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Grassroots Effort to Get Biden to Run for President; Jury Deciding James Holmes' Sentencing; White House makes Case to Members of Congress; NY Man Accused of Material Support of Terror Group. Aired 10:30-11a ET

Aired July 29, 2015 - 10:30   ET

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


(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[10:34:07] CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Will the controversy over the Keystone Pipeline become an issue for Hillary Clinton? Listen to what the Democratic presidential candidate said in a town hall gathering in New Hampshire. A voter, a supporter asked her to give a yes or no answer on whether she would support the project to bring oil from Canada into the United States.

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HILLARY CLINTON (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: This is President Obama's decision. And I am not going to second-guess him because I was in a position to set this in motion and I do not think that would be the right thing to do. So I want to wait and see what he and Secretary Kerry decide. If it's undecided when I become president, I will answer your question.

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COSTELLO: All right. That didn't make some of Hillary Clinton's supporters very happy. But I'd like to introduce you to this young man. He's Will Pierce. He's the founder and executive director of Draft Biden. He wants the Vice President Joe Biden to enter the presidential race. Welcome.

[10:35:01] WILL PIERCE, DRAFT BIDEN: Thank you very much -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Thanks for being with us. I appreciate.

First of all, what did you think about Hillary Clinton's answer to whether she would approve or disapprove of the Keystone Pipeline?

PIERCE: Well, Carol, we're focused on the vice president running in this upcoming presidential election. Secretary Clinton, we believe she's a great candidate. She's done a lot of great good for our country as first lady, United States senator and as secretary of state. But we believe that the Vice President with his 30 plus years of experience as a United States senator, his foreign policy experience, his domestic experience is what's needed in this country.

And basically we have over 180,000 supporters who went to our Web site and signed our petition DraftBiden2016.com because they believe this is a man who is what we need right now in our lifetime.

COSTELLO: Some people believe that it's kind of odd Joe Biden hasn't entered the Presidential race. Why do you think he hasn't?

PIERCE: I think he's just been watching. He's just been looking at the landscape. He's been focused on being the Vice President as well. If you look at the most recent polling, he's been polling -- beating some other declared presidential candidates. What we've just been seeing is just basically just a lot of supporters who believe that he should be running.

But on the flip side, we're just seeing that basically it's still a little bit too early in the race. We still have some ways to go and basically there's some supporters that are just waiting to see what the Vice President does as well.

COSTELLO: Well, you know what some critics might say about Joe Biden. He has a penchant for some verbal gaffes. Does that bother you?

PIERCE: That doesn't bother me at all -- Carol. The thing is this. He's real, he's honest and he says what he means. Some supporters they actually said -- that I've talked to, they actually said they like the Vice President because they know whatever he says, they know it's the truth. They know it's an unscripted answer. They know it's not from a teleprompter or from a speechwriter.

His word is his bond. Whatever the Vice President says, you can it to the bank. And that's one reason why I support him. Another reason myself, I'm an army veteran. I deployed over to Iraq and Afghanistan. And basically the Vice President's commitment to the military is very important to us as well.

COSTELLO: OK. When you talk about authenticity, does that mean you don't think Hillary Clinton is authentic?

PIERCE: It's not that, Carol. It's just that basically when we look at all the candidates and potential candidates out there, we believe the Vice President is the perfect candidate. Right now on the Democratic field, we only have five candidates running. And I view the whole entire primary process like a playoff before the Super Bowl. And you want to make sure that your team's ready, your candidate's ready.

Right now, it's not going to be a competitive Democratic primary because we don't have as many candidates in there. We believe if the Vice President gets in there, we're going to be able to have a more robust debate. We're going to be able to talk about key issues such as the Keystone Pipeline. We're going to be able to get more ideas out there as well.

COSTELLO: All right. Will Pierce -- thanks for being with me. I appreciate it.

PIERCE: Thank you. COSTELLO: Still to come in the NEWSROOM -- you're welcome.

Still to come in the NEWSROOM, for the first time in three years, we're hearing from the family of the convicted Colorado theater shooter. The shooter's father says he had no clue his son was mentally ill.

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[10:42:02] COSTELLO: The mother of the Colorado movie theater shooter is expected on the witness stand later today in the sentencing phase of the trial. The jury is deciding whether to sentence the convicted killer to life in prison or the death penalty. James Holmes' father, Robert, testified yesterday that there was a long family history of mental illness but he said he had no idea his son was suffering any kind of disturbing thoughts before he opened fire in that movie theater.

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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Did you have any idea he was having these disturbing images in his head?

ROBERT HOLMES, JAMES HOLMES' FATHER: No, I had no idea he was having intrusive thoughts, disturbing thoughts or anything like that.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Do you still love him?

HOLMES: Yes, I do.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Why?

HOLMES: Well, he's my son and we always got along pretty well. And he was always -- he's actually a really excellent kid.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Joining me now to talk about this, Jerri Jackson whose son Matthew McQuinn was killed in the shooting rampage.

Good morning and thank you so much for being with me.

JERRI JACKSON, MOTHER OF MATTHEW MCQUINN: Thank you for having me.

COSTELLO: I can't imagine how difficult it is for you to talk about this. But I have to ask you, what did you think about the father's testimony in court?

JACKSON: As far as his son being insane and having that mental illness, maybe he did. But at the time that he was doing all the planning, I have to believe that he did not have any kind of episode.

COSTELLO: The father said he was an excellent kid, he saw no signs of mental illness. It's just kind of hard to believe.

JACKSON: Yes. I would have thought that there would have been some kind of sign. But then again, I have not had a child with mental illness. So I cannot relate to that.

COSTELLO: Do you think that this man who killed your son should get the death penalty?

JACKSON: Do I think he should? Yes. But as far as I'm concerned, as long as he is in prison for the rest of his life, no matter how long that is, at least he does not have the opportunity to hurt anyone else. And that is my main concern.

COSTELLO: The killer's mother is expected to take the stand later today. Are you going to listen?

JACKSON: No, I will not. It is very difficult for me to listen to whether it is the defense attorney or any of their witnesses. It's very difficult for me.

COSTELLO: Before I let you go, I'd love it if you'd tell us a little bit about your son.

[10:44:52] JACKSON: He was a young man that just loved life. He was always laughing, always had a smile on his face. And he also did things just to pick up somebody else, you know. If they're having a bad day, say something to them, joke around with them and just loved life. One thing that he used to do was he would put his sunglasses on the top of his head and called that his man tiara.

COSTELLO: He sounds like a sweetie. Thank you so much for being with me, Jerri Jackson. I appreciate it.

JACKSON: Thank you.

COSTELLO: Why is it for some people that the -- actually, I wrote an op-ed on cnn.com/opinion on guns in America and how we might be able to stop the violence perpetuated with those weapons. If you'd like to check it out, go to cnn.com/opinion.

I'll be right back.

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[10:50:11] COSTELLO: Happening right now, Secretary of State John Kerry is testifying along with others in front of the Senate Armed Services Committee. They're trying to rally support for a nuclear agreement with Iran. We just heard from the Defense Secretary Ash Carter.

Barbara Starr has been following this hearing from the Pentagon. She joins us now with an update. Good morning -- Barbara.

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol. As this hearing goes on, a couple of points of contention emerging that will not surprise you. Senator John McCain there chairing the hearing, grilling the witnesses, especially the energy secretary, about these potential what they're calling side deals -- at least that's what Congress is calling them with the International Atomic Energy Agency and Iran. There are confidential agreements by all accounts about the possible military dimensions of Iran's nuclear program and the Congress wants to see all of that language. They want to know exactly what's been agreed to between the IAEA and Iran on the military dimensions of its nuclear program.

Of course, the members of the cabinet cannot guarantee it because it's between two other entities, Iran and this international agency. So there's a lot on that.

But you have Defense Secretary Ash Carter and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs at the table today really talking about the military dimensions for the U.S. If the agreement goes into play, what will it mean for U.S. security in the Middle East if Iran commits aggression? Have a listen to what the Defense Secretary had to say about that.

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ASHTON CARTER, U.S. SECRETARY OF DEFENSE: If Iran were to commit aggression, our robust force posture ensures we can rapidly surge an overwhelming array of forces into the region, leveraging our most advanced capabilities married with sophisticated munitions that put no target out of reach.

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STARR: No target out of reach. What he means there by all accounts is that Iran's nuclear facilities, its buried underground facilities, the ones that are so difficult to get to, not off the table, not out of reach if any president of the United States were to order a military strike against Iran. Top Pentagon officials today taking the opportunity to assure Congress if a president orders a strike, they can still do one -- Carol.

COSTELLO: All right. Barbara Starr reporting live from the Pentagon. Thanks so much.

Still to come in the NEWSROOM, a real-life incredible hulk. A car blocking his path -- don't make this guy angry.

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[10:56:57] COSTELLO: Breaking news to pass along to you. The FBI and the U.S. Justice Department just holding a news conference in Buffalo, New York to say they have made another arrest of a Lackawanna man -- I would assume that's close to Buffalo. They arrested that man after he traveled to Turkey and then came back into the United States to recruit ISIS members. As he was attempting to travel to the Middle East once again, the FBI made an arrest.

Here's U.S. attorney, William Hochul.

WILLIAM HOCHUL, U.S. ATTORNEY: This information included allegations that Nagi espoused violent jihad and that he did constitute a threat to those of us in the United States. Now these are very serious charges and if convicted of attempt to provide material support to ISIL as well as the members of this group, Nagi could face up to 15 years in jail, a $250,000 fine or both. This investigation is obviously continuing and at approximately

11:00, Nagi will make his first appearance. And the government will be represented by assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph Tripi who along with Timothy Lynch, another assistant U.S. Attorney is, of course, very well-known in our office and is jointly handling the case.

Unfortunately this is yet another occasion when the worldwide fight against international terrorism has returned to western New York. In fact, this represents the second prosecution of a person who sought to support ISIL.

The first such prosecution began last year when our office unsealed charges against a person who's accused of being a recruiter for that terrorist organization, Mr. Mufid Elfgeeh of Rochester, New York. That case continues as we speak.

Two final messages in conclusion before I turn it over to my law enforcement partners, first as I already indicated, information in this case came from members of the community. I can't thank people enough for following the admonition of law enforcement "if you see something, say something".

As this case demonstrates, our support across the community is strong. And thanks to the efforts and the statements in bringing forward the information regarding Arafat Nagi, we in law enforcement have now been able to do something.

Secondly, the threat posed by ISIL and other terrorist groups is simply so great and so grave that all of the law enforcement partners that you see behind me, along with the many men and women who are members of these departments, have all --

COSTELLO: All right. We're going to break away. The full name of the suspect is Arafat Nagi. He's 44 years old. He's a Lackawanna man. And again the FBI placed him under arrest because apparently he was on his way to the Middle East and then he would come back to the United States to allegedly recruit ISIS members here.

[11:00:05] We'll have much more on this in the coming hours on CNN.

Thank you for joining me today. I'm Carol Costello.

"AT THIS HOUR" with Berman and Bolduan starts now.