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Pennsylvanians Set To Elect Delegates; New Details Emerge From Murdered Family Crime Scene In Ohio; Apple Stock Plummets; Kelly Ripa Returns To Show; Olympic Torch Begins Journey In Rio de Janerio; Trump's Impressions. Aired 10:30-11a ET

Aired April 26, 2016 - 10:30   ET

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


(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[10:33:40] CAROL COSTELLO, HOST: And good morning. I'm Carol Costello, thank you so much for joining me. There are two battles going on in the state of Pennsylvania. One for the nominee, and one for the delegates. When voters look at their ballots, for example, not only will the names Trump, Cruz, and Kasich be on that ballot, but potential names of delegates will be on that battle too.

Yes, they are elected by the people of Pennsylvania. One of those names on the ballot is Charlie Gerow. He's a Republican strategist and co-chair for Carly Fiorina 2016. He is a former Reagan aide, and CEO Quantum Communications. He joins me now from Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. Welcome, Charlie.

CHARLIE GEROW, REPUBLICAN STRATEGIST: Great to be with you, Carol.

COSTELLO: Nice to have you here. So, you're name will be on the ballot today, and people will vote for you to be a delegate to the convention, right?

GEROW: That's how it works here. Our delegates are not tied to the presidential contest here. Historically, all of our delegates were unbound. This year for the first time, 17 will actually be required to vote for the winner of the statewide primary. But the other 54 are uncommitted and unbound.

COSTELLO: So how have you been campaigning to be a delegate from the state of Pennsylvania?

GEROW: A lot more campaigning this year, Carol, than ever before. Because there really is wrapped (ph) interest and intention being paid to these delegate contests. So I've had to actually send out some mail and go to meetings, and say hello to voters.

COSTELLO: Interesting. So have the candidates themselves called you, or their campaigns?

GEROW: All of the campaigns have been in touch. At this point it's been kind of a soft sell, but I suspect that after tonight, when our delegates are elected, that sell will become a little bit harder.

COSTELLO: So who's been calling you the most? GEROW: The Trump people have called us several times. The Kasich

people have called us as many times. And the Cruz people have called once or twice.

COSTELLO: So if you become a delegate, how will that feel this time around?

GEROW: Well I've been a delegate before, when these conventions were really more of coronations, Carol, than conventions. So the big part of the contested nominating convention -- I was at the last one in 1976 as part of the Reagan team -- is really exciting. I think it's good for the party. I think it's good for the process. And I think ultimately, it's really good for the country.

COSTELLO: Have you already decided who you'd support at the convention?

GEROW: I have told the voters in my district that I will vote for whomever wins my congressional district. I think I have that obligation to the voters. But if it goes to multiple ballots, Carol, every candidate in Pennsylvania has to have their judgment, their integrity, and their experience in play. And folks simply have to trust their judgment, and their integrity.

COSTELLO: So let's say Donald Trump wins your congressional district, right? On the first ballot, you would throw your support behind Donald Trump. But not necessarily on the second ballot?

GEROW: Not necessarily. But well, and that's the trouble for Trump in the state of Pennsylvania. He really didn't do his homework well, and so he has relatively few candidates on the ballot this time, that are pledged to him, personally, and personally loyal to him. Candidates need that because there's no indication on our ballot, Carol, as to whom these delegates actually support.

COSTELLO: So you know, some voters are upset by this whole delegate system. It's very hard to understand. They think it's like taking their vote away. So what would you say to them?

GEROW: I would say that there's going to be a very robust discussion about how delegates are selected after this 2016 cycle. And I would encourage every voter to be a part of that discussion, because their voices need to be heard.

COSTELLO: All right, Charlie Gerow, thanks for joining me this morning, and good luck.

GEROW: Thank you so much, Carol.

COSTELLO: You're welcome. Still to come in the Newsroom, the grandfather of that murdered Ohio family speaks out. New details he's revealing about the crime scene, next.

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[10:39:50] COSTELLO: New details emerging after a family is murdered in Southern Ohio. The grandfather of three victims now speaking out, bringing us new insight about the crime scene. Nick Valencia live in Piketon, Ohio. Good morning.

NICK VALENCIA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol. Leonard Manley says that he's more angry than he is fearful for his life. As the local sheriff has indicated, he too believes that whoever did this knew the Rhoden family.

Here's what he's telling the local newspaper in Cincinnati, the Cincinnati Inquirer. Saying, "my daughter Dana is a loving person, a loving mother. You go anywhere, you ask anyone about my daughter, they'll tell you the same thing. You go down and ask about Dana, they all tell you, I spoiled my girl. They would tell you her Dad would do anything for her."

The mourning goes on, as does the investigation. They're bringing in more resources from neighboring counties here. We just saw an incident command center be brought in last night. Hundreds of deputies being brought in from neighboring counties to help with this investigation.

This tragedy happened on Friday morning. Over the weekend, 9-1-1 tapes released. I'm going to play you a portion of that call.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN: You've got to tell me what's going on.

UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN: There's blood all over the house.

UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN: OK.

UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN: My brother-in-law is in the bedroom and it looks like someone has beat the hell out of him.

UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN: OK.

UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN: There's blood all over the carpet (ph).

UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN: Ma'am, can you tell me what county that's in? Is it --

UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN: Pike County.

UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN: It's Pike County?

UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN: Yes, and they dragged him in the back room.

UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN: OK, OK, I need you to get out of the house.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VALENCIA: It doesn't get any easier to hear, Carol. We're also learning more about the crime scene. There was four separate crime scenes, and at the first and fourth location, according to the Attorney General's office, there was no forced entry. Adding to that theory that whoever was responsible for these executions was familiar with the property, familiar with the family.

Attorney General office spokesman also telling me that one of those grow operations was an indoor grow operation. Friends and family say that they did not know that the Rhodens were connected to drugs. But certainly the speculation in this community is that these execution- style killings were drug-related. Carol?

COSTELLO: Nick Valencia reporting live from Piketon, Ohio this morning. Still to come in the Newsroom, the wait is over. Kelly Ripa returns to "Live," after a highly-publicized sick out. And she addressed it head-on.

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[10:46:33]

COSTELLO: Apple is expected to announce its worst quarter in 13 years today, thanks to falling iPhone sales. The last time Apple's sales numbers slipped this bad, they hadn't even launched the iTunes store. And it would mark the first time in history that sales of the iPhone have dropped. Profits are down 18 percent with company-wide sales down 10 percent.

More than two-thirds of Apple's revenues are tied to iPhone sales. Those are also down 18 percent. Now analysts are hoping the company's next phone, the upcoming iPhone 7, could reboot Apple's sales. We'll keep you posted.

Ah, the drama is over. Kelly Ripa welcomed back to her show with a standing ovation. She actually has to settle the crowd down, listen:

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KELLY RIPA, HOST "LIVE": Guys, guys, guys, guys, guys. Our long, national nightmare is over. Please, sit down, please, please, please. I am not -- I'm going to be completely honest. I'm fairly certain that there are trained, professional snipers with tranquilizer guns, in case I drift too far off message.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Ripa's sick out started after she said she was blindsided by news her co-host Michael Strahan was leaving the show. CNN Senior Media Correspondent Brian Stelter has been covering this to the max. He joins me now. Sounds like she's going to be OK.

BRIAN STELTER, CNN SENIOR MEDIA CORRESPONDENT: Yes, although I would say ABC still has its fingers crossed, both here in New York, and in Burbank. Because this whole dust-off has given her a lot of attention, has given her a ton of support from her fans. And has people in the business wondering if she'll want to stay at ABC when her contract is up. So that's down the road, but yes, for today they do seem to have been able to get back to business. The reason why this has been so interesting is because it is about respect in the workplace, as she said this morning. And here's how she described it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RIPA: I needed a couple of days to gather my thoughts after 26 years with this company, I earned the right. In that time, I gained some perspective. I always speak from the heart, I didn't want to come out here and just like, say something I might regret. So what transpired, though, over the course of a few days, has been extraordinary, in the sense that it started a much greater conversation about communication and consideration. And most importantly, respect in the workplace.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

STELTER: So she was choosing her words very carefully there. Even her outfit, dressed head-to-toe in red. And the camera stayed on her, even when she was talking to Michael Strahan. What all started this, of course, was Michael Strahan moving over to "Good Morning, America," ABC's flagship morning show. Kelly Ripa wasn't told until about half an hour before the announcement was made. And that, she thought was very disrespectful.

She felt like her show was being treated as a second fiddle, and that she wasn't being treated with the sort of respect she deserves. Now you can say this is about the $20 million a year host, they have nothing to complain about. They're all paid way too much. And that might be true, but there's also something here about female TV stars, and how they're treated by mostly male TV bosses. I think that's one of the reasons why this has resonated so much, particularly with women.

COSTELLO: Well of course, and she's way a part of the success of the show, right?

STELTER: Absolutely, that's why she's getting $20 million a year.

COSTELLO: That's why she's paid 20 -- and not many people can maintain an audience for as long as she has, right? So that, you know --

STELTER: (Inaudible) why she chose the word --

COSTELLO: Yeah. So she does deserve respect. Because she is a leader of that show, and she should be accorded that respect.

STELTER: Yes ...

COSTELLO: And that's what it was about, wasn't it?

STELTER: ... That's right. That's what it came down to, and that's why I think so many people sided with Ripa over ABC. We rarely see this play out in public, though. We rarely see this kind of dispute happen, first in the gossip columns, and then on TV. I thought what was so interesting about what she said this morning, was that she had to acknowledge a week's worth of rumors and stories written by people like me. She had to assume that all of the viewers were in on it, right? That she couldn't pretend like it hadn't happened. And that's what we've seen in the past with TV dramas. Sometimes the drama doesn't play out on air. The executives try to hide it. That doesn't work in this social media age, in this age of TMZ and People magazine. You have to -- I think -- have to address it publicly. And that's what she did this morning. So my sense from ABC is they think it passed -- moved past this, they think it's over. But we'll see what she decides to do when her contract is up. --

COSTELLO: You know I think it's -- in a sense (ph) that you're right, because they did hand her more power. And talent is often like, treated like just part of the furniture. You can like ..

STELTER: Right.

COSTELLO: ... replace them at will. So this time she made sure they didn't think of her quite that way.

STELTER: And I think she does come out looking stronger after this. TV is all about talent management. Maybe if somebody's life is all about talent management, it's not even what you do and how you do it. Especially with TV. --

COSTELLO: When you hear talent management, it makes us sound like petulant children. As talent, I kind of resent that. So --

STELTER: Well, I wasn't saying --

[10:51:46]

COSTELLO: So it's not talent management, it's just treating someone as a human being.

STELTER: Right, and making sure that they have buy-in and investments, and support. In this case, when you're expecting someone to go out and put on a smile, and pretend like everything's OK every day, but you're actually treating them badly behind the scenes, it doesn't work very well. And I think ABC tried to do what was right, they had best of intentions but they know they misfired. And that's why the executives apologized to her.

COSTELLO: All right, Brian Stelter, thanks so much.

STELTER: Thanks.

COSTELLO: Still to come in the Newsroom, millions in the Midwest and South bracing for scenes like this. Severe weather set to spawn multiple tornados.

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[10:57:13]

COSTELLO: All right, you see Bernie Sanders there, on the streets of Philadelphia. He is campaigning because, as you know, the state of Pennsylvania votes today. He's visiting (ph) a diner, people were taking selfies with him, and as you can see, he's attracting a crowd here, on the streets of Philadelphia. As a big primary day rolls through the Northeast, of course CNN will keep you posted all night long.

Checking some other top stories at 56 minutes past, dangerous weather heading to the Midwest in seven United States, and it could bring strong tornadoes and baseball-sized hail to some states. Millions of people in the path of the storm with the threat beginning this afternoon, and lasting into the night.

Outrage after a US aid worker, who was also the editor of Bangladesh's first LGBT magazine, was hacked to death in his apartment. The worker and friend, who was also killed, were openly gay and active in the fight for gay rights. An Al-Qaeda affiliate is claiming responsibility.

And this Tuesday the Olympic torch will start its journey from Athens to Rio de Janeiro where the 2016 Olympic games will be held. But this time a Syrian refugee who lost part of his leg in a 2012 bombing, will be taking the Olympic torch through the Alonius (ph) -- through the Eleonas refugee camp as part of the relay.

Donald Trump, sometimes loved, sometimes hated, and almost always imitated. CNN's Jeanne Moos looks at the presidential contender and his many, many pretenders.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEANNE MOOS (voice-over), CNN NATIONAL NEWS CORRESPONDENT (voice- over): Comedians are constantly impersonating Donald Trump.

UNIDENTIFIED MAN: With the bigger hands.

UNIDENTIFIED MAN: All nukes are huge.

MOOS (voice-over): But do you know who else imitates The Donald? The Donald. Acting presidential --

(CROWD CHEERING)

MOOS (voice-over): Trump loves doing imitations.

DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Rubio!

MOOS (voice-over): Whether it be Marco Rubio guzzling water -- Or Mitt Romney, choking --

TRUMP: Romney choked like a dog, he went ...

MOOS (voice-over): Sometimes his routines backfire, like when he imitated a disabled reporter.

TRUMP: Uh, I don't know what I said, uh, I don't remember.

MOOS (voice-over): Or when he does accents.

TRUMP: They say, "we want deal."

MOOS (voice-over): For instance, a call center operator in India.

TRUMP: Said, "where are you from?" "We are from India." Oh great, that's wonderful ...

MOOS (voice-over): Didn't go over so wonderfully with Indian commentators.

UNIDENTIFIED MAN: Nothing but a cheap chive (ph).

MOOS (voice-over): Trump has imitated Hillary, portraying her as robotic.

UNIDENTIFIED MAN: How are you. This is Crooked Hillary Clinton.

MOOS (voice-over): But if Donald Trump can do a lame Hillary Clinton, Hillary Clinton can do a lame Donald Trump.

HILLARY CLINTON (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: You know, this is a huge election -- Isn't he the one that's like, "uh, you're all losers."

MOOS (voice-over): Sometimes Trump imitates with his hands, rather than his voice. John Kasich eating, for instance.

TRUMP: He has a news conference, all the time when he's eating. I have never seen a human being eat in such a disgusting fashion.

MOOS (voice-over): One thing you rarely see Trump eat; his words.

TRUMP: Bites this big! He's pushing it in ...

MOOS (voice-over): Jeanne Moos, CNN.

TRUMP: It's disgusting.

MOOS (voice-over): New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: Thanks for joining me today, I'm Carol Costello. AT THIS HOUR with Berman and Bolduan starts now.

[11:00:24]