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President Obama Addresses Refugee Crisis; NFL Controversy; Trump vs. Carson; Aired 3-3:30p ET

Aired September 11, 2015 - 15:00   ET

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


[15:00:01]

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: A common commitment to freedom, a common commitment to rule of law, a common belief that America is an indispensable force for good around the world, and that our military is a linchpin in our ability to project our values, alongside our diplomatic efforts, our economy, and the people-people relations that help to spread those core beliefs that all of you are willing to sacrifice for.

So, I want to say thank you to you. I want to especially say thank you to those who are watching overseas and who are watching here today, because many of them are away from family right now. We are grateful for your service.

I don't have a greater honor than serving as your commander in chief. And every single day, I see the extraordinary work that you do, and I benefit from it as well. So, with that, why don't we start taking some questions.

QUESTION: Yes. Of course, sir. As you mentioned, we do have family members and service members worldwide watching this worldwide Troop Talk through American Forces Network.

BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN ANCHOR: It's the top of the hour. You're watching CNN here. I'm Brooke Baldwin.

You have been watching to the president of the United States pausing on this 14th anniversary of 9/11. As we all stopped this morning and vow never to forget, he wanted to make sure after commemorating those moments this morning, stop by to speak with the men and women of our U.S. military there at Fort Meade in Maryland, thanking them for their service and looking ahead.

That was the president. Let's talk about someone who would like to have his job in Washington. He's the number two Republican front- runner who would love to seize the nomination, and beat out someone who has really been jabbing back at him this week, Donald Trump.

He is pediatric neurosurgeon Ben Carson. He's just been speaking in Ferguson, Missouri. So, let's talk about some of the comments he just made speaking to reporters there moments ago.

Matt Lewis is a conservative commentator with The Daily Caller and Niger Innis is the national spokesman for the Congress of Racial Equality and the executive director of theteaparty.net.

Gentlemen, thank you so much for being on. I really appreciate it.

(CROSSTALK)

BALDWIN: And just first, for folks who were not really watching at the top, when we started taking Ben Carson, he almost looked like he was getting emotional as he was talking about his day walking around Ferguson walking around, talking about the lost business, remembering his mother. Also speaking about how he grew up in an inner city and how said he never really had an issue with police, he said, because his mother taught him to respect authority.

He kept going back to that, respect. I want to come back to that in a moment.

But, Matt, let's rip off the Donald Trump Band-Aid in this conversation. Let me just begin with, I heard Suzanne Malveaux, one of our correspondents, asking Ben Carson specifically if he'd like to respond to Donald Trump's recent attacks, slamming him and questioning Ben Carson's faith, questioning his medical record, and he said, I am not going to take the bait.

You surprised by that?

MATT LEWIS, DAILY CALLER: I am surprised, because people usually do take the bait.

But I think he was smart, because then the headline becomes Donald Trump vs. Ben Carson, not Ben Carson going to Ferguson. I think it was shrewd. I think it was wise. And it also plays into a subtle contrast, which is to say that Donald Trump is the conservative outsider who is braggadocious and contentious and Dr. Carson is the conservative outsider who is soft-spoken and more thoughtful.

BALDWIN: Uh-huh. He is also, when you think about the 11 who will be on the debate stage at the Reagan Library with us at CNN next Wednesday night, he will be the only African-American. And so, specifically, he was in Ferguson in the wake of the Michael Brown shooting death last summer.

And he was asked a final question, almost the most significant, Niger, he was asked, why are you in Ferguson? And this was his answer. He said -- because in the past he's taken on the Black Lives Matter movement and then he was asked, in the past, you have really deemphasized race and why are you here?

His response: "We need to deemphasize race and emphasize respect and fairness and justice for all. No better place than Ferguson."

Your response to that?

NIGER INNIS, NATIONAL SPOKESMAN, THE CONGRESS OF RACIAL EQUALITY: I have known Dr. Carson for many years, for close to 15 years.

And I have been proud of him for all those years. But I never saw what I saw today, which is somebody that looked, truly looked and had the gravitas of a president. He looked, acted and communicated in a very soft-spoken, thoughtful way, like Matt said, like a potential president of the United States.

And in addressing that question about Ferguson, he's addressing something that is on the minds of millions of Americans, black, white, Latino and Asian, which is the divisiveness that exists within our country and the fact that we need to come together as a nation.

[15:05:00]

BALDWIN: He kept going back to that theme of respect and I want to ask you also what he thought about the comments about the Black Lives Matter movement.

But Jake Tapper -- let me squeeze another voice in on this. What should we call you, our chief referee? You host "STATE OF THE UNION," you host "THE LEAD," and now you will be refereeing all 11 of them on the stage next Wednesday night at the Reagan Library.

I'm sure you were watching Dr. Carson there and his lack of response, his opportunity to criticize or jab back against Donald Trump as we have been watching this feud and he chose obviously not to. And you're going to be the one. Not only did we think this time last week it would be Donald Trump vs. Jeb Bush, now add Carly Fiorina in there and add Ben Carson. How are you going to do this?

JAKE TAPPER, CNN CHIEF WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT: Well, it's going to be a challenge, obviously. We have 16 candidates. We're going to have the undercard debate with five and then 11 on the stage for the prime-time debate.

Look, the goal for our debate, for the CNN debate, is to get the candidates to actually debate. So we will be quoting them to each other, things that they have said about each other and things that they have said about each other's policies and proposals and we want them to engage.

Dr. Ben Carson was asked a few days ago what the main difference was between him and Donald Trump. He gave the answer about faith, about how he was a man of faith and he didn't sense that from Donald Trump. So I'm not exactly sure what he means by not taking the bait. That's a question.

I mean, that's a legitimate question. How are you different from this candidate? And then if the candidate objects to how the characterization went, that's part of this. I mean, part of presidential politics is responding to what people are saying about you, not necessarily personal attacks, but ways in which you are viewed and who a person is and their policies are part of that.

BALDWIN: I can't wait to watch, only because now that we have released the picture and we know Donald Trump with the number one spot smack dab in the middle and then he will be flanked of course by Ben Carson and Jeb Bush. Will they look at one another when you quote them and when they begin the attacks or not? Tapper, stand by.

Matt Lewis, let me just bring you back in, because one of the questions a lot of these candidates have had to respond to or one of the main issues has been the Black Lives Matter movement. We have seen different activists interrupting other campaign events, and here in particular, Dr. Carson was asked because he has, to use his word, had a beef with this movement in the past. And he was asked, would you be willing to meet with them?

And he said, yes, of course, I would. But he said, they need to add one word to it, all, being including all Black Lives Matter, including, he mentioned, abortions and young African-American babies, police street violence, et cetera. I'm not quite sure how that will sit with that movement.

LEWIS: I don't know how it's going to fit with the Black Lives movement, per se. Maybe not well. But I think it's a great answer because I think it does a couple of things.

First, remember, he's running in a Republican primary. So Iowa voters, where he's doing very well, are his immediate concern. I think it plays very well there. I think also, though, it's a mainstream answer. It may alienate a very small group of Black Lives activists, but I think a lot of mainstream Americans, a lot of African-Americans, in fact, would agree with that, especially when you put it in the context of him also talking about respect.

I thought the line about, you know, Michael Brown might not have been a perfect person, but disrespecting his body by letting it lie there. I think that that is something that will appeal in the African- American community. I think he really threaded the needle quite well today.

BALDWIN: Let me hit pause on the Republicans and, Jake Tapper, pivoting back to you on the Democratic side, you look at Vice President Joe Biden and how he's been doing in our CNN/ORC poll, this is a man who is not even officially in the race with 20 percentage points. There he is last night on "The Late Show With Stephen Colbert."

You hear the Joe, Joe, Joe chants from the audience. Your heart goes out to him as he's of course talking about his beloved son Beau who recently passed. And then, of course, he's asked about politics, will he run? Here he is.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, "THE LATE SHOW WITH STEPHEN COLBERT")

JOSEPH BIDEN, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I don't think any man or woman should run for president unless, number one, they know exactly why they would want to be president, and, two, they can look at the folks out there and say, I promise you, you have my whole heart, my whole soul, my energy and my passion to do this.

And I would be lying if I said that I knew I was there.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: So, Jake, it sounds like a really strong potential no to me.

TAPPER: Right. I think what you sense there is what we have heard from Joe Biden in the last week or so, which is his deep ambivalence about running, and understandably so, given the loss of his son. I don't know that we have a clear decision yet.

[15:10:00]

I mean, look, when I was a freshman in college and you were whatever, in nursery school.

(CROSSTALK)

BALDWIN: Sixth grade, probably, uh-huh.

TAPPER: At that point thought, in 1988 thought that he should be president of the United States. And it's not as though since 1988, he's gotten less experienced or less ambitious.

So the drive to run is very strong. Beau Biden, whom I knew, was his dad's biggest cheerleader, wanted his dad to run for president. There are lots of mixed emotions going on here. I think one of the reasons why people respond so strongly to that clip from "The Late Show" is that very rarely do we hear politicians talk so candidly.

BALDWIN: So candidly.

(CROSSTALK)

TAPPER: And openly, yes, about emotions and about frailty. And it's remarkable. That doesn't mean, however, that there's a path for him to the nomination.

BALDWIN: All right. All right, Tapper, you're already in L.A. getting ready. I will see you soon. Thank you so much. You have a big, big job to do.

TAPPER: Sounds good.

BALDWIN: Before then, of course, you're hosting "THE LEAD" today 4:00 Eastern.

Meantime, the Republican presidential candidates are facing off in back-to-back debates. Make sure you tune in Wednesday night, September 16, at 9:00 and then 8:00 Eastern here on CNN.

Let's switch gears and talk sports.

Let me go to my colleague and Andy Scholes. There's some big breaking news in the world of sports.

Andy, what is going on?

ANDY SCHOLES, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: Brooke, we have a shocker here at the U.S. Open. You will see a lot of fan disappointed walking out of Flushing Meadows right now, because Serena Williams just lost to Roberta Vinci in the semifinals, ending her bid for the calendar grand slam.

BALDWIN: Oh.

SCHOLES: And I will tell you what. No one, and I mean no one, thought this would happen.

Vinci had 300-1 odds of winning the U.S. Open. She's not even seated in this tournament. She's ranked 43rd in the world. Everyone thought this was a done deal. Serena came into this match. She won the first set and everyone just they thought, hey, this is going to be another quick Serena Williams match, you're going to get in and get out and have a good time.

Then, Vinci won the second set. And everyone is like, OK, we get to watch a little extra Serena tennis today. Then in the third set, things got real. It was 2-2 and then 3-3. I'll tell you. Roberta Vinci played the game of her life and she just outlasted Serena on this one. Everyone, as I said, shocked walking out of here right now. Vinci said after the match, it is the best moment of her life, beating Serena. And, Brooke, an interesting fact.

(CROSSTALK)

BALDWIN: I bet it was.

SCHOLES: The women's final -- yes, the ticket for the women's final was going more for the men's this weekend. That ticket was $280 when it started. it's now down to $70 because Serena Williams will now not be playing to are a grand slam.

BALDWIN: Oh, man. We were all -- you know listen, she's so phenomenal. Just talking to Rachel Nichols recently who interviewed her. Our hearts go out. Man, it would have been so awesome. I'm sitting here wondering, wait. Who did she lose to?

SCHOLES: Yes, Roberta Vinci. A lot of people have not heard that name before. She's going to be playing another name that not many have heard in the final, Flavia Pennetta. It's going to be an all- Italian U.S. Women's Open final. Not what people expected when this day started, but, hey, that's why they play the games, right, Brooke.

BALDWIN: I suppose so. I suppose so. That's why we keep coming. That's why sports is fascinating and fun and so disappointing.

Andy Scholes, thank you so much. We will talk to Christine Brennan about the Serena loss. Stand by for that.

Also this today, breaking news out of Phoenix, the manhunt for a possible serial shooter who has been firing shot after shot into these vehicles along this busy stretch of the interstate. Late word, two people now are being questioned by the police. We will have a live report for you there. Also ahead, speaking out for the first time, a former South Carolina

police officer seen on camera shooting an unarmed man in the back making an emotional plea as he faces a judge today. What he had to say in his own words next -- here on CNN.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:18:18]

ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.

BALDWIN: You're watching CNN. I'm Brooke Baldwin.

Here's the breaking news we have for you right now out of Phoenix, Arizona. Two people have just been detained as police are investigating that string of freeway shootings right along Interstate 10.

Let's go straight to Sara Sidner, who is live for us in Phoenix.

We know it's two people, but they just want to talk to them, not arrest them, necessarily?

SARA SIDNER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right.

They have not been arrested. They made that very clear. At this point in time, they have been detained and they are being questioned in connection with the shootings that have happened here along I-10. You know the details and we have been talking about them for days now.

Over the past 12 days, there have been 11 shootings. That's how police are couching all of this. They say some of them are definitely bullets they have been able to find. Some of them, they are not sure exactly what they are, though they are saying they're all shooting some of the things that have been hitting cars are projectiles, but at this point the big news is that they have detained a couple of people.

They are making -- they are doing their investigation with them. They are asking them questions and they are trying to get to the bottom of whether or not they are involved. We don't have much detail as to who the two people are, if they are male or female, if they were together at the same time or not.

We're trying to get more details for you. But at this time, the headline is that two people are detained and they are being questioned in connection with the shooting that has the city really on edge -- Brooke.

BALDWIN: Cannot imagine. Sara Sidner, thank you so much in Phoenix.

Let's hop back to our breaking story. How do you spell upset here, massive, massive upset? Serena Williams, she lost, she lost just now at the semifinal in the U.S. Open.

Let me bring in CNN sports analyst Christine Brennan, who is also a national sports columnist for "USA Today." [15:20:00]

Christine Brennan, say it isn't so. How did this happen? Who is this person who beat her? Where do we begin?

CHRISTINE BRENNAN, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Brooke, this is one of the biggest upsets we have ever seen in sports, any sport, men's or women's ever, one of the biggest.

BALDWIN: Wow.

BRENNAN: Yes. Oh, absolutely. I had never heard of Vinci until yesterday or the day -- whenever we knew that she was playing Serena.

BALDWIN: OK. Good. I feel better.

BRENNAN: I think most of the world hadn't. No disrespect for her.

BALDWIN: Right.

BRENNAN: She obviously played great. She was emotional and she was fired up. She was able to capitalize on a very nervous Serena Williams. But this is extraordinary.

Had Serena won the Grand Slam -- that is of course the calender year Grand Slam, all for majors in the same year -- it hasn't been done by a man or woman in tennis in the world since 1988, Steffi Graf, 27 years. Had she done that, all she needed to do was win this match and, of course, tomorrow, she would certainly have been the sports person of the year in every publication, every news organization. That is how big of a deal this is, an absolute crusher, Brooke, for Serena, and out of the blue. No one saw this coming.

BALDWIN: So at the top of her game. I still so commend her for just being this phenomenal person that she is, but bummer for her.

Let me leave this behind here and let me ask you about these other stories. For those who watched the Patriots/Steelers game, two narratives out of that one today. You have first one of the Steelers coaches is now being investigated for allegedly assaulting a Patriots fan, what, both verbally and physically from last night? What are the allegations exactly?

BRENNAN: That's the story as we know it right now, allegations, obviously the heat of the moment. This is a big rivalry, it's the opening game, and there were allegations of an altercation back and forth.

And every now and then, we see these things, Brooke, where the person who has to be the adult in the situation goes too far. Fans can be crazy and things can happen, but this just cannot happen in the National Football League at any point. This is where the adult in the room, so to speak, has to step back and say, no, I cannot get involved.

The NFL will investigate this. Obviously, altercation, fights are the exact thing, domestic violence of course from a year ago, that is still a big issue on people's minds and the NFL cannot afford to have anything happening. The Cleveland Browns' offensive line coach has been suspended because of a 911 call from a week ago where a woman said she was being strangled by him. No charges. No arrest. Just gone, suspended.

The NFL has a no tolerance policy now, and we may well see that again in this case.

BALDWIN: OK. Finally, Christine, the headset controversy. So the Steelers, they're irked because they heard the Pats' radio broadcast in their headsets during the first half of the game. The Steelers head coach says this actually isn't the first time. One game here into the season, what's going on?

BRENNAN: Well, I thought what Mike Tomlin, the head coach of the Steelers said, was really revealing when he was asked about this and, basically, does this happen? He was like, yes, all the time whenever I'm here in New England, that this is exactly what they are dealing with.

So it certainly plays right into, Brooke, the storyline of the Patriots as cheaters, as doing things that everyone else is not doing. Do we have any rock-solid evidence that was shenanigans going on from the Patriots? No.

BALDWIN: No.

BRENNAN: But the NFL has said it will investigate, but one more story of the Patriots. You have got Deflategate. You had Spygate. And now we have Headsetgate. It's kind of funny. But the bigger issue, the bigger picture, it is not so funny and that's why the NFL has to look into this one as well.

BALDWIN: On the first game. So many eyeballs obviously on that screen and we have all of this going on. OK.

BRENNAN: It's -- you know what, it's the biggest reality TV show other than the Republican primary, the National Football League.

BALDWIN: Ba-dum-bum.

Christine Brennan, thank you so much.

As I hop a plane to L.A. ahead of our big debate next Wednesday, it will fun. Christine, thank you very much.

BRENNAN: Thank you, Brooke.

You cover sports and I will cover the politics.

And now to this, speaking of what is happening, a former South Carolina police officer actually seen on camera shooting an unarmed man in the back speaking out for the first time in front of a judge, making an emotional request. A live report from Charleston is next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:28:28]

BALDWIN: On this 14th anniversary of 9/11, the president of the United States has been speaking at a town hall format, speaking to our men and women of the military in Fort Meade in Maryland. And he actually just made his first public comments on the Syrian refugee crisis.

So here's what the president said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

OBAMA: I think that we have to work with our European partners on this issue.

You know, the refugee crisis is not just a European problem. It's a world problem. And we have obligations. I made certain to send through every agency that we have got to do our part, first of all, in taking our share of refugees.

And those of you who saw some of these heartbreaking images of that small boy drowned, I think anybody who is a parent understands that that stirs all of our consciences, not just folks on the other side of the Atlantic.

So I have already been in discussions with people like Prime Minister Renzi of Italy, the Greeks and others who are down south about how we can enhance maritime efforts to make sure, first of all, that people who are loading up on these rickety boats are safe, and we're not seeing enormous loss of life there.