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CNN NEWSROOM

Trump versus Bush on Foreign Policy; Carly Fiorina Goes After Trump; COP Candidates Air Views on Iran Nuclear Deal; Jimmy Fallon, Hillary Clinton Spoof Trump; Earthquake Strikes Chile, Tsunami Warnings Issued; Frustration Boils over for Migrants in Hungary, Others Face Landmines in Croatia; Highlights from GOP Presidential Debate; GOP Candidates Grade Themselves on Debate Performance; Federal Reserve Announcement on Interest Rates Expected; Tom Brady Supports Donald Trump; Boy Arrested for Making Homemade Clock. Aired 2-3a ET

Aired September 17, 2015 - 02:00   ET

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


[02:00:] ERROL BARNETT, CNN ANCHOR: Well, we all watched this with enjoyment in the NEWSROOM tonight. It was a political fight night in southern California.

LYNDA KINKADE, CNN ANCHOR: That's right. CNN hosted a pair of Republican presidential debates. Front-runner, Donald Trump, was boisterous as ever, but this time his competitors came out fighting too, including Florida Governor Jeb Bush.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JEB BUSH, (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE & FORMER FLORIDA GOVERNOR: When Donald Trump talks about judgment, what was his position on who would have been the best negotiator to deal with Iran? It wasn't a Republican. It was Hillary Clinton. That's what you believe. I mean the lack of judgment and the lack of understanding about how the world works is really dangerous in this kind of time that we're seeing. Is that the judgment you bring to the table, that Hillary Clinton is a great negotiator, she could bring about a better --

(CROSSTALK)

DONALD TRUMP, (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE & CEO, TRUMP ORGANIZATION: Your brother and your brother's administration gave us Barack Obama because it was such a disaster those last three months that Abraham Lincoln couldn't have been elected.

BASH: You know what? As it relates to my brother, there's one thing I know for sure, he kept us safe.

(APPLAUSE)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BARNETT: All right. Now, our Jonathan Mann tracks U.S. politics for us, and long-time viewers will know he's the host of "Political Mann," a show I like every election season. Joins us to talk about what really was a showdown between Donald Trump and everybody else. JONATHAN MANN, CNN HOST, POLITICAL MANN: It really is. The campaign

so far is emerging as a rivalry between established political figures on one side and outsiders, who are suddenly entering politics. And the outsiders are doing a whole lot better.

On the stage in Simi Valley Donald Trump, of course; neurosurgeon, Ben Carson, hardly a household name; and businesswoman, Carly Fiorina, all capturing the attention of the American public.

But the single most dramatic rivalry is between former Florida Governor Jeb Bush, whose campaign has been faltering, and Trump, whose campaign has been astonishingly successful. The two men seemed to have some bad blood. It's personal. Trump has derided Bush for his personal manner as low energy. And they do have some history. Donald Trump was once a supporter of Jeb Bush's and hoped that Jeb Bush as governor of Florida would legalize casino gambling there.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JEB BUSH, (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE & FORMER FLORIDA GOVERNOR: He wanted casino gambling in Florida.

DONALD TRUMP, (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE & CEO, TRUMP ORGANIZATION: I didn't.

BUSH: Yes, you did.

TRUMP: Totally false.

(CROSSTALK)

TRUMP: I would have gotten it --

BUSH: Before during and after.

(CROSSTALK)

BUSH: I'm not going to be bought by anybody.

(CROSSTALK)

TRUMP: I promise, if I wanted it, I would have gotten it.

BUSH: No way.

(LAUGHTER)

TRUMP: Believe me.

BASH: No. Not even possible.

TRUMP: I know my people.

(LAUGHTER)

BUSH: You've got according to your -- what you said on one of the talk shows, you've got Hillary Clinton to go to your wedding.

TRUMP: That's true.

BUSH: That's because you gave her money. Maybe it works for Hillary Clinton.

(CROSSTALK)

BUSH: It doesn't work for anybody on this stage.

TRUMP: I was a businessman. I got along with Clinton. I got along with everybody. That was my job, to get along with people.

BUSH: But the simple fact is --

(CROSSTALK)

TRUMP: Excuse me. One second.

BUSH: No.

(CROSSTALK)

BUSH: The simple fact is, Donald, you could not take --

(CROSSTALK)

TRUMP: More energy tonight. I like that.

(LAUGHTER)

BUSH: I was asked a question.

TRUMP: I didn't want --

(LAUGHTER)

It was my obligation as a businessman to my family, to my company, to my employees to get along with all politics. I get along with all of them. And I did a damn good job in doing it.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MANN: The facts about that casino debate are this. In 1997, Trump did host a $500 a ticket fundraiser boosting Bush's gubernatorial campaign. The next year, as Bush continued to campaign for governor, Trump donated $50,000 to the Florida Republican Party. But no casino. Bush was fighting them every step of the way and maybe some hard feelings as well.

KINKADE: There will were, of course, some other notable exchanges from someone who wasn't in the primetime debate last time. Tell us about her.

MANN: Carly Fiorina, businesswoman extraordinaire, a woman who was really a pioneer in getting women to the top ranks of U.S. business. She was among the also-rans. She's attacked Trump before. He responded by calling her ugly. So ugly, he suggested, she's unelectable as president. Then he backtracked and said he meant her persona when he said ugly, not her personal appearance. Well, tonight she responded. Had she heard what Trump said?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CARLY FIORINA, (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE & FORMER CEO, HEWLETT- PACKARD: I think women all over this country heard very clearly what Mr. Trump said.

(APPLAUSE)

TRUMP: I think she's got a beautiful face and I think she's a beautiful woman.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(LAUGHTER)

MANN: If you're watching that, the icy stare on her side, the look on his side, like I have just been served. Snap, I've just been had. He knew what he was facing.

She really did very, very well. A lot of pundits who were watching said she is the one who actually won tonight. Once again, considering she wasn't even in the main debate last time, now she made it with the big boys. Forgive me for using that phrase. And she played the game hard and she did really, really well.

BARNETT: She sharpened her elbows. All of the candidates do a lot of preparation for these debates. They want to make points and make policy statements. It's the wow factor, the unpredictable moment that the camera captured on all those counts. Fiorina's the one that people online and people who watched feel more positive about. Donald Trump faltered, many feel.

[02:05:18] MANN: She just seems to be a much faster thinker on her feet. His instincts seem to be, forgive me for saying this, whatever his strengths as a political figure, his instinct seems to be to go and say something nasty, something personal and nasty. She was coming up with, as you say, extraordinarily polished policy pronouncements. It didn't seem rehearsed. It seemed like she just knew her facts. But also thinking on her feet. That remark when she was asked about had she heard. She said every woman heard. Thinking on her feet, understated but cut like a knife. And you could see on Donald Trump's face, no sense fighting this.

KINKADE: Such a classy response from her.

MANN: It was. She's fascinating to watch. One of the things, this may all be distant politics, but these are -- it's like a reality TV show. Donald Trump has emerged really as a big overbearing character, but we're learning about the characters of these other people, and they're fascinating. Very, very successful people. And it's fascinating to watch. BARNETT: It has been incredible.

(CROSSTALK)

BARNETT: Jon, thanks a lot. We'll see you next hour.

MANN: You bet.

BARNETT: Now, the deal the U.S. and five other nations struck with Iran has been a source of serious contention for Republicans, but here's how some of the candidates say they'll go forward if they're elected.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. TED CRUZ, (R), TEXAS & PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: The single biggest national security threat facing America right now is the threat of a nuclear Iran. If I am elected president, on the very first day in office, I will rip to shreds this catastrophic Iranian nuclear deal.

JOHN KASICH, (R), OHIO GOVERNOR & PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: If they cheat, we slap the sanctions back on. If they help Hamas and Hezbollah, we slap the sanctions back on. And if we find out that they may be developing a nuclear weapon, then the military option is on the table. We are stronger when we work with the Western civilization, our friends in Europe, and just doing it on our own, I don't think is the right policy.

SCOTT WALKER, (R), WISCONSIN GOVERNOR & PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I was the first to call for terminating the Iran deal on day one. The president came after me and said I need to bone up. The president who called ISIS the J.V. squad said I need to bone up. The reality is it's a bad deal on day one and it's a bad deal because this president has allowed Iran to go closer and closer. I'd love to play cards with this guy because Barack Obama folds on everything with Iran. We need a leader who's going to step up.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BARNETT: CNN's international diplomatic editor, Nic Robertson, joins us live from London this morning to talk about this part of the debate.

Nic, we saw there the standard Republican opposition to the nuclear deal but in varying degrees. Some candidates saying they'd repeal it on day one. Others saying, OK, we'll wait to see what Iran violates. But it is likely to be law by the time the next president takes office. So how is this Iran nuclear deal debate being perceived outside the states?

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: Well, I think perhaps John Kasich is the one that's going to catch the ear, if you will, of the Europeans and allies the United States has worked with to bring about this deal because he says we can't go it alone, we have to work with others. I think, you know, any of the other sorts of world leaders who are paying attention to the Iran deal and are paying attention to this debate know what they can expect from the Republicans. There's been a heavy punch back on the deal Barack Obama has given in to the Iranians, that the four U.S. Hostages weren't released, that this puts money into the pockets of terrorists to lift the sanctions off of Iran. They've heard these issues before, and as you say, to varying degrees. You heard from rip it up on day one to set it aside to demand that Iran opens all the sites immediately to the U.N., to the United States, otherwise there will be bombing missions. I don't think any of this is going to be strange to hear. The realities of office are also something far different. But in terms of what foreign leaders will think at this stage these are just candidates on a campaign trail arguing amongst themselves. Not even the final presidential candidate debating with the final candidate from the other side, from the Democratic side. But I think in terms of what would have pleased European ears that would be John Kasich saying America can't go it alone, we need to work with our Western allies on this, whatever else he said as well.

KINKADE: And, Nic, stay with us.

We also want to look overseas at the fight against is, which was another point of discussion tonight. Candidate Lindsay Graham claimed the U.S. needs to send 10,000 ground troops to Iraq to stop the terror group's advance. Reaction to that idea was mixed.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

WALKER: I'm not putting a troop number on. I'm saying lift the political restrictions, when you do that you empower our military personnel already there to work with the Kurd and the Sunni allies to reclaim the territory taken by is. And to do so in a way that allows that ISIS doesn't go back into Syria.

SEN. RAND PAUL, (R), KENTUCKY & PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: If you want boots on the ground and you want them to be our sons and daughters, you've got 14 other choices. There will always be a Bush or Clinton for you if you want to go back to war in Iraq. But the thing is the first war was a mistake and I'm not sending our sons and our daughters back to Iraq.

KASICH: I called for boots on the ground many months ago in a coalition with our friends who share our interests. You know, you win a battle with the military, and when we go somewhere we need to be mobile and lethal, we need to take care of business and we need to come home.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[02:10:35] KINKADE: And, Nic, you've done extensive reporting in the field on ISIS. Did any of the Republican presidential candidates have a real plan to defeat the terror group?

ROBERTSON: Again, John Kasich talks about building something with allies. We heard Lindsey Graham. On the one hand he said you need to have 10,000 troops, but he also said in the answer to another question that you need to have the region sorted out, that you need to build a coalition of regional allies to do this. Sort of the Kurds playing a role to be a large part of a regional counter-is force. We heard that come up a number of times. So when you listen to that you have to kind of know that they're getting briefed perhaps by the same people on this issue and perhaps these are some of the issues that President Obama has on his table and he's not moving towards because President Obama feels perhaps more likely constricted by some of the real ground realities, which is if you do build a regional force that on the one hand is opposed to Iran, on the other hand is opposed to is, there is, you know, the underlying problem of the sectarian tensions that exist in the region, building an alliance of those opposed to president Bashar al Assad or is trying to find both is difficult but either one, you potentially get into raising the stakes and raising the possibility of a wider sectarian conflict. So there are ground realities there that perhaps these candidates at this time are freer to sort of free range ideas whereas getting in the White House will be something else. On the one hand you have some saying, Rand Paul no, more troops, and on the others you have Scott Walker, you have Lindsey Graham saying 10,000 more. Clearly they're divided on that. And it does reflect the wider debate. There are no simple answers. No one's come up with anything yet. And I didn't really hear something that's sort of breaking through with something new on how to solve and tack many the ISIS issue. Again, for European ears the idea from John Kasich you that can't do this alone, again, is something that's going to resonate a little bit. Trying to build a coalition in the region. That's just not happening at the moment. Some of these things just don't seem to be realistic at the moment.

KINKADE: No doubt U.S. voters watching that debate would also be divided about whether to put U.S. boots on the ground in Syria.

Nic Robertson, in London, thanks for that analysis.

BARNETT: Thanks, Nic.

Now, while the Republican presidential candidates debated serious political issues there in California, Democratic presidential candidate, Hillary Clinton, spent Wednesday night in a much more relaxed environment in New York City.

KINKADE: She was a guest on "The Tonight Show" hosted by Jimmy Fallon. Watch as Clinton and Fallon have some fun spoofing Donald Trump.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JIMMY FALLON, HOST, THE TONIGHT SHOW: I just finished the GOP debate. As usual, I was fantastic. Everyone loved me.

(LAUGHTER)

Now, look, I know you are about to do Jimmy Fallon, but he is a total lightweight.

(LAUGHTER)

I'm going to do him a favor and interview you instead. (LAUGHTER)

HILLARY CLINTON, (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE & FORMER SECRETARY OF STATE: That's great. You know how much I love being interviewed --

(LAUGHTER)

-- as long as you don't start talking over me when I'm trying to make a point.

(LAUGHTER)

FALLON: Question one.

CLINTON: I'm really curious, Donald, what is your stance on women's issues?

FALLON: I know a lot of women and they all have issues.

(LAUGHTER)

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BARNETT: I think that just proves politicians should leave the comedy to the comedians.

KINKADE: She gave it a go.

BARNETT: She did give it an honest go.

Now, after the debate, comes the spin. Coming up, how the candidates themselves think they performed during Wednesday night's debate. We'll bring you the latest reaction from the spin room coming up in about 15 minutes here on CNN NEWSROOM.

KINKADE: Coastal areas from California across the Pacific to eastern New Zealand are on alert for tsunami waves after a powerful earthquake struck Chile. At least five people were killed in the South American country and one million have fled affected areas there. The U.S. Geological Survey says the epicenter was about 230 kilometers north of Santiago.

BARNETT: Although tsunami warnings have been lifted for some parts of Chile's coast, the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center says three-meter waves are still possible.

Emily Hirsch lives in the capital and described what it felt like.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

[02:15:05] EMILY HIRSCH, CHILE RESIDENT (voice-over): The first earthquake. I've never experienced one before. So I thought it was on my end. But then I noticed the ground moving and you could see people starting to come out of the buildings into the streets, into the center of the streets because Chile is actually -- it's in the ring of fire. The inhabitants of Chile, Chileans are quite used to earthquakes. But there was a lot of sort of noise, the clinking, and then followed by seeing things move. There was a succession of earthquakes and then about 15, 20 minutes later an aftershock that was still quite strong which caused residents to again come into the streets. And actually, while I was waiting on the line I felt another aftershock. You can see things still kind of wobbling.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KINKADE: Meteorologist Derek Van Dam joins us now for more on all of this.

And those aftershocks are continuing.

DEREK VAN DAM, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Yeah, they're likely to continue for the next 24 hours, if not the next several days, especially with an earthquake of this magnitude. But the problem here is that the majority of the pictures in the video that we're seeing are coming out of the capital, Santiago, five million people. Lots of people with cell phones. A lot of CCTV footage. But the most severe shaking was actually felt about 200, 300 kilometers to the north and west of the capital. We'll talk about that in an area that is just going to be seen. 9 first glimpses of sun within the next couple of hours as well. Let's talk about the particular areas that saw the strongest shaking. Here's Santiago at the bottom of our map. Notice that shading of green. That's the highest population density. But they only received moderate shaking from this 8.345 quake. But just to the north and west of that, that's the area that's more sparsely populated. That region as it wakes up this morning will still be assessing the damage. We've had multiple aftershocks. About 26 in total so far. And we would anticipate to see more of these. But the severity of those aftershocks falls off significantly as time goes on. Typically, with an 8.3 original earthquake we get about one 7.3 magnitude earthquake and then it drops off from there with several dozen 6.3 or lower magnitudes. Now, we know that the subduction of these tectonic plates created kind of a displacement in the water across the Pacific causes a ripple effect also known as a tsunami. That is something we're monitoring very closely. But we have these wave analysis models that can actually time out the progression of this ripple, quote unquote. We know just about how fast a tsunami will travel. That is about as fast as a jetliner can travel, 650 miles per hour or so, and as that propagates across the Pacific Ocean, we have several land masses it will encounter like Hawaii, New Zealand, the east coast of Australia, eventually into Japan as well. But you can see the timing with this particular model brings it out into the next 12 to 18 hours, anywhere from Hawaii into the east coast of New Zealand as well as Australia. In fact, we've timed out specifically when we're expecting this particular region to be impacted by the potential of a very minor tsunami wave. That's into the Santa Monica region. Orange County beaches have been closed just because of the threat of rip currents and strong tidal surges that exist across the particular region. That's just until 6:00 this morning. Auckland, New Zealand the east-facing shores of New Zealand. That will be about 38 UTC. And the coast of Japan that is also expecting a later arrival from this minor tsunami wave. We have been watching the Pacific Tsunami Center and they do not believe a significant damaging tsunami threat exists with this but it's still something to monitor, anywhere from one foot to three foot is possible.

BARNETT: Keep your eye on the coastline if you're in these areas.

VAN DAM: Absolutely. Get away from the coast if at all possible.

BARNETT: Derek, thanks very much. See you later.

KINKADE: Thank you.

BARNETT: Now, some migrants are taking a detour after a flare-up with police. We'll bring you the latest on the crisis in Europe after officers and migrants clash at the Serbian-Hungarian border.

KINKADE: Also ahead, a teenage boy with a love for science brings a homemade clock to school only to be placed in handcuffs. That story just ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[02:21:58] BARNETT: The tension has escalated on the Serbian- Hungarian border. Frustration boiled over between migrants and police Wednesday after Hungary put up a razor wire fence to stop the influx. Look at this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

(SHOUTING)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KINKADE: Absolutely tense scenes there. Some migrants gave Hungarian authorities to open the gates or they would try to break through. You can see the group followed through on that. Police responding with tear gas.

BARNETT: Now, some migrants who are waiting in Hungary at the border are now heading for Croatia along a new route. From Croatia, they head through Slovenia, then Austria, and then into Germany. That's the final destination for most migrants.

KINKADE: But they could face another threat, landmines. Aid groups warn thousands of mines are still buried from the Balkan wars. The Croatian government says the mine fields are clearly marked.

BARNETT: Let's go ahead and take a look at some live pictures coming to us from the Serbian-Hungarian border this morning. It's just past 8:20 in the morning there. And as you see, people continue to be camped out. Not a lot of tensions we saw from the video earlier, but certainly there are still crowds there.

Let's go ahead and bring in our senior international correspondent, Ben Wedeman. He is live there at the Serbian-Hungarian border.

And, Ben, as we look at all this, if the wars back home weren't bad enough for the refugees, they're now dealing with being stranded. And some of them potentially faced with landmines. It's unbelievable. What are you seeing happening there this morning?

BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, what we're seeing is many people are reassessing what their options are at this point. After these clashes yesterday in which well over a dozen refugees or migrants were actually arrested by the Hungarian police. Many people are wondering if indeed it's time to reconsider routes. In fact, I've got a little leaflet here that was being handed out by some officials here. It shows the route from Greece coming up to Hungary where it says simply "closed," with an alternate route going to the West through Croatia, through Slovenia, towards Austria. Now, a lot of the people here I've spoken with are unsure really if there's any point in going that way because it's widely believed that even though Croatia has indicated a willingness to welcome refugees and migrants Slovenia, which of course is on the road to Austria, but many of these people want to go to Germany, Sweden. If Slovenia could let them through they could find themselves on the Croatian-Slovenian border with the same situation they have here. As far as what's going on today, we've seen a much smaller crowd at the fence that separates Serbia from Hungary. The fence that was knocked down yesterday -- rather the gate that was knocked down yesterday seems to have been put back in place. Concertina wire strung across the road. There are now Bulgarian-Serbian police here as well. So it doesn't appear at the moment that there's going to be a repeat of yesterday's clashes. And as I said, I think a lot of people at this point are reconsidering the possibility of going through Croatia rather than hoping, waiting for the Hungary border to reopen -- Errol?

[02:25:32] BARNETT: It's quite fascinating to watch unfold. The Hungarian government has dug their feet in. They face criticism. But officials tell us, when I spoke to a government spokesman this week, in fact, that it is more important in their view to enforce the rule of law, to bring things in order rather than just to let everyone through on humanitarian grounds. I would imagine for the migrants and some refugees there that would be infuriating. But perhaps they're too exhausted to express that. What is the sentiment toward the Hungarian government specifically?

WEDEMAN: Well, I think one shouldn't assume they're too exhausted to express their frustration because we saw them do that yesterday. And in fact, keep in mind that many of these people come from Syria where for several years there's been a brutal war going on. These are tough people and not easily silenced at this point but they are frustrated. They're frustrated by the fact that many of them have come because they saw that Germany was welcoming refugees, that perhaps they saw that this was an opportunity to get out of the hopelessness of life in Syria during this brutal war or an endless life in a refugee camp in Turkey or in Jordan. So this was their opportunity. And many of them thought finally they would reach safe ground where they could live a life in dignity and of course now they find themselves within the confines of Europe almost there. But this gate behind me is what is stopping them. And definitely there's a lot of anger but not desperation because these are people who are tough. Some of them have come from as far away as Afghanistan. And they're not about -- nobody -- everybody will tell you that going home is not an option, turning around and sort of giving up and returning to their homes is something they simply can't do because, in many cases, those homes, in fact, their entire towns and cities barely exist anymore -- Errol?

BARNETT: It is remarkable when you consider the horrors that so many of them have run from with only the possessions in their hands and their children with them.

Calm scenes at the border now. We hope it remains that way.

Ben Wedeman, live for us at the Serbian-Hungarian border, thanks.

KINKADE: Still to come on CNN NEWSROOM, we'll have more of the "Hits and Misses" from Wednesday's fight night, CNN's Republican presidential debate.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[02:31:33] LYNDA KINKADE, CNN ANCHOR: Hello. You're watching CNN NEWSROOM. And I'm Lynda Kinkade.

ERROL BARNETT, CNN ANCHOR: I'm Errol Barnett. Thanks for staying with us. Here are our headlines right now.

Tsunami advisories stretch from the Chilean coast to California all the way to New Zealand as well after a powerful earthquake struck Chile. At least five people were killed. Coastal areas were evacuated and tsunami waves washed ashore near the quake's epicenter.

KINKADE: In Europe, the migrant crisis. The Serbian government says Hungary is suspending border crossings for up to 30 days. These are some live pictures of the scene right now, quite calm after last night's event which saw Hungarian police use tear gas and water cannons on Wednesday when a group of migrants tried to break through a barrier. Some migrants now heading for Croatia to get to Western Europe.

BARNETT: In the U.S., the gloves came off in the second Republican presidential debate. Front-runner, Donald Trump, came under attack from his 10 rivals on stage at the Ronald Reagan Library in California. Topics included immigration, terrorism, and health care. Earlier, the four lowest-polling candidates had their own smaller debate.

KINKADE: CNN's debates were largely focused on the issues. The crowd is small and the moderators generally stayed out of the picture to let the candidates debate among themselves.

Here's a look at some of the key moments.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE & CEO, TRUMP ORGANIZATION: First of all, Rand Paul shouldn't even be on this stage. He's number 11, he's got 1 percent in the polls, and how he got up here. There's far too many people anyway.

SEN. MARCO RUBIO, (R), FLORIDA & PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I also know that California has a drought. That's why I made sure I brought my own water.

(LAUGHTER)

TRUMP: What I am far and away greater than an entertainer is a businessman.

SCOTT WALKER, (R), WISCONSIN GOVERNOR & PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: We're not talking about real issues.

And, Mr. Trump, we don't need an apprentice in the White House. We have one right now.

DR. BEN CARSON, (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE & RETIRED NEUROSURGEON: I, in no way, am willing to get into bed with special interest groups or lick the boots of billionaires.

TRUMP: I get along with everybody. That was my job, to get along with people.

(CROSSTALK)

JEB BUSH, (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE & FORMER FLORIDA GOVERNOR: But the simple fact is --

(CROSSTALK)

TRUMP: Excuse me. One second.

BUSH: No. The simple fact is, Donald, they --

(CROSSTALK)

TRUMP: More energy tonight. I like that.

MIKE HUCKABEE, (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE & FORMER ARKANSAS GOVERNOR: They have sponsored terrorist groups, Hamas and Hezbollah, and they've threatened the very essence of Western civilization.

SEN. RAND PAUL, (R), KENTUCKY & PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Every time we've toppled a secular dictator, we've gotten chaos, the rise of radical Islam, and we're more at risk. So I think we need to think before we act and know that most interventions if not a lot of them in the Middle East have actually backfired on us.

HUCKABEE: I thought that everybody here passed ninth grade civics. The courts cannot legislate.

CARLY FIORINA, (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE & FORMER CEO, HEWLETT- PACKARD: I think women all over this country heard very clearly what Mr. Trump said.

(APPLAUSE)

TRUMP: I think she's got a beautiful face, and I think she's a beautiful woman. CHRIS CHRISTIE, (R), NEW JERSEY GOVERNOR & PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE:

Let's ask Hillary Clinton. She believes in the systematic murder of children in the womb to preserve their body parts in a way that maximizes their value for sale for profit.

FIORINA: Iran and Planned Parenthood, one has something to do with the defense of the security of this nation, the other has something to do with the defense of the character of this nation.

TRUMP: I want to build a wall, a wall that works.

FIORINA: Immigration did not come up in 2016 because Mr. Trump brought it up. We have been talking about it for 25 years.

TRUMP: This is a country where we speak English, not Spanish.

(APPLAUSE)

BUSH: Well, I've been speaking English here tonight.

JOHN KASICH, (R), OHIO GOVERNOR & PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Let's just stop for a second. There's one person on this stage that does have a record.

FIORINA: Mrs. Clinton is going to have to defend her track record, her track record of lying about her e-mails, about lying about her servers.

[02:35:13] TRUMP: I am the only person on this dais, the only person that fought very, very hard against us, and I wasn't a sitting politician, going into Iraq.

BUSH: As it relates to my brother, there's one thing I know for sure. He kept us safe. I don't know if you remember --

(APPLAUSE)

BUSH: -- Donald --

PAUL: We can see how many people smoked pot in high school.

(LAUGHTER)

JAKE TAPPER, DEBATE MODERATOR: Is there somebody you were specifically thinking of?

TRUMP: Well, the thing is --

(CROSSTALK)

BUSH: He was talking about me.

PAUL: Yeah.

BUSH: 40 years ago, I smoked marijuana. And I admit it. I'm sure that other people might have done it and may not want to say it in front of 25 million people. My mom's not happy that I just did.

TAPPER: Dr. Carson, you just heard his medical take.

(LAUGHTER)

CARSON: He's an OK doctor.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BARNETT: I mean, so many zingers and one-liners there.

KINKADE: So entertaining.

BARNETT: We've been talk about who won, who didn't do so well. Fiorina people are saying she did well. Bush doing better than before.

KINKADE: Much better. Much more energetic.

BARNETT: Much more energetic.

But following debate coverage, the candidates reacted to their own performance. So take a listen here to how they graded themselves.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: I think everybody really did well. There was nobody that did poorly, and I would think really everybody did very well. I was very impressed.

CHRIS CUOMO, CNN CHIEF WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT: Anybody any more than anybody else?

TRUMP: Well, I don't want to say that. I think certain people did really well. I would never say that, of course.

(CROSSTALK)

CUOMO: Carly Fiorina's getting a lot of good buzz coming out of the debate.

(CROSSTALK)

TRUMP: Really? Well, I think she's a very nice person. I think that -- really I think everybody did very well, Chris.

CARSON: It went by pretty fast, actually. I was surprised. And you know, we would all like to have a little more time to explain our positions. But you know, considering that there were 11 people on the stage, I think it went reasonably well.

HUCKABEE: It was a very spirited contest tonight. I think that was fair. A lot of elbows up on the goal. It's not really my thought that that's what our debate should be. Not fighting each other. It's about the fact that these are all my colleagues. The reason people say, gosh, how come you didn't beat up anybody? No. I'm not going to. These are my friends, my colleagues. If I were president, I'd look down that stage and pick every single one of them to be in the cabinet because they're good people and they're qualified and capable.

WALKER: We're going to step in and say let's talk about issues and laid out a clear contrast. We've made a mistake I think in the White House putting an apprentice in, someone who'd never run anything, never been challenged in government. I've been challenged unlike anybody else up on that stage, and I hope people saw that, and saw that I've got a plan on the big issue, to repeal Obamacare starting day one.

KASICH: I just wanted to be myself. I got up on the stage. I really didn't have any nerves at all, anything bothering me. And you know, you always wish you could get a little bit more time, a few more things you'd like to say, but all in all I think it was a good experience, and it certainly was a lot of fun and memorable.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KINKADE: It certainly was a lot of fun.

Let's bring in CNN political correspondent, Eric Bradner.

Eric, compared to the first debate, it seemed a little bit more of a love-in tonight with some high fives and supportive words, but as expected, a lot of sledging.

ERIC BRADNER, CNN POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Yeah there, was one really touching moment when Jeb Bush was defending his brother George W. Bush. And this is a real challenge for Jeb's campaign. And Scott Walker jumped in and sort of had his back. These are two guys competing for some of the same donors, same supporters. But Walker was defending George W. Bush. That was a nice moment. But throughout the entire debate the theme was Donald Trump as a punching bag. Rand Paul at one point called him a junior high schooler. Scott Walker called him an apprentice. And Jeb Bush even asked for an apology from Trump to his wife. A lot of swings at Trump. Carly Fiorina took some of the most effective ones but all the candidates were trying to get their shots in.

KINKADE: And Donald Trump, of course, has had a very busy schedule of late. He seemed a little bit less energetic than usual during the debate. Do you think the three-hour debate exposed his somewhat limited foreign policy knowledge?

BRADNER: Well, he did say beforehand that he was going to try to ease up a little bit. And three hours is a long time to be on stage. He did seem a little bit tired by the end of it. But yes, on some exchanges, particularly foreign policy, when Trump got into it with people like Marco Rubio, who considers this his best area, he did look like he was sort of ready to trade punches and whatnot but not really get into the weeds. This is a challenge for Trump. This is something he's managed to avoid doing for the most part, getting really detailed in policy debates. He's promised a tax plan coming soon. He's promised to talk more about foreign policy. Tonight he said by the time he got to the White House he would know a lot more. But it's not an area where he has experience. And it's not something he's particularly comfortable reeling off a lot of details on. And that became clear over the course of the three-hour debate tonight.

[02:40:12] And, Eric, Carly Fiorina seemed the most well rehearsed. She was very concise, very to the point. Would you say that she was the strongest performer in this debate?

BRADNER: Yeah, if there was a clear winner, it was Carly Fiorina tonight. She had a lot of great moments. At one point, she talked about her stepdaughter's death as a result of substance abuse and really sort of tugged on the heartstrings of the crowd. At another point, she really appealed to conservatives by going after Planned Parenthood. And a lot of her exchanges with Trump were among the most memorable moments of the entire debate. Carly Fiorina badly wanted to get into this debate in the first Republican debate a month ago. She needed to perform well in the undercard version to even qualify, to get the bump in the polls to qualify. So it was her moment, and she really seized it. Fiorina was clearly the breakout performer tonight.

KINKADE: And she clearly took the high road when she could have gone for the jugular as Donald Trump does so often. So looking ahead, how do you think this will all play out when the next polls come out?

BRADNER: So Fiorina seems likely to get a bump. The question is where does her support come from? Ben Carson at this point is the second place candidate in the field in public polls behind Donald Trump. But he was kind of nowhere tonight. He didn't have any really big moments. He didn't have any really interesting exchanges. And so the question is whether some of his support, people who like him because he's kind of an outsider and not elected to office now, might make the switch over to Fiorina on the heels of her strong performance. Another candidate who really need a big night tonight was Scott Walker. He did all right. He had some good lines. But he didn't have any really standout moments. We'll be watching closely to see if he gets a bump at all. And Jeb Bush had a lot of better exchanges with Donald Trump. Better explanations of his policy positions than he did in the first debate. So maybe he can get a little traction now too.

KINKADE: Yeah. He certainly came across much stronger than the first time round.

Eric Bradner, we appreciate your analysis. Thanks for joining us.

BARNETT: The U.S. Federal Reserve has a big decision to make today, whether to raise interest rates for the first time in years. Coming up, we'll look at the importance of that move.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[02:46:04] BARNETT: Welcome back. I want to show you some video here because it was quite a scene in Japan when fighting broke out between lawmakers on Thursday. All this -- it's quite, you know, strange to see this in the House of parliament. This is right before a vote on a controversial security bill that would allow Japanese troops to be deployed overseas. KINKADE: And of course, it would be a major shift from Japan's

pacifist constitution passed after World War II. The bill needs approval at the committee level before it goes to the upper house for a vote, and that could take place on Friday at the earliest.

BARNETT: Now, later today the U.S. Federal Reserve is expected to announce if interest rates will rise for the first time in nine years.

KINKADE: Economists are split on just what the Fed will decide.

And as Maggie Lake reports here, there's no clear argument one way or the other.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MAGGIE LAKE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Mechanics at 54th Street Auto Center know a thing or two. They want to make sure they are in top shape before they hit the road.

(on camera): What are you doing here?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I am tying up the terminal.

LAKE: A car is a lot different than crafting Fed policy but they have one thing in common. Both require a lot of care and one wrong move could cause a lot of damage.

(voice-over): For the Fed, job number one is keeping the wheels running in the U.S. without sparking excess inflation. Many say there is a lot more work to do on the monetary motor.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We used to raise rates and never used to raise them just because let's get it over with. We had the interest rates and we are in the seventh year of zero percent. We still can't get any real inflation. Doesn't that tell you the engine is broken? If the engine is broken, raising rates is probably the wrong thing to do.

LAKE: Others think the Fed has room to tap ever so slightly on the brakes. Employment is close to Fed target. The jobless rate is at seven-year lows. Key segments of the economy are strengthening.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We do have a tail wind is a much stronger housing market and most people care about the value of their home. They hold less stock than prior to the crisis. In fact, home prices in most markets hit their previous highs, which is a tipping point. There is a tail end and the extra tax cut of falling prices will help consumers.

LAKE (on camera): Another key factor for the Fed, the lack of economic shock absorbers. If they keep the rates, they will have less tools to use in the next downturn.

(voice-over): But be careful what you wish for. They could mess up the transmission and trigger a rise in borrowing costs.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What the Fed officials hope is they can raise it a bit and nothing will happen a long time and they creep up slowly. What's more likely to happen is when interest rates start to rise, they will pop up and cause more turmoil.

LAKE: No one wants drastically higher borrowing costs that could knock the wheels off of recovery. The pressure is on Janet Yellin and the Fed as they begin their look underneath the economic hood.

Maggie Lake, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BARNETT: Now, a teenage boy who was arrested for bringing a clock to school now has an invitation to the White House. We'll bring you this story after this short break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

[02:50:52] DON RIDDEL, CNN WORLD SPORTS ANCHOR: I'm Don Riddel with you "CNN World Sports" headlines.

The two London sides for the Champions leagues. They will play each other this weekend and the Blues may feel they have more confidence on their side after a 4-0 win at Stanford Bridge. Chelsea had been struggling and they are short of a flying start to their campaign in Group G. Arsenal meanwhile kicked off in Group F with a disappointing 2-1 defeat after the dismissal and they had to play for more than half the game with just men. Defending in Barcelona had to settle for a point against Roma in Group E. Louie Suarez scored his first European goal of the season, but the extraordinary 64-yard strike is what the game will be remembered for.

Other news, the International Olympic Committee will consider five bid cities for the Summer Games in 2024. A recent change to the regulations means that every bid makes the short list so Budapest, Hamburg, Los Angeles, Paris and Rome will spend the next two years lobbying for approval. The IOC wants the winning bid to focus on sustainability and legacy. The winner will be announced in Peru in September of 2017.

That's a quick look at your sports headlines. I'm Don Riddel.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BARNETT: Welcome back. American pro football star, Tom Brady, says he's supporting Donald Trump for president after a reporter asked him about the Trump hat he keeps in his locker room.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Speaking of guys who like winning, you have the Trump hat. Have you talked to him at all and do you have any advice for his big debate tonight? TOM BRADY, QUARTERBACK, NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS: No.

(LAUGHTER)

No. It was a nice keepsake. So it could be a -- yeah, a nice piece of memorabilia he sent me.

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: He's a guy who likes winning like you. Do you think he's got what it takes?

BRADY: I hope so. It would be great. There would be a putting green on the White House lawn. I'm sure of that.

(LAUGHTER)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(LAUGHTER)

BARNETT: That's right. Tom Brady and Donald Trump, golfing pals, and Trump is an ally of New England Patriots quarterback, supporting him during the Deflategate scandal. So they're buddies.

KINKADE: I wonder who wins at golf.

BARNETT: I don't know.

KINKADE: Also ahead, a 14-year-old boy in the U.S. is getting a lot of support. He was arrested for bringing a homemade clock to school. Ahmed Mohamed made the clock out of a pencil case and brought it to show his teacher. The school called the police, who accused Mohamed of making a hoax bomb.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

AHMED MOHAMED, STUDENT: I'm the person who built a clock and got in a lot of trouble for it. I built the clock to impress my teacher. But when I showed it to her, she thought it was a threat to her.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BARNETT: This is incredible. Now, Mohamed was later released. Police say he won't be charged. But even President Obama weighed in sending this tweet, quote, "Cool clock, Ahmed. Want to bring it to the White House? We should inspire more kids like you to like science. It's what makes America great," end quote. The school says it was just following safety protocols. Mohamed says he wants to transfer.

[02:55:17] KINKADE: No surprise there.

A Russian prankster and his sidekick have fessed up to prank-calling pop star, Elton John. The pair fooled the singer by posing as Russian President Vladimir Putin and Kremlin spokesman during a recent phone call. BARNETT: How embarrassing. Elton John apparently thought the Russian

leader had called him to discuss gay rights issues, which would be a massive surprise. You know, Elton John even posted a message on social media thanking Putin for the call. When the Kremlin learned of the Instagram post, they immediately denied the call. And the Russian jokesters have a history, don't they, of making prank calls to celebrities and politicians. And it seems they strike again.

KINKADE: And Elton John has since removed that post from Instagram.

BARNETT: Shameful.

KINKADE: You're watching CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Lynda Kinkade.

BARNETT: And I'm Errol Barnett. Can't even say my own name for some reason.

(LAUGHTER)

But please do stay with us. We're back to look at the day's biggest stories after this short break.

KINKADE: It is 3:00 in the morning here.