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New U.S. Air Strikes in Libya; Countdown to Nevada Democratic Caucus; Friend Talks Justice Antonin Scalia; GOP Candidates' Surprise Choices in Music. Aired 1:30-2p ET

Aired February 19, 2016 - 13:30   ET

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


(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[13:32:53] WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: Today, the U.S. unleashed new air strikes in Libya targeting an ISIS camp in a coastal city near the border with Tunisia. U.S. officials say fighters were training for a possible attack in Europe or elsewhere. The strike was also aimed at taking out a high-profile terrorist. Dozens were killed.

Let's bring in Pentagon correspondent, Barbara Starr, who is getting more information.

What else are you learning, Barbara?

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Well Wolf, this is really the new front in the war on ISIS, a third front after Syria and Iraq. U.S. war planes overnight striking this training camp in Libya. U.S. officials saying this was a very specific target they'd been looking at for several weeks. There was advanced weapons and tactics training going on. Some 60 ISIS operatives were there. And then this Tunisian leader of ISIS shows up at the camp. He'd been tied to previous attacks back in Tunisia, a planner and operative for the so-called external attacks outside of the region. So all of this came together, adding up to a lot of concern that this might be a place where an external attack was being planned. And they wanted to get after it, U.S. officials say, before these operatives here could turn it into a full-fledged plot and begin to act upon it. So U.S. war planes striking this.

And the Pentagon and the White House making very clear today they may do more of this. They are looking for very specific targets in Libya, tied to threats, tied to plots, and vowing to go after them, not to let ISIS expand. ISIS already has some 5,000 operations in Libya -- Wolf?

BLITZER: 5,000. Libya, for all practical purposes, almost huge chunks of it a failed state in the aftermath of the removal of Moammar Gadhafi. What you're saying is the U.S. strategy now is more what they used to call targeted assassinations, the air strikes by planes or drones, and going after specific targets to kill these suspected terrorists, is that right?

STARR: Well, I think what the White House is making clear now, they're not looking at a massive new air campaign in Libya, like you see day-by-day in Syria and Iraq. What they are looking for is to pick and choose their targets in Libya, whether they are operatives, whether they're training sites, places where ISIS congregates, something that poses a threat. Now that does give them very wide latitude in what they decided to go after. But at the same time, they are working that diplomatic government piece, trying to get a central government seated in Libya and get it functioning. That is a very tall order right now, but the feeling is that in the long-term again like so many other places, get a government in place, that's going to be the way not to give ISIS a safe haven. But the U.S. making clear it may not be able to wait that long if ISIS pops up its head, they are going to go after it -- Wolf?

[13:35:44] BLITZER: Certainly looks like Libya's emerging as another Syria, a potential ISIS stronghold, indeed.

Thanks very much, Barbara, for that report.

Still ahead, Democratic presidential rivals, Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders, they're making a final push in Nevada. We're going to hear supporters from both sides make their representative cases for the candidates just one day before the state's Democratic caucus.

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[13:40:27] BLITZER: The clock is counting down to tomorrow's Democratic caucuses in Nevada and the race is heating up. There's a lot at stake. The outcome could reframe the course of the race.

We're joined now by Congresswoman Dina Titus, a Democrat from Nevada, who supports Hillary Clinton; Democratic congressional candidate for Nevada's fourth district, Lucy Flores, who supports Bernie Sanders.

Ladies, thanks for coming in.

Very quickly to both of you, Dina, first to you, give me 30 seconds why you support Hillary Clinton.

REP. DINA TITUS, (D), NEVADA: Well, I think her breath of experience, depth of knowledge, and strength of commitment just outweighs anything that anybody else has to offer. If you listen to her in the town halls and the debates, on the stump, you get a sense that the specificity of her answers knows that she has a plan. She's a progressive, and she wants to make progress, and she knows how to get things done.

BLITZER: All right. That was good, 30 seconds.

Lucy, 30 seconds why you support Bernie Sanders.

LUCY FLORES, (D), CONGRESSIONAL CANDIDATE FOR NEVADA: Well, Bernie Sanders is just, first of all, he's fantastic. He has incredible experience. He's accomplished a whole lot while he's been in Congress. But he also brings something new, a dynamic energy, an amazing vision, a plan for the future that is bold, that is aggressive, and that speaks to so many people and is resonating across this country. So this new energy he's bringing with him, and in addition to his, of course, experience that he brings to the table and his new ideas, it's just incredibly invigorating, and that's something people are excited about, myself included, of course.

BLITZER: Of course.

Dina, what happened, because a few months ago, she was way ahead of Bernie Sanders in the polls there in Nevada? Now it seems neck and neck. What happened?

TITUS: Well, it's very difficult to poll in Nevada because we allow same-day registration and there are there aren't any polls that really show anything other than its closing. We knew that the race would get tighter, all races do, but she's not doing anything different than what she's done a whole year. She came out here last April, put her team on the ground, built quite an organization, canvassing, phone banking, meeting with people. She's been out to the state a number of times. President Clinton has a number of surrogates. She's doing what it takes to win every vote. And that was her direction from the beginning.

BLITZER: Lucy, you think Bernie Sanders can actually win tomorrow?

FLORES: I do. I think this is a toss-up. And you know what's been incredible to watch is how much of what's happening on the ground here, because as Congresswoman Titus noted, we haven't had good data. We haven't had reliable polling. So everything that we're talking about is anecdotal. It's what we're seeing on the ground.

But what's been incredible is how much is non-campaign driven. Bernie's campaign has been here significantly less than Hillary's has, but even then, you see so many events, so many marches, so many things going on that are completely volunteer-driven that's just occurring naturally and organically from people who have not been involved in the political process before, that are now all of the sudden engaged, in addition to what his campaign is doing. Frankly, I think that's why he's not only got a shot to the win this on Saturday, but why he has managed to close whatever gaps we can see from the little polling that we've had in such a short amount of time.

BLITZER: Nevada, as both of you know, a diverse state with Hispanics, African Americans, much more so than either Iowa or New Hampshire. Now Bernie Sanders, he won decisively in New Hampshire, Dina. If he wins in Nevada, how much of a setback is that going to be for Hillary Clinton?

TITUS: Well, I don't think he's going to win in Nevada. And Hillary Clinton has a great deal of support in the Hispanic community. She has built quite a force there. And something people are talking about very much that's also in my district -- I have the most diverse district in the state -- is the Asian-Pacific Island community. That's the fastest-growing minority population. And she has very much supported there, had a number of events there, has an advisory committee there. So they will make a difference in this race, too. So think you will see cutting across a lot of demographic lines, a lot of our service workers are women. A lot of those women are minorities, and I think they'll go strong for our Secretary Clinton.

BLITZER: Dina Titus, Lucy Flores, we'll watch every step of the way. We'll have all-day coverage tomorrow here on CNN or the Nevada Democratic presidential caucuses.

Thanks to both of you for joining us.

TITUS: Thank you.

FLORES: Thank you.

[13:44:54] BLITZER: Thank you.

When we come back, hundreds are now saying good-bye to a legal icon. The body of the U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia now lying in repose inside the U.S. Supreme Court's great hall. We're going to speak to one of his good friends, who was traveling with Justice Scalia in Asia just a few weeks ago.

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BLITZER: We learned today that the author, Harper Lee, has passed away at the age of 89. Widely known for her Pulitzer Prize-winning novel "To Kill a Mockingbird," published in 1960. Told the story of racial injustice in a small Alabama town and was later made into a movie by the same name. A statement from a family spokesperson said this, "Ms. Lee passed away in her sleep early this morning. Her passing was unexpected. She remained in good basic health until her passing. The family is in mourning and there will be a private funeral service in the upcoming days as she had requested." Our deepest condolences to the family.

Meanwhile, there's a somber scene at the U.S. Supreme Court now as mourners say their final good-byes to the Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia. This morning, his casket was brought inside the great hall, not far from the courtroom where he worked for more than three decades.

The justice's son, Father Paul Scalia, led prayers in a private ceremony earlier.

[13:50:09] FATHER PAUL SCALIA, SON OF ANTONIN SCALIA: Blessed are those who have died in the Lord. Let them rest from their labors for their good deeds go with them. Eternal rest grant unto him, oh, Lord. May he rest in peace.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: Scalia's son will also lead the funeral mass tomorrow and deliver the homily.

Live pictures, by the way, here, once again, as hundreds are streaming by to view the casket and pay their respects.

Let's bring in Justice Scalia's friend, Professor Bryan Garner, who teaches law at Southern Methodist University. He co-authored two books with Justice Scalia.

Bryan, thank you for coming in.

You recently traveled with him to the Far East. Were there any indications that you saw he may have been sick?

BRYAN A. GARNER, LAW PROFESSOR, SOUTHERN METHODIST UNIVERSITY: No. In fact, he was very robust. We were together 14 hours a day for 12 days in Singapore and Hong Kong. He was the ultimate tourist. He had this kind of boyish exuberance as we were exploring Hong Kong and Singapore. And he did not tire easily.

BLITZER: I had met him -- I wasn't friends with him, but I met him on several occasions. He really was a vibrant great personality. Loved to talk and just engage people.

GARNER: Well, he did. He liked to engage intellectually, but also on a personal level. Intellectually, he was kind of pugnacious. He loved Socratic dialectic arguments and counterarguments and he was relentlessly logical. I would say he lived that way personally and professionally.

BLITZER: What will be his main legacy, you believe, three decades on the U.S. Supreme Court?

GARNER: I think it's primarily the method of textual analysis, especially with statutes. Some of it's kind of technical and probably lawyers care whether about courts are looking into legislative history. But he's had a profound impact on the way the Supreme Court approaches statutes. For example, not looking at legislative history as compared to a few years ago. When he came on, 85 percent of the cases had the court looking at legislative history, which is nontraditional. Today, it's down to about 15 percent. And that's mostly his legacy. But that's kind of a legal legacy for lawyers --

(CROSSTALK)

BLITZER: Is there one case that stands out in your mind that he might have been most proud of, the opinion he wrote?

GARNER: Well, I think the Heller decision on the Second Amendment, the personal right to bear arms, was something that had never been directly decided by the U.S. Supreme Court. That was a profoundly important case. But mostly, his legacy is on the method of judging and what judges ought to do in deciding cases.

BLITZER: Bryan Garner, thanks very much for coming in. A big loss for the country, the Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia. Appreciate it very much.

GARNER: Thank you.

BLITZER: We'll have live coverage of the funeral of Justice Scalia tomorrow morning. I'll anchor our special coverage. That will start at 10:00 a.m. eastern right here on CNN.

We'll be right back.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

(MUSIC) (END VIDEO CLIP)

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[13:57:32] BLITZER: Over the past two nights, CNN has presented town halls with the Republican presidential candidates, all six of them. We learned more about their views on the economy, on foreign policy, health care, and their surprise choices, at least for some of them, when it comes to music.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: Do you like EDM? Electronic dance music?

SEN. MARCO RUBIO, (R), FLORIDA & PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Yes, I don't want -- maybe people thought it was something else.

(LAUGHTER)

So I --

COOPER: Have you ever been to a rave?

RUBIO: No, no, I've never been to a rave, no.

(LAUGHTER)

COOPER: Well, I don't know.

RUBIO: The words, sometimes they have no words at all. It's electronic dance music, so that's perfect. I don't have to worry about lyrics.

COOPER: What kind of music do you listen to?

JOHN KASICH, OHIO GOVERNOR & PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Fallout Boys, one of them. Yeah, I like Lincoln Park and 21 Pilots, you know, "Stressed Out." We play that on our bus, but we're not stressed out.

DONALD TRUMP, (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE & CEO, TRUMP ORGANIZATION: Well, I think Elton John is great. I think the Stones are great. The Beatles I love. Michael Jackson was actually a very good friend of mine. I knew Michael Jackson very well. Lived in Trump Towers from time to time.

COOPER: What kind of music do you listen to?

JEB BUSH, (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE & FORMER FLORIDA GOVERNOR: I listen to country music mostly. Zac Brown, a Florida/Georgia band.

DR. BEN CARSON, (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE & RETIRED NEUROSURGEON: I primarily like classical music, particularly baroque music.

Other residents knew, when they came and did their pediatric surgery rotation, they would also learn classical music. SEN. TED CRUZ, (R), TEXAS & PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I actually don't

sing music. I will sing things like -- oh, my darling, oh, my darling, oh, my darling, Heidi --

COOPER: OK.

(LAUGHTER)

CRUZ: -- which is really corny. But I used to do it when she'd put it on speaker phone in her office and embarrass her or, you know, I'd kind of do, you know --

(SINGING)

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLITZER: Some of our viewers may not necessarily recognize Marco Rubio's music selection, EDM, electronic dance music. So we thought we'll give you a little sample of something new. It's a song by Swedish dance music duo. Listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

(MUSIC)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: A little EDM. Marco Rubio likes the EDM. I like the EDM. I like all of the other music selections as well.

That's it for me. Thanks very much for watching. I'll be back 5:00 p.m. eastern, in "The Situation Room."

For our international viewers, "Amanpour" is next.

For viewers in North America, NEWSROOM with Poppy Harlow starts right now.