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CNN NEWSROOM
GOP Rivals Happen Attacks Ahead of South Carolina Vote; Trump Takes Hits from All Sides; Battle Over Scalia Replacement Intensifies; Battle for the African-American Vote. Aired 9-9:30a ET
Aired February 16, 2016 - 09:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[09:00:00] PEREIRA: All right. Time for "NEWSROOM" with Carol Costello.
Happy Tuesday, darling.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Happy Tuesday. That means we're closer to Friday, baby.
PEREIRA: Yes.
COSTELLO: You guys have a great day. NEWSROOM starts now.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
COSTELLO: Happening now in the NEWSROOM. And you thought it was ugly before?
DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I have never ever met a person that lies more than Ted Cruz.
COSTELLO: It's only getting worse.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: South Carolina cannot trust Donald Trump.
COSTELLO: The days of the Grand Old Party over.
Plus an open Supreme Court seat sets off a political firestorm. And this battle is not going anywhere.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The Constitution does not include exemptions for election years.
SEN. MARCO RUBIO (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: And it will be filled by the next president.
COSTELLO: But with fighting like this, who's the job anyway?
Let's talk. Live in the CNN NEWSROOM.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COSTELLO: And good morning. I'm Carol Costello, thank you so much for joining me. The Grand Old Party is sounding more like the Donner Party. Top
Republicans sharpening their attacks. Donald Trump sharpening their attack. Donald Trump calling Ted Cruz a liar and unstable. Marco Rubio saying Cruz's questionable claims are a very disturbing pattern. Cruz scoffs at his critics, though, saying their insults are just meant to hide their records and their flip-flops. And Jeb Bush pleading with voters to reject the politics of division splitting his party.
The bare-knuckled, free-for-all intensifying just days ahead of the critical primary in South Carolina. And the words scorched earth now hanging over this brawl and beyond.
Sunlen Serfaty joins us live from Charleston with more. Good morning.
SUNLEN SERFATY, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol. Well, it really is an all-out war among the Republican candidates, especially between Donald Trump and Ted Cruz. Really speaking to how fierce their battle in that top tier between the two is. Their rhetoric really escalating overnight to the highest level.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
TRUMP: I think Ted's a very unstable guy.
SERFATY (voice-over): Donald Trump on an all-out tear against Ted Cruz.
TRUMP: I mean, Cruz, as I said he's the single worst liar I've ever seen.
SERFATY: The GOP frontrunner calling Cruz a basket case who's purposely lying to voters about his record.
TRUMP: He just comes out and boom, boom, boom. Absolutely lies.
SERFATY: And he delivered this ominous warning to Cruz. "Back off and apologize or be hit with a lawsuit over your eligibility to be president."
TRUMP: Keep your lies going. You're going to get sued. You're going to get sued anyway. Might as well keep your lies going.
SERFATY: Cruz not backing down.
SEN. TED CRUZ (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: And we are not in grade school where you just get to say liar, liar, pants on fire, and not respond to the substance.
SERFATY: Arguing that Trump is just rattled.
CRUZ: I guess the only explanation one can has is that his international poll numbers in South Carolina must be plummeting following that debate.
SERFATY: And attacking Trump's readiness to be president. CRUZ: Who has the temperament to remain calm under pressure? I would
note when both Marco Rubio and Donald Trump just scream liar, liar, liar, it makes you wonder how they would handle dealing with Putin.
SERFATY: Trump's fire comes in response to Cruz's closing message here in South Carolina, that at its core seeks to paint Trump as a closet liberal.
CRUZ: A candidate who has spent 60 years of his life being very, very pro-choice and defending partial birth abortion is not a candidate you can trust to appoint principled constitutionalists to the U.S. Supreme Court.
SERFATY: Echoed all over the airwaves in a series of blunt ads like this one obtained first by CNN which will debut in South Carolina.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: South Carolina cannot trust Donald Trump.
TRUMP: I'm very capable of changing to anything I want to change to.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Don't give him that chance.
SERFATY: The sharp, nasty turn comes as the rhetoric from Trump has been dialed up.
TRUMP: They lied.
SERFATY: Centered on using an almost taboo four-letter word in politics, the "L" word.
TRUMP: You are the single biggest liar. You're willing to lie about anything. And then, you hold up a bible. It's no good. To me, it's no good.
SERFATY: And as his rivals punch right back, voters in South Carolina are paying attention, too.
JOHN MCCORD, CRUZ SUPPORTER: I don't understand the -- I guess the UFC attitude that he has as a candidate. It's just -- it's unbecoming of the president.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SERFATY: And while this fierce battle no doubt will continue on today, Ted Cruz will try to refocus on the issues a bit. He will release his plan to rebuild the military, a big issue here in South Carolina aboard the ship, the USS Yorktown -- Carol.
COSTELLO: All right. Sunlen Serfaty, reporting live from Charleston this morning.
Donald Trump is actually taking hits from all sides as GOP rivals trying to chip away at his big lead in South Carolina. And a former president taking his own swings at the frontrunner.
CNN's Dana Bash has that story from Washington. Good morning. DANA BASH, CNN CHIEF POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol.
And you know, George W. Bush broke his strict "former presidents shouldn't play politics" rule to help out his baby brother. But today Jeb Bush is back out on the trail in South Carolina, solo hoping the energy from last night's rally carries over.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
[09:05:06] BASH (voice-over): George W. Bush drew a large crowd and a deep distinction between his brother and Donald Trump.
GEORGE W. BUSH, 43RD PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Strength is not empty rhetoric. It is not bluster. It is not theatrics. Real strength, strength of purpose comes from integrity and character. And in my experience, the strongest person usually isn't the loudest one in the room.
BASH: The 43rd president never uttered Trump's name but he didn't have to.
G. BUSH: We do not need someone in the Oval Office who mirrors and inflames our anger and frustration.
BASH: He spoke only a few hours after Trump doubled down on criticizing him for 9/11.
TRUMP: I've heard for years he kept the country safe after -- what does that mean after? What about during 9/11? I was there.
BASH: The former president recounted what it was like for him that horrific morning then segued to Jeb.
G. BUSH: He's got the backbone necessary to make the tough decisions on behalf of the American people.
BASH: George W. Bush energized not just the crowd but his brother, the candidate.
JEB BUSH (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I thought it was a little strange that a front-running candidate would attack the president of the United States who did keep us safe, while he was building a reality TV show.
Now I can beat Hillary Clinton. I can promise you that.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BASH: Now there was obviously a lot of focus on Donald Trump without saying his name but, Carol, there is no question that another big part of George W. Bush's goal is to help Jeb Bush beat his former protege Marco Rubio, talking a lot about his -- Jeb's experience in Florida, that he's a two-term governor, that you need that kind of experience in the White House. That you can't wilt under the lights effectively is what he said. So that really is his immediate goal in South Carolina. He's got to get up there and do better in the so-called establishment lane and that's why you had George W. Bush saying he is proudly part of the establishment -- Carol.
COSTELLO: All right. Dana Bash reporting live from Washington this morning. Thank you.
So as Dana asks, how will this all of this play with voters in South Carolina?
Let's talk about that with CNN political commentator Tara Setmayer. I'm also joined by Republican strategist and conservative columnist Kayleigh McEneny. She's also a Trump supporter.
Welcome to both of you.
TARA SETMAYER, FORMER CAPITOL HILL GOP COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTOR: Thank you.
KAYLEIGH MCENENY, REPUBLICAN STRATEGIST: Thanks, Carol.
COSTELLO: So, Kayleigh, I want to start with you. Donald Trump gave an interview to ABC News. He again called Ted Cruz a liar. He said he was in this country illegally and shouldn't run for president. Donald Trump threatened to file a lawsuit against Ted Cruz unless he apologized for his lies. Do you think this is extreme on Donald Trump's part?
MCENENY: No, I don't think it's extreme. You know, Ted Cruz, I enjoy Ted Cruz, I like Ted Cruz, I think he'd be a great nominee as well. Both of them the Republican Party would honestly be lucky to have either. But here is the thing. Ted Cruz has repeatedly mischaracterized Donald Trump's record. On abortion he says he wants to not defund Planned Parenthood. That is not true. In fact Donald Trump called Planned Parenthood an abortion factory. So I hardly think that that's a viable criticism of Donald Trump.
Likewise he's mischaracterized his views on the Second Amendment. He said with Donald Trump we would repeal and erase the Second Amendment. That again is not true. Donald Trump is for national concealed carry law. About as far to the side of the Second Amendment as you can get. Ted Cruz has repeatedly mischaracterized Donald Trump's record. And Donald is frustrated. I understand that .
COSTELLO: Well --
MCENENY: And I don't think that this is too harsh.
COSTELLO: For -- for, you know, politicians mischaracterize other politicians' positions all the time. It seems to be the American way. Right? But Donald Trump called Ted Cruz unbalanced. What does he mean by unbalanced, Kayleigh?
MCENENY: It means that he is absolutely taking everything Donald Trump says and saying the mirror image opposite. And you know that is called a lie. We can call it a mischaracterization, we can call it a lie.
COSTELLO: No. No. MCENENY: But Ted Cruz is completely --
COSTELLO: I mean, the unbalanced part. Is he saying that Ted Cruz is mentally unbalanced? Does he -- I mean, what does he mean, Kayleigh?
MCENENY: I don't think he means mentally unbalanced. I think he's not balanced because he's taking and distorting the record of Donald Trump. That's not a balanced viewpoint. I don't think he means mentally insane or deranged or anything of that nature. You know, what Donald Trump has shown is if you attack him he will attack you back and that is just what he does. It is his character, it's his demeanor, and I don't think there is anything wrong with it. And in fact I think it makes us have a very strong Republican field when you have candidates who have to go through the fire like this.
COSTELLO: Does it -- does it make the Republican field strong?
(CROSSTALK)
COSTELLO: Tara --
MCENENY: No doubt about it. Yes..
COSTELLO: Tara. I want to get Tara in here.
SETMAYER: You know this is very interesting to me. Watching Donald Trump's reaction to adversity is -- it's interesting because he is so thin-skinned. And the way that he handles anyone going after him and it's -- you know, that's what a campaign is about. They pull your record and then you have to defend it. It's not that, you don't like what someone is saying to you now so you decide that you're going to throw your money around and sue them like Donald Trump does any time someone says something unflattering about him that he doesn't like.
[09:10:09] If you bring up his record -- you know, Kayleigh went through this list of all of these things. Well, which Donald Trump was that? Was that the one that -- he changed all of his position on all of those things since he's been a lifelong Democrat for the most part until about a year ago.
MCENENY: So was Ronald Reagan.
SETMAYER: So that --
MCENENY: So was Ronald Reagan.
SETMAYER: No. No. Ronald Reagan was not a lifelong Democrat. Ronald Reagan was a conservative when he governed in California and he had a record over years of conservativism where he made that evolution into becoming what he ended up becoming. Donald Trump does not have that record, and -- you know what, stop comparing Donald Trump to Ronald Reagan. Donald Trump couldn't hold a finger to the class that Ronald Reagan had.
What Donald Trump is doing is embarrassing. He's acting like a child, like a rich bully on the playground, and my goodness, if you hit back at me, I'm going to sue you. I mean, grow up. This is for the presidency of the United States.
MCENENY: Tara --
SETMAYER: That we're running for and he can't handle a campaign in South Carolina for goodness sakes? And this is something that's appealing to you? For someone to be president of the United States? Really?
COSTELLO: Kayleigh?
MCENENY: It is a fact that Ronald Reagan was pro-choice before he was pro-life. It is a fact that Ronald Reagan as governor of California levied the largest tax increase in California history. Those are facts and he changed and he pivoted. People like Donald Trump because he had --
(CROSSTALK)
SETMAYER: And Ronald Reagan had an intellectual pivot.
MCENENY: Because, Tara --
SETMAYER: He had an intellectual pivot.
MCENENY: Yes. And so did Donald Trump.
(CROSSTALK)
SETMAYER: Really?
MCENENY: He had an intellectual pivot. You can -- you can tear down Donald Trump but the fact is, Americans like Donald Trump because he is a fighter.
SETMAYER: Calling people P word and making fun of their family? That's intellectual?
MCENENY: Donald Trump is a fighter and he's speaking to the heart of --
SETMAYER: No, he's a bully.
MCENENY: -- American public that is absolutely frustrated with this president.
SETMAYER: He's a bully.
(CROSSTALK)
COSTELLO: OK.
SETMAYER: A fighter can take a punch.
MCENENY: He's a fighter.
COSTELLO: OK. I got to end this here. SETMAYER: A fighter doesn't -- he's not a fighter. He's a bully.
COSTELLO: Thanks to you both for your insight this morning.
MCENENY: Thank you, Carol.
COSTELLO: Tara Setmayer and Kayleigh McEneny.
All right. Starting tomorrow is a unique two night event on CNN. All six Republican presidential candidates taking part in a South Carolina town hall, answering voters' questions. It will be spread out over two nights. To take place 8:00 p.m. Eastern on Wednesday. 8:00 p.m. Eastern on Thursday only on CNN.
Still to come in the NEWSROOM, the battle over filling that vacant Supreme Court seat heats up. The question is, who would want it?
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[09:16:21] COSTELLO: The battle over replacing Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia growing more intense. The president may provide a window into his potential successors when he speaks later today, but more Republicans are vowing to block any Obama nominee.
And the Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid is warning the GOP if they go through this with so called partisan sabotage, it will backfire. The Democrat writes, quote, "If Republicans proceed down this path one side effect will be settling that debate once and for all that Republican obstruction is so extraordinarily unprecedented that this nuclear option was indeed necessary."
Justice reporter Evan Perez has more on this. Good morning.
EVAN PEREZ, CNN JUSTICE REPORTER: Hey, Carol. Good morning.
We're told that the legal team in the White House is quickly working to put together a list of nominees for the president. They already have a lot of background research on candidates who were vetted for the last two openings on the Supreme Court or were appointed to high level jobs in the last two years.
The question that hangs over all of this is whether any nominee, no matter how accomplished or how smart they are about the law can get through the bickering that we are hearing.
Here is a sample of some of that.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. PATRICK LEAHY (D-VT), RANKING MEMBER, JUDICIARY COMMITTEE: The Republicans are talking about the Republican playbook. This is the playbook we should follow, the Constitution of the United States.
SEN. JEFF SESSIONS (R-AL), JUDICIARY COMMITTEE: President Obama has gotten two activist judge appointments to the court, capable intelligent justices but share deeply his philosophy. ERIC SCHULTZ, WHITE HOUSE DEPUTY PRESS SECRETARY: The Constitution
does not include exemptions for election years or for the president's last term in office. There's no exceptions for when a vacancy could tip the balance of the court.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PEREZ: And, Carol, Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid wrote in his op- ed in "The Washington Post" this morning, quote, "If my Republican colleagues proceed down this path they should know this act alone will define their time in the majority. Thinking otherwise is fantasy."
And Reid also offered a hint in the direction Democrats might go in this fight. He wants the president to nominate someone that the Republicans normally would have no problem approving. So, that could make it tougher for some Republicans especially those facing reelection in some blue states to say no -- Carol.
COSTELLO: All right. Evan Perez reporting live from Washington this morning.
With all of that said, who would want to be nominated to the U.S. Supreme Court and have to sit through that excruciating Senate confirmation hearing? Because it could be excruciating if someone were to be nominated right at this moment.
George Washington University law professor Jonathan Turley joins me now.
Hi, Jonathan.
JONATHAN TURLEY, GEORGE WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY LAW PROFESSOR: Hi, Carol.
COSTELLO: Would you say yes?
TURLEY: No. I would wait for that cup to pass through my lips.
It would be very hard to find someone who wants to be Johnny the human torch and sit in that confirmation hearing because you are going to have dozens of groups working you over. The chances for success are very, very small at this point.
So, it is not exactly a great resume booster. It has a lot of negatives. The question is when you come out if you are going to be such damaged goods that that's going to be the end of it in terms for prospective later nomination.
COSTELLO: When you say that, Jonathan, "damaged goods", what does that mean? I know what senators will dig up all they can and throw as much dirt at the nominee as possible.
TURLEY: That's right. This is a city that kills people with a thousand paper cuts. I mean, they -- if they can't take you down on a major issue, you've got groups that look for every possible way to throw questions about your background, your views, et cetera. [09:20:00] Now, in the past, White Houses have avoided that by
essentially selecting nominees who are a bit of a blind date. You know, they take the nominees who are very little in their background that is controversial either in their writings and their views. In fact, some have really nothing in their portfolio at all, and that makes it very difficult to deal with.
But if you look at what the Republicans are saying right now, there might not even be a hearing. But that leads to the question of what is the sort of template that the White House wants to use to select a nominee. It depends on whether you are trying to win the game or whether you are trying to damage the opposition.
And you can select someone who's very conservative. Certainly, to make it more difficult for them to say no, or you can select a nominee that will cause the greatest damage in their opposing that man or woman.
COSTELLO: Either course would seem to be wrong.
I just want to take you back to the recent past, Jonathan. Remember the term litmus test? It was sort of a code word for "I want an activist judge" without actually saying "I want an activist judge"? Times have changed.
Listen to Senator Ted Cruz and then Senator Bernie Sanders.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. TED CRUZ (R-TX), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Donald said his extreme abortion supporting sister would make a terrific Supreme Court justice. If the people of South Carolina care about their constitutional rights, we're one justice away from the Supreme Court writing the Second Amendment out of the Bill of Rights.
SEN. BERNIE SANDERS (I-VT), DEMOCRATIC PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: No nominee of mine to the Supreme Court will get that position unless he or she is loud and clear in stating they will vote to end Citizens United.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: So, that's just a little taste of what the nominee might face in the Senate nominating process, right?
TURLEY: You know, it has always been the case that while the White House staff and presidents have looked for confirmation of views. But they are often left and to the shadows. Quite frankly, I would welcome a confirmation hearing that actually had some substance to it.
You know, the Roberts confirmation hearings is a good example of that. We ended up talking about his favorite movie was. It turned out to be "Dr. Zhivago", and a baseball metaphor that drove people crazy by the end how many times it was used.
So, a little substance actually would help but I think at the end of the day they are going to get those types of confirmations either overtly or behind the scenes. They usually have.
Now, that doesn't mean there haven't been some surprises. There have been some significant surprises. Most recently people like David Souter was a huge surprise for the Republicans. Even John Roberts is viewed by people like senator Cruz is viewed as the terrible disappoint.
COSTELLO: I know. You never know what you are going to get until they get on that bench and they make a decision.
Jonathan Turley, thanks for stopping by.
TURLEY: Thanks, Carol.
COSTELLO: You're welcome.
Still to come in THE NEWSROOM: the blitz is on to win the African American vote. So who's making all the right moves right now?
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[09:27:26] COSTELLO: And good morning. I'm Carol Costello. Thank you so much for joining me.
Hillary Clinton is now meeting with civil rights leaders in Harlem. This about a week after her rival Bernie Sanders met with Al Sharpton in the same New York neighborhood. And yes, Hillary Clinton will also meet with Al Sharpton this morning.
Also this morning, Bernie Sanders will be in South Carolina. Both of them pushing for that African American vote.
Joe Johns is D.C. with more on this.
Hi, Joe.
JOE JOHNS, CNN SENIOR WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol.
This is as you said sort of a tale of two meetings. It is all about the part of the African-American vote that might be attracted by some of the traditional African-American leaders and organizations.
Hillary Clinton meeting with Reverend Al Sharpton as you said as did Bernie Sanders late last week but today's meeting with Hillary Clinton is a little different because she's also meeting with Marc Morial of the Urban League, and Cornell Brooks, the CEO of the NAACP.
And later today, she'll be pushing envelope, an outreach to black voters with a speech on race issues around 3:00 Eastern Time in Harlem.
So, what she's doing here is making a big play to the African American community because the Clinton campaign sees her connections to that community as a vital part of her path to the nomination. Last week, picking up the support of the Congressional Black Caucus political action committee. All of this as the two Democrats are competing for South Carolina
Democratic votes. The African-American vote there of course can make or break a candidate. Bernie Sanders in South Carolina meeting with faith leaders. He and Hillary Clinton have maid attempts to align themselves also with the people of Flint, Michigan, where that public health emergency over lead tainted water has become an issue of environmental justice. Secretary Clinton made it a part of her stump speech.
Sanders now has gotten on board by meeting with families from Flint. Listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SANDERS: Imagine being the mom of a bright young daughter and seeing that child mentally deteriorate in front of your eyes. From being a bright, good student to a student who is now I believe in special ed.
If we can rebuild villages in Iraq and Afghanistan, we can damn well rebuild Flint, Michigan.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
JOHNS: So that big push continues on connecting with minorities right now and it is certainly going to continue for a while, Carol.
COSTELLO: All right. Joe Johns, reporting live from Washington this morning.
Bernie Sanders is also talking up his past support for his man, Jesse Jackson.
