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CNN NEWSROOM

Rhetoric Scrutinized after Deadly Shooting; Obama & Putin Talk; Jury Selection Begins in Baltimore; Chicago Cop Charged with Laquan McDonald's Murder Due in Court Today; 121 Million Expected to Shop on Cyber Monday. Aired 9:30-10a ET

Aired November 30, 2015 - 09:30   ET

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


[09:30:00] BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN ANCHOR: Is calling this now an act of domestic terrorism. Do you agree with that assessment?

BEN CARSON (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: It certainly -- it certainly is an act of extreme hatred and violence.

MIKE HUCKABEE (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Regardless of why he did it, what he did is domestic terrorism and what he did is absolutely abominable, especially to those of us in the pro-life movement because there's nothing about any of us that would condone or in any way look the other way at something like this.

CARLY FIORINA (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: What I would say to anyone who tries to link this terrible tragedy to anyone who opposes abortion or opposes the sale of body parts is, this is typical left-wing tactics.

GOV. JOHN HICKENLOOPER (D), COLORADO: Maybe it's time to also look at, how do we tone down some of the rhetoric? If people are, in some way, emotionally unstable or psychologically unbalanced, that intensive rhetoric sometimes seems to pull a trigger in their brain that they lose contact with what reality is.

SEN. BERNIE SANDERS (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I am running for president because in these difficult times, against vitriolic Republican rhetoric, we must protect a women's right to choose.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: All right, let's talk about this. With me now, Dean Obeidallah, "Daily Beast" contributor and Sirius XM host, and Ben Ferguson, CNN political commentator and conservative talk show host.

Welcome to both of you.

BEN FERGUSON, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Good morning.

DEAN OBEIDALLAH, CONTRIBUTOR, "THE DAILY BEAST": Thanks.

COSTELLO: Good morning. So, Ben, it was Carly Fiorina who said falsely that Planned Parenthood was guilty of harvesting a live baby's organs. So is it this kind of rhetoric that's fueling these mentally unbalanced people to act?

FERGUSON: No, these people are mentally unbalanced before this debate even started. And I think if there's anything we can learn from this is, when -- when a group makes a -- a video comes out and a group has members of their group that are doing the things and saying the things on camera that Planned Parenthood had, maybe if they had taken a little bit of responsibility and said, these people do not represent our views and they have been fired, that could have stopped a lot of this rhetoric from getting heated. But the issue was, is you had --

COSTELLO: So you're blaming Planned Parenthood, Ben?

FERGUSON: No, I'm not blaming -- I'm not blaming Planned Parenthood. I'm also not blaming the rhetoric coming from conservatives. My point is this. The reason why this rhetoric gets so heated is because there is no admission that some of the people at Planned Parenthood did things that were inappropriate and they should have been fired by Planned Parenthood. So when you say, we didn't do anything and these doc -- these videos are doctored, you see both sides go to their corner for this massive fight. But let's be clear, this fight needed to happen and this debate needs to take place because you have one psychotic killer, an act of domestic terrorism. There is no doubt about it that it's domestic terrorism. This individual obviously had major issues long before this debate even surfaced a couple months ago. So to blame anybody for this is, I think, is unrealistic. You have to blame the individual. There's 300 plus million Americans in this country. You have one guy that's crazy before this debate, he was crazy during it and after the debate and he's a domestic terrorist, no doubt.

COSTELLO: Dean, your thoughts?

OBEIDALLAH: I think that -- well, I want to say I'm heartened by Ben saying, let's look at the one person in a way. You know, usually the person's a Muslim, the perpetrator. We don't do that. They find out their religion, we instantly go, that person's a terrorist and they're somehow inspired by their faith.

I'll be honest, I agree with Ben this, I don't think Carly Fiorina's comments or one comment alone led this man to shoot someone. But there has been four arson attacks on Planned Parenthood offices since the video came out. What's happening, we have a culture that certain politicians are legitimizing hate. And the result of that can radicalize people. They're taking them to the doorstep of violence. They're not pushing them through it but they just need a slight push to go through it. We need responsible words by our politicians. It could -- politicians can inspire people for good, for bad or for deadly acts. So let's have some responsibility and especially from the right. Let's be honest, the rhetoric, the extreme stuff, it's not coming from the same side, from the left and right, more from the right.

COSTELLO: And -- and I think -- I think -- I think, Ben, what -- I think, Ben, what Dean is talking about, for example, the Black Lives Matter protester who was roughed up at a Trump event and Trump intimated that, you know, maybe the guy deserved it. Is that really the kind of rhetoric we want flying out there in this time?

FERGUSON: Look, I think it's only -- I think it's only coming from Donald Trump. Donald Trump is far off the reservation compared to other candidates. And there's nobody even remotely close that said you should go out there and do anything but protest Planned Parenthood, which the protests against Planned Parenthood have been going on for decades now. And, again, I go back to this. If we want to talk about responsibility, then let's be responsible organizations when there is something that comes to light that is against your core values. Planned Parenthood should have said, these people in these videos go against our core values. We could have settled this months ago, but they said, well, these aren't real people, these aren't real people on the (INAUDIBLE).

COSTELLO: But -- but I will say there was nothing -- there was nothing found -- and there have been multiple investigations done by individual states, nothing found. Planned Parenthood has been found guilty of nothing.

[09:35:04] OBEIDALLAH: And can I just one quick thing, though, Ben.

FERGUSON: They've -- they've been found -- it's not illegal, it's unethical at the bare minimum and they act as if somehow they're under attack, when their own words were caught on camera.

OBEIDALLAH: But, Ben, can I --

FERGUSON: And this is the reason why this debate is so intense.

OBEIDALLAH: Can I say one thing, Ben? And I know you're not trying to do this, but it really sounds like you're blaming the victim here in Planned Parenthood.

FERGUSON: I'm not blaming the victim.

OBEIDALLAH: I know -- I know you're not, but that's what it sounds like.

FERGUSON: No. No, but --

OBEIDALLAH: And let's be honest, it's not just Donald Trump. Marco Rubio, after the videos came out said, we should be more than fired up. That's his words, more than fired up. What is more than fired up? Perhaps violence.

FERGUSON: (INAUDIBLE). What it means is --

OBEIDALLAH: You had Ted Cruz on the issues about marriage equality saying gay communities waging a jihad of people of faith. And Ben Carson's stuff about Muslims has been off the charts. Even stuff about policy, like saying Obamacare is as bad as slavery. See, I didn't know slavery had a 24 hour customer support hotline.

FERGUSON: Those guys did not --

OBEIDALLAH: But the reality is, we live in a world where hyper rhetoric The more extreme people on the right -- the more extreme people on the right and the left. But let's be honest, more of the rhetoric is coming from the right. And I'm being objective here but I'm not being partisan. I really see --

FERGUSON: I don't think more of it is coming from the right. I think when you see Bernie Sanders and what he said yesterday, vilifying the Republicans and acting as if the Republicans are responsible for a crazy man is not exactly being calm, cool and collected. He acted as if this is the Republican's fault.

OBEIDALLAH: I don't seem him demonizing minority groups, though.

You know, Donald Trump, don't forget, in August, a Latino homeless guy was beaten up by people who invoked Donald Trump's words about Latinos. The words matter.

COSTELLO: All right.

FERGUSON: And cops have been shot and kill because of the words of Black Lives Matter. So it has been (INAUDIBLE) both sides.

OBEIDALLAH: That's not true. I don't see it (INAUDIBLE) --

FERGUSON: Yes, it is. When you are out there saying "pigs in a blanket, fry them like bacon," that -- you're telling me that's (INAUDIBLE)?

OBEIDALLAH: That's -- that's -- (INAUDIBLE) you know. But, Ben, there were -- there were --

FERGUSON: That was Black Lives Matter movement in Minneapolis.

OBEIDALLAH: Black Lives Matter (INAUDIBLE) shot in Minneapolis by white supremacies just a week ago. You know --

FERGUSON: And, again, I (INAUDIBLE) --

COSTELLO: You know, I think you both bring up valid points. I got to -- I got to leave it there. Dean Obeidallah, Ben Ferguson, thanks so much.

OBEIDALLAH: Thank you.

COSTELLO: I've got to get back to Paris because we did learn that President Obama held a closed door meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin. You know they're at this climate conference. That meeting took place on the sidelines. It wasn't planned. So what did they say? Let's head to Paris and check in with Jim Bittermann.

What can you tell us, Jim?

JIM BITTERMANN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Carol, just on background from a White House official, we've learned that, in fact, they did have this meeting. They talked about the Ukraine and Syria, more importantly. President Obama, according to the White House official, apologized -- didn't apologize but rather said expressed regret at the shoot down of the Russian jet, the death of the pilot and the other Russian military serviceman who was involved. And basically they said that they have to continue the process as far as Syria is concerned. Obama apparently said that he would want to see Bashar al Assad out. That, of course, is something Russian President Vladimir Putin is dead set against.

One of -- one of the things that's happening here a lot is that a lot of these sideline meetings going on and one of the ones we had expected to have happen here, Carol, is we thought we were going to see President Erdogan of Turkey get together with Putin. That is not to be according to the Kremlin spokesman who said they are not going to meet on the sidelines, hoping perhaps that they were going to have some kind of an easing of tensions. But that's not going to happen. But President Obama urged Putin, according to a White House official, that they should lessen the tensions between the two countries.

Carol.

COSTELLO: All right, Jim Bittermann, I'll let you get back to it. Thanks so much.

Still to come in the NEWSROOM, the first trial for an officer involved in the death of Freddie Gray begins in Baltimore. Is it possible to seat an unbiased jury?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:42:55] COSTELLO: Jury selection begins in Baltimore for the first of six officers facing trial in the death of Freddie Gray. First up is William Porter. He's charged with manslaughter and misconduct. You see him there entering the courthouse. He's holding the cup of coffee. Porter was 25 years old at the time of his arrest. The same age as Freddie Gray, ironically. He's been with the Baltimore Police Department since 2012.

Prosecutors say Gray told him twice that he needed a medic, but no one was ever called. Officer Porter also allegedly failed to put a seat belt on Gray while he was inside that police van. With racial tension gripping the city, the court is now challenged with finding an unbiased jury. Jean Casarez is outside the courtroom with more.

Good morning, Jean.

JEAN CASAREZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol.

Jury selection is underway right now in the courthouse behind me. It's on the fourth floor. And as you can see, there's a small group of protesters that are outside of the courthouse right now. They said they would be here, and they are, wanting justice for Freddie Gray.

William Porter is the first police officer, as you said, that will face trial. There are six all together. And Judge Barry Williams actually severed all the trials, so each one of the officers will get their individual trial. Jury selection is critically important. As they always say, a case can be won or lost in jury selection. And I think the pivotal question is, can they find a fair and impartial jury here in Baltimore because of everything that has happened?

It was seven months ago that there was rioting in Baltimore and chaos, and a curfew that everybody in Baltimore city had to follow. And that's where the jury pool comes from. So there's 75 to 80 people in that courtroom right now. The judge is asking them questions where they will raise their hands, all in unison, or as they want to for the answers of the questions. If there are other answers that the attorneys and the judge and the defendant, William Porter, need to hear, such as, how much do you know about the case? Do you have an opinion? Can you set that opinion aside? Then they'll go into a conference room and jurors will be questioned individually.

[09:45:01]

CASAREZ: So we won't hear what they're saying to those answers. So we'll have to wait to see when and if they can get a jury right here in Baltimore. Carol?

COSTELLO: All right, we'll check back. Jean Casarez reporting live from Baltimore.

Police in their communities are at odds today. Some might say they're at war. Last week, we aired a story on how police decide to use lethal force. The story went viral.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: If this were a real emergency, I would have died.

I didn't want to shoot him. Even when he had the gun on the table, I didn't believe he would shoot me.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: There was praise and backlash, so I wrote an op-ed on why it was important to do such a story. Check it out: "Shoot, Don't Shoot". It's on CNN.com/opinion.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:50:14]

COSTELLO: The Chicago cop charged in the first-degree murder of a black teenager is due in court today. A judge will decide whether to set bail for Jason van Dyke. He's been held without bond since his arrest, and that was before the release of the dashcam video that showed the fatal shooting. Those images have sparked protests and accusations of a police cover-up.

CNN's Rosa Flores is in Chicago with more for you. Good morning.

ROSA FLORES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Carol, good morning. Jason Van Dyke's hearing is set for this afternoon. But let's be clear here. This hearing is to review the bond hearing where bond was denied last week.

So, let me give you the backstory here. Jason van Dyke was arrested and charged with first-degree murder in the killing of Laquan McDonald. He's the teen here from Chicago. Now, the judge set bond at no bond, but said that he wanted to review this video.

Now take a look at this, because this is the video that was released last week. And I should tell you the video is graphic. It shows Laquan McDonald walking in the street with a knife in his right hand, then cruisers, police cruisers responding to the scene, including Jason van Dyke. Now, according to court records, he started shooting six seconds after arriving on scene and started discharging his weapon. According to the autopsy report, Laquan McDonald was hit 16 times.

Now, the attorney for Jason van Dyke says that the officer acted in self-defense. But here is what the McDonald family had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JEFFREY NESLUND, ATTORNEY FOR MCDONALD FAMILY: They would like to see the officer prosecuted to the full extent of the law. And you have to understand this family is still grieving. They're in shock over all of this. And I know they wanted not just the shooter, but in my opinion everyone responsible who tried to cover this up or tried to justify what cannot be justified, should be held accountable.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FLORES: Now, the release of this video triggered protests here in Chicago last week and through the weekend. And, again, Jason van Dyke expected to face a judge today for a review of that bond hearing which -- where a judge decided that there was no bond. And that is supposed to take place this afternoon. Carol?

COSTELLO: All right, Rosa Flores reporting live from Chicago.

Still to come in the NEWSROOM, you can't really call it Cyber Monday anymore. The once official day for online shopping deals is turning into weeks and weeks of deep discounts.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:56:57]

COSTELLO: Almost two years to the day after announcing it was testing a drone delivery service, Amazon is showing off its new and improved fleet. Check it out. A video released on Sunday shows a family receiving a replacement soccer shoe for their daughter via drone after their dog chewed up the original. The internet retailer says it hopes to use the drones to deliver small packages to customers in under 30 minutes. But the service dubbed Amazon Prime Air can't officially take off until the FAA figures out how it will regulate unmanned aircraft. Pretty cool, right?

Black Friday is over but the deals certainly are not. 121 million people are expected to shop online today for Cyber Monday. That's slightly fewer than 2014, but only because this year, more than ever, Cyber Monday discounts started well before today and they will continue all week long.

Cristina Alesci joins mew now with some of the digital door busters, so to speak.

CRISTIA ALESCI, CNNMONEY CORRESPONDENT: Yes, this is incredible. You know, all of these major shopping holidays are fading in importance because retailers are just so eager to get that sale that they're starting so much earlier and they're extending -- some of these deals are going all week up until next Saturday.

Amazon started Cyber Monday on Saturday. Walmart started Cyber Monday on Sunday, and they're going all the way through Saturday.

Just to put some numbers around this, Carol, Thursday and Friday people spent about $4.5 billion online. That is an 18 percent increase from 2014. Meanwhile, foot traffic is down. So clearly, we're shopping online and we're shopping over a greater period of time. The thing is --

COSTELLO: Because we've grown so much smarter.

ALESCI: I'd like to think so. I don't know if that's true, but I would like to think so.

But here's the thing, retailers may be shooting themselves in the foot a little bit here, because now we're just accustomed to deals all the time. We don't want to pay full price. I don't know about you, but I don't want to pay full price, and I'm not going to do that. I'm going to wait until the day that I'm going to -- and I don't have to run out to the store anymore. I can just do it on my phone. I can wait for the deal to pop up. There are a bunch of apps that tell you when the item that you want goes on sale at various retailers. People got a lot smarter and the brick and mortar guys are really feeling the pain.

And the big elephant in the room is the one that you just mentioned, Amazon. That is the key. That is why all these brick and mortar retailers are extending these deals. They have to compete with Amazon.

And here's the other big trend that's headed our way -- mobile. This year was the first time that more people were browsing on their phone than any other time. About 57 percent of people were browsing on their phones. Now, they maybe weren't making their purchases, like you were talking about getting stuff done on the go. They were maybe not making the purchase, but they were researching their decisions and they were eventually -- we're going to get to a point where they're going to be on their phone shopping.

COSTELLO: OK, so I need a winter coat. Can you find me an app that will find me the cheapest winter coat that I want?

ALESCI: I'm on it, Carol. Meet me by your desk.

[10:00:03]

COSTELLO: I love Cristina.

ALESCI: In about ten minutes.

COSTELLO: Awesome. Thank you, Cristina.

A royal baby alert. You have to stick around for this, Cristina. I know how much you love the royal babies.