picks up the story right now.

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ROMANS: Northeast corridor back open for business this morning.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Technicians installing speed controls on that curved section of the track.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Possibility shortly before it derailed, the train was hit by an unknown object.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We will look at everything at this point.

BERMAN: The city of Ramadi falls to ISIS fighters.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is a disaster.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Daring raid by American special ops in Syria.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Was the intelligence value worth this risk?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He told him he had managed to hack into aircraft while he was on board.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I know this can still be breached.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: At least nine are now dead and nearly 20 more injured.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: These are dangerous, hostile biker gangs we are dealing with.

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CUOMO: Good morning. Welcome to your NEW DAY. It's Monday, May 18th, 6:00 in the east. The good news is that Amtrak is restoring full service this morning just six days after that derailment in Philadelphia that killed eight people and injured more than 200.

The bad news is the railways are still not up to snuff. We are staying who is responsible. We have information on the crash and what happens next and we will be tracking these first rail journey since the accident. ALISYN CAMEROTA, CNN ANCHOR: The exact cause of last week's deadly crash still unknown.