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Fresh Attacks From Mitt Romney Today; Donald Trump Firing Up His Supporters Today In The Battleground State Of Florida; Brock Turner, The 20-Year-Old Former Stanford University Student Convicted Of Raping A Woman Near An On-Campus Fraternity House; "The Voice" Star Christina Grimme Was Shot, Killed Last Night, Shortly After A Performance. Aired 1-2p ET

Aired June 11, 2016 - 13:00   ET

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


(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[13:00:10] ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN HOST: Hello. Thanks for joining me. I'm Suzanne Malveaux in for Fredricka Whitfield.

We begin with breaking news now, fresh attacks from Mitt Romney today. And this is against the Republicans, the GOP, tearing into them at a summit in Utah for not holding Trump accountable for his words and his actions.

Our CNN politics reporter, Teddy Scheifer is there with the details.

So you have been there and you have heard what he has said. This is new material. I mean, this is clearly an indication that this party is tearing apart.

THEODORE SCHEIFER, CNN POLITICS REPORTER: Well, Mitt Romney is here with about 300 of his closest friends and fundraisers and in a rare session today with CNN's Wolf Blitzer here in park city. He had sharp words not just for Trump, which is expected, but also several of the Republican candidates who Trump faced and beat and question kind of what they could have done differently to change the fortunes. You know, he had some critical things to say about Ted Cruz, who as you may recall was very supportive of Trump during the early part of the primary process. He had some critical words to say about John Kasich, who stayed in the race pretty late, well after not have a good path to the nomination.

But probably the highlight was, when talking about just lamenting the state of the Republican Party, he said pretty emotionally at one time appearing to be battling back tears, he said, seeing this is breaking my heart. And he got a pretty lengthy and sustained applause for many people here in the party who aren't Donald Trump fans either. So it was a pretty emotional moment for Mitt Romney, the most recent Republican nominee as he lashed pretty severely the current Republican nominee, Donald Trump.

MALVEAUX: And this seems like it was certainly a criticism of his party, that he is frustrated. But it also seemed like a rallying cry for the Republicans to soldier on, to move on, to do something here.

SCHEIFER: It was. And you know, it was interesting. The very first question for governor Romney, out after his speech, was actually from a Donald Trump supporter, who said, you know, these are the cards we have been dealt. You know, we have to support Trump. You know, the question kind of recognized the fact that many in the room may not be natural allies of the Republican nominee, but said, you know, we've got to get behind him. We don't have much of a choice here. That stands in contrast to that sustained round of applause that governor Romney got.

You know, there certainly is a divide here in park city. I don't want to oversell, you know, the antipathy. There are some people here who are making the rounds, who are, you know, top fund-raisers for Donald Trump, who are trying to convince skeptical donors to get onboard. But certainly when you have governor Romney who's the figurehead for the never Trump movement, you know, standing up there saying, he can't support him, you know, he's emotionally describing the state of the party, you know, it's a pretty jarring contrast between kind of what's happening in the Republican party today and kind of the Republican party of four years ago, where governor Romney was nominated and these are a lot of the people here who helped him raise a billion dollars and helped him do just that.

MALVEAUX: That's right. And Teddy, tell us, though, what specifically have you heard different from Romney today that we haven't heard before?

SCHEIFER: Yes. I mean, I think Romney today, he doesn't do many public appearances, but you know, he talked a bit about his future. He said he wants to play in the party. He wants to help save the Senate. You know, he --

MALVEAUX: Did he say how?

SCHEIFER: He said that he would like to be a player. He talked about -- he described his life as very balanced. You know, he said he spends about a quarter of his time on charity, a quarter of his time on politics. You know, obviously, he came from the business world where he was pretty successful. And a lot of those people here aren't even people involved in politics. They might just be folks who are involved in his -- in kind of in private equity or on his business side. But this week really just spoke to just how vast the Romney network is, you know? These are hundreds of people who might have helped governor Romney fundraise for the Olympics, you know, a decade ago, not far from here in park city, actually. And you know, Donald Trump is trying to raise a lot of money in five months. You know, Romney had about two decades after relationships to leverage. And this week just kind of pretty much kind of starkly highlighted the uphill battle for Donald Trump in rallying Republican fund-raisers and Republican donors to his side.

MALVEAUX: And Teddy, really quickly here, before we go, do you think it's been very difficult fight, an argument to make. We know that we've heard from people like Meg Whitman, the CEO of Hewlett-Packard who say, look, you know, she can't give her money over. Do you think he's going to walk away with something in his hands?

SCHEIFER: I do. I mean, I think there are certainly some people here who I have with who said, Paul Ryan made a pretty impassioned pitch. You know, he's an endorser of Donald Trump. He also has good relationships with a lot of Republican fund-raisers. I mean, he is also, obviously, Mitt Romney's running mate. So he has credibility with this crowd.

Reince Priebus spoke earlier today. You know, he is obviously also encouraging Republicans to give a couple bucks. I think the question here that a lot of donors here I've spoken with ask themselves is, they may not be enthusiastic about Donald Trump, but the question is, how bad is it? Is it going to be bearable? Can they support him even if he's not their first choice? Or do they go with Governor Romney and feel it's a bridge too far? That's the internal temperature taking that a lot of people I've spoken with are going through right now.

[13:05:38] MALVEAUX: All right. Teddy Scheifer, thank you so much. We really appreciate that.

Donald Trump firing up his supporters today in the battleground state of Florida. Clear his intention has shifted to the general election in the presumptive Democratic nominee, Hillary Clinton. Several time he said she was unqualified to become president. He also responded again to accusations of racism from his former GOP candidate, Mitt Romney.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: No more sitting there, saying, I think he is a racist. I am the least racist person that you've ever met. Believe me. The least racist person.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: I want to go to our CNN correspondent, Kristen Holmes.

And Kristen, Donald Trump, not using a script, we noticed, there, not using the teleprompter. Just speaking off the cuff. And so we have heard kind of more of the things we expect from Trump. That kind of language and that kind of energy, if you will, very defiant, very defensive about accusations that his language has been racist.

KRISTEN HOLMES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, yes, exactly. And as Donald Trump continues to defend himself against these allegations of racism, campaign sources tell me that there is a general worry that he is using this much-needed precious time that should be going towards uniting the Republican Party.

Now, former GOP nominee, as you mentioned, Mitt Romney, adding fuel to the fire this week, telling CNN's Wolf Blitzer that under a Trump presidency, the character of America could be changed due to what he called quote "trickle-down racism." Now in Florida, Donald Trump responded on a personal level to Romney. Listen to what he had to say. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: Watched this poor sad, Mitt Romney this morning. Misogynist. I don't think he knows what misogynist is. He suffers from - he is sitting like a real stiff. Don't forget, this guy let us down, folks. He choked and he let us down.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: Now, Trump also went on to say that he was facing more opposition from the GOP than he was from Democrats. Here in Pittsburgh today, this will be the third battleground state that he has visited in 24 hours. He was just in Florida. And Pennsylvania, he says, will be in play in the general election. And I have got to tell you, Suzanne. I talked to a GOP operative here who said that the volunteer numbers are better than he has ever seen. And that the Trump campaign will be here after the convention - Suzanne.

MALVEAUX: And Kristen, what are the people on the ground saying? What are they talking about? Are they talking about whether or not they think Trump is racist? Whether or not he has to address these accusations, even from his own party?

HOLMES: Well, most of the voters I have talked to, they say they have heard the allegations that he is racist, but they honestly, they listen to what he says. They take his narrative and they push it forward. I mean, I had someone tell me today that that's a narrative that the media is pushing. That that is not something that Trump believes. That he was saying these comments, you know, about the Mexican American judge not being able to do his job. That those are just things that, you know, he said, but that the media has pushed the narrative forward.

MALVEAUX: All right, Kristen, we appreciate that. We'll get to you live, of course, when he starts to speak there in Pennsylvania. We are going to get more reaction to Trump's comments from our panel. That is up next. Stay with us.

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[13:11:59] MALVEAUX: Mitt Romney tearing into the Republican Party today and Donald Trump, saying at his summit in Utah quote "had there been a President Bush or President Rubio or President Walker, I might have been happy to be a part of their administration.

I want to talk about this with our CNN senior political analyst, Ron Brownstein. Good to see you. And Princeton University historian professor Julian Zelizer.

So first of all, Ron, your reaction to the fact that we are hearing and seeing in the open, Mitt Romney here, going after, in a very real way, against some of the people here that speaker Ryan, who is endorsing and supporting Trump, but still says the comments were racist. Mitch McConnell who was also placed in that position, saying he has got to follow the script. He has got to set the bar higher here. This is all out for everyone to see and digest. What is happening to this party?

RON BROWNSTEIN, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: I think it really underscores the extent to which we are in unchartered waters. I think the past week, you can fairly say, is unprecedented in modern recent American political history. If you start out of last Sunday on "Meet the Press" with Mitch McConnell condemning Donald Trump's remarks about judge Curiel, but also indicating he does not support and would not draft legislation to implement the two signature proposals of the Trump presidential campaign, the temporary ban on Muslim immigration, the deportation of 1,200 undocumented immigrants. You move on to Paul Ryan's comments where he describes Trump's criticism of judge Curiel as a textbook definition of a racist comment. Along the way, several Republican senators describing him as un-American and reaching a kind of crescendo at the end of the week with Meg Whitman, the CEO of one of our largest technology companies, a leading Republican fund-raiser and the Republican gubernatorial candidate in California in 2010, the nation's largest state, explicitly comparing her own party's nominee to fascists like Hitler and Mussolini. Of course, the language from Mitt Romney that quoted today.

We have never seen, I think, the elite level of a party react in this way to a presumptive nominee. You can go back, you can watch on You Tube, Harry Truman before the Democratic invention in 1960 saying John F. Kennedy maybe should wait a little longer before running for president so he had a little more seasoning, but there is nothing I think what we have watched in the last seven days.

MALVEAUX: And Julian, I want to weight in to this, of course. But I'm going to play a little bit of sound here first, so some of the controversial remarks we have heard from Trump recently.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: Hillary Clinton has somebody -- did you ever hear of Pocahontas? It's Pocahontas, Elizabeth Warren.

Look at my African-American over here. Look at him. Are you the greatest? You know what I'm talking about?!

I have friends that are Muslims. They are great people. But they know we have a problem. They know we have a real problem. Because something's going on and we can't put up with it, folks.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: So Julian, what do you make of the language that he uses? To you, as a historian, what does that say to you? What does he reflect?

JULIAN ZELIZER, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Well, he is using the language that we have heard either from extremist elements in politics or third party candidates like George Wallace in 1968. But the difference is, this time it's the party nominee. This time, that kind of incendiary language has become mainstream. And part of the debate is, is Donald Trump a racist or not? And that's a very important debate. But the other is, is he using language that enflames social tensions.

And I think it's hard to say he is not. And that can be very dangerous. So I think the Republican Party finds itself in a pretty difficult situation, as he intensifies his use in this kind of rhetoric, as opposed to moving toward what some would call the general election mentality.

[13:15:37] MALVEAUX: Ron, you saw, as we did, many Republicans this week, in that position. Mitch McConnell, included, saying that Trump clearly doesn't know the issues. Those are his words, not mine. And, you know, when you have the Republican leadership saying things like this about their own nominee, presumptive nominee, how does that move forward? I mean, how do they move to the next level here in order to make this person a justifiable candidate, a legitimate candidate?

BROWNSTEIN: Well, I think they are -- yes, they are in -- as I said, we are none chartered waters and they're in a very difficult position. Because on the one hand, the reality of modern politics is that you are lashed to your presidential candidate, whether you like it or not. There is a much higher correlation between the way people vote for president and the way they vote in down-ballot offices, particularly the Senate, then there was a generation ago. There is less with ticket ballot. It's harder for parties to win Senate seats in states that usually vote the other way for president. And if Republicans are defending seven seats this year, in states that voted two times for President Obama. So they understand that if Trump sinks their hold on the Senate is immediately and profoundly in danger.

On the other hand, a lot of Republicans, I think, are worried that whatever happens in this election, even if Donald Trump could somehow squeezing out a winning majority from disaffected white voters, that he risks branding the party lastingly as a of racial backlash, at a time when the country is inexorably growing more diverse. A majority of the under 18 population will be non-white in this decade. A more diverse future is inexorable for America. And I think many Republicans are worried not only about the near-term, but the long- term implications of being identified with the kind of rhetoric and policies that Trump is putting forward in this election.

So I think it is a very difficult -- you see people like McConnell trying to find their way through saying, look, we don't agree with all of this, but he is part of the center right. At least we can have influence over him and steer him. If it's Hillary Clinton, we're out in the cold. That argument is going to work for a lot of Republican voters. But I think there are going to be others who have hesitation.

MALVEAUX: And Julian, talk about this deficit, the surrogate deficit that Trump is facing against Hillary Clinton. I mean, it seems as if certainly she has a very strong ground game, but she also has a lot of people who are defending her very strong supporters. And we don't see, kind of the people coming to Trump's aid, speaking on his behalf, as we see for Hillary Clinton. And really high-profile people that he needs. People who have some name recognition and some gravitas.

ZELIZER: Well, I think you will be waiting for a long time, if you're waiting to hear from them. And from what we have seen so far, those names, those endorsements, those surrogates are not really on the way. And those who have done it already, like Governor Christie, have paid a price for it in terms of the poll.

So I think the question is twofold. One, does he need that? Is he running a different kind of campaign? And is it a kind of campaign where lacking the surrogates actually plays into his narrative of being a new voice in the party?

And the second factor is the electorate so polarized in 2016 that there won't be as much movement as you might think, because you have Trump at the top of the ticket, that voters are still pretty locked in, to being a Republican or Democrat, and they're not going to be willing, certainly, to flip to the Democratic side. And they might even be willing to come out and vote for the ticket, even if they don't like what's on top. And so those are the two bets that Trump is hoping for.

MALVEAUX: Ron, we saw a little bit of lightness, a little humor here. The president taking some digs. Jimmy Fallon this week doing the slow jam news. Watch it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Now, I know some of the presidential candidates have been critical of my foreign policy. I don't want to name any names.

JIMMY FALLON, COMEDIAN: He's talking about Donald Trump.

OBAMA: But I believe it is of the utmost importance to work alongside other world leaders, that's why I signed the Iran nuclear deal. That's why we reopen deals with Cuba, and I negotiated the new trade deal called the transpacific partnership or TPP.

FALLON: Now, old on there, President Dispenser. Are you saying it now TPP?

OBAMA: Yes, you know me.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: All right, I don't care if you're Democrat or Republicans. That was kind of funny.

So, Ron, you know, he has got some good approval numbers. How important is he? I mean, he is itching to get out of the campaign trail. They will be together, Clinton and Obama on Wednesday in Wisconsin. Can he actually make up for the deficit in terms of some people who don't care for her as much?

[13:20:12] BROWNSTEIN: I don't know if he can change her enthusiasm issues, but I do think he is a critical factor in this election. In this kind of more polarized, more parliamentary style of politics, era of politics, who are living in both Julian and I have been talking about, the opinions of the outgoing president does not turn out to have a big impact in how people vote in the election to secede him. In 1988, 88 percent of the people who disapproved of President Reagan voted Democratic. In 2000, 88 percent of the people who disapproved of President Clinton on his way out of the door voted Republican. And in 2008, two-thirds of people who disapproved of W. Bush voted for President Obama.

The most important thing that President Obama can do for Hillary Clinton is already doing which is that he is raising his approval rating. It is over 50 percent now consistently. It holds very different from 2008 when Bush was in the 30s. And if he can sustain that level of support and help her somewhat on young youth turnout and African-American turnout, he could be a big asset.

And one other point, I was a to the White House correspondents' dinner a few years ago when the president delayed Donald Trump from the podium. You will not have to twist his arm I think to get him out on the campaign trail. And this is someone that he very much wants to personally make the case against.

MALVEAUX: Yes. I was there, too. I saw that moment. And some people believe that was the moment that inspired Trump actually to run. So we will see how this goes. It is going to be very interesting over the next couple of weeks.

Ron Brownstein and Julian Zelizer, thank you so much for your time.

And new revelations in this Stanford rape case, a closer look at the town where Brock Turner grew up.

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[13:25:20] MALVEAUX: There has been a massive public outcry following the six-month jail sentence handed down to Brock Turner, the 20-year- old former Stanford University student convicted of raping a woman near an on-campus fraternity house. Both of his parents wrote letters to the judge requesting leniency for their son.

CNN's Brynn Gingras joins us live from Turner's hometown of Oakland, Ohio.

And Brynn, tell us what the response has been to these letters.

BRYNN GINGRAS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Suzanne, it certainly made public outrage, public outcry as you mentioned across the country. Here in Oakwood, it's somewhat of a different reaction and I will get to that in just a minute.

But first, I really want to touch upon the latest letter that we are reading about. And that is from Brock's mother. Let's remember, these letters came out during the sentencing phase of the trial. So family members, the father, as we have heard from, and now the mother, was pleading for leniency for her son. A four-page letter that she wrote. And I want to read to you an excerpt from that letter, from Carlene Turner.

She said, there have been many references to Brock being from a wealthy, privileged background and he thinks he is entitled. Your honor, this could not be further from the truth. We do not come from money, rather the opposite. Dan and I are a working middle class couple with Midwestern values. Trust me when I say Silicon Valley, California, is vastly different from the south suburbs of Dayton, Ohio."

And you know, we have had a chance to talk to a lot of people here in Oakwood, which is just south of Dayton, and talk to city employee, city officials, residents, even former neighbors of the Turners, and there has been somewhat different reactions. But one woman who was a neighbor of the Turners, she basically said, you know what, I get down to the core issue here, and that is that Brock Turner committed a crime. She said it doesn't matter if he was raised in Oakwood or if he was raised in another city. The fact is, he still committed a crime. So this idea of his upbringing has no bearing on her opinion.

But I have to say, Suzanne, most of the opinions we're getting from this neighborhood is that this didn't happen in Oakwood, Ohio. It happened in California, and so therefore, they don't feel like they need to be associated with the story, at all. And quite honestly, we are getting a lot of no comments. Back to you.

MALVEAUX: All right. Brynn Gingras, thank you so much. We appreciate that.

Still ahead, she may have unofficial clinch the nomination. But Clinton still has some work to do to win over Sanders followers. Up next, her strategy and whether or not that's going to work.

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[13:30:53] MALVEAUX: Hello. Thanks for joining me. I'm Suzanne Malveaux in for Fredricka Whitfield.

Riding a wave of endorsements and momentum, Hillary Clinton now setting her sights on courting Bernie Sanders supporters. This week, President Obama, vice president Biden, and Senator Elizabeth Warren all throwing their support behind Clinton. Even Bernie Sanders who continues to campaign for the Democratic nomination vowing to work with Clinton to defeat Trump in November.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. BERNIE SANDERS (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I spoke briefly to Secretary Clinton on Tuesday night and I congratulated her on her very strong campaign. I look forward to meeting with her in the near future to see how we can work together to defeat Donald Trump and to create a government which represents all of us and not the one percent.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: While Sanders is showing signs of getting behind Clinton, winning over his legion of loyal supporters, that, of course, a bigger challenge.

Joining us now is Basil Smikle, the executive director of the New York Democratic Party, thank you. Also with me, Ben Wikler, the Washington director of Moveon.org and a Bernie Sanders supporter.

So I want to start off here. Thank you both for being with us. The most recent poll, Bernie Sanders supporters, this is what it shows, 75 percent say that they will vote for Clinton. Eleven percent said that they are going to vote for Trump. The rest are undecided or they say they're just going to stay home. They are not going to vote at all. So how does Clinton, what does she need to do to get the 25 percent, that 25 percent of Sanders supporters over to her? Basil?

BASIL SMIKLE, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, NEW YORK DEMOCRATIC PARTY: Well, I think one thing is time. Because if you remember back in 2008, a lot of Hillary supporters said the same thing about their support for Barack Obama, but it took Hillary's -- a very strong speech from her and her saying, I'm going to -- if you work really hard for me. I need you to put that same effort and energy into Barack Obama's campaign.

I think you need to see something very similar coming from Bernie Sanders. I expect it to come at some point. But the fact that you have had Barack Obama, Senator Warren, and Joe Biden already out there, I think there is some, there's some movement in that direction. So I think that process has already started.

MALVEAUX: It has started. And I remember that tension. I covered that moment when you had Hillary Clinton literally turning over, really trying to turn over her supporters for Barack Obama.

So, Ben, I want to talk to you here about the Bernie Sanders supporter. I want you to listen to what Sanders said about how difficult this is going to be for his supporters, to go to Hillary Clinton. This is to Jake Tapper.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SANDERS: The idea that I can snap my fingers and have millions of supporters kind of march in line, that is not what our effort is about. I think if I am not the nominee, and we're going to fight to become the nominee, it is Secretary Clinton's job to explain it to those people. Why she should be -- why she should get their support.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: Ben, how do you think he's using this? I mean, do you think this is something where he's saying, look, you know, you can't snap your fingers, make the supporters go over for Clinton or is that the dominant message here? Or is this kind of a back message, if you would, to Clinton herself and her team, that, look, you know what? You guys still have some work to do in terms of getting onboard with my progressive message, before I fully give my support.

BEN WIKLER, BERNIE SANDERS SUPPORTER: I think senator Sanders is just being real here. He's already committed to doing everything he can to keep Donald Trump away from the nuclear codes. But the fact is that as he know better than anyone, his campaign hasn't ultimately been about him. There have really been two primaries going on, one to choose a nominee, and the other to identify what is the heart of the Democratic Party. What are the visions, what are the big ideas that propel this party to victory? And in that primary, the contest is totally clear. A bold progressive agenda is the path to victory.

And so I think what we need to see, not only from the Democratic Party platform, that in the convention acceptance speeches throughout the convention on the stump, up and down the ticket this fall, is the kind of bold change agenda, everything from expanding Social Security to a $15 minimum wage, that energizes and electrifies people, just as it electrified the 10 plus million people who voted for Bernie Sanders in the primary. That's what he is speaking to, and I think that's what we're going to see.

[13:35:15] MALVEAUX: And how helpful do you think the endorsement of senator Elizabeth Warren to Hillary Clinton this week will actually help bring over those supporters?

WIKLER: Well, Senator Warren is an electrifying presence herself. She has a tremendous voice. And as she has shown, she can get under Donald Trump's very thin skin better than just about anybody. So I think it's great to have her voice in the general election, in this fight against Donald Trump. And I think we will see, you know, a lot of other voices jumping into the fray as well.

But ultimately, on the Democratic side, what we need to see is that the whole party has heard the message of the Sanders campaign and the Sanders movement from the nominee on down. And that's what's going to bring people into the fold, to show that the political revolution continues, and it's going to continue into the next administration.

MALVEAUX: Basil, let's talk about next week. Because what we're going to see is President Obama campaigning with Hillary Clinton in Wisconsin. A real opportunity for the two of them to point out the agenda moving forward, lay out a general election message. How significant, first of all, is Wisconsin? Why are they there? And what do you think is going to be the primary focus of the message in the first time that they are seen together?

SMIKLE: Well, it's certainly a state that Democrats think they can win. I mean, Scott Walker, you know, anything to kind of poke at Scott Walker, obviously substantial organized labor presence there. Hillary Clinton has a lot of labor support. And I think just the energy that Scott Walker has created against him, in the last several years, I think, makes it an important battle ground state for the Democrats, number one.

Number two, I think an important -- and just to go back to ben's point, as well. This -- you know, the Democratic campaign, on both sides, has been, for both candidates, has been incredibly substantive. It has not been a campaign devoid of real policy issues. And I think what you'll hear from Barack Obama and you'll hear from Hillary Clinton in Wisconsin, and certainly on the campaign trail, going forward, is that we have -- that Democrats have some real solutions and not rhetoric and not certainly bullying tactics, to get Americans back to a time of prosperity, and to improve the middle class and expand the middle class. So I do think you'll hear those messages in Wisconsin. I think

they'll resonate going forward. And just a last quick point. I just want to articulate, Bernie Sanders' campaign was not quixotic, by any measure. It was incredibly substantive. And I do think that there's more similarity than there is disparity between both Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama -- and Bernie Sanders.

MALVEAUX: And still some healing to do, talking to Sanders and Hillary Clinton supporters this week. We do know that they still have some work that needs to be done. But we'll see how that works in the weeks to come.

Basil Smikle, thank you so much. Ben Wikler, we appreciate your time.

Tomorrow, you don't want to miss Senator Bernie Sanders on CNN sitting down with our own Jake Tapper. That's at 9:00 a.m. eastern on "STATE OF THE UNION". We will be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[13:41:54] MALVEAUX: The music world reacting now to the sudden death of pop star Christina Grimme. The 22-year-old, she was shot, killed last night, shortly after a performance. Police say the gunman opened fire on the singer while she was meeting with her fans after the show. Grimme rose to fame on the show, "the Voice," impressing the judge with this performance.

(VIDEO CLIP PLAYING)

MALVEAUX: So full of life.

Joining me now on the phone, Javier Colon. He was a contestant and winner of "the Voice."

So, Javier, I mean, just your feelings today, learning this news earlier.

JAVIER COLON, WINNER OF THE VOICE (on the phone): It's just. It's horrible. I'm so sad and my heart is broken for her family. She was just such a gifted, gifted artist. And she just inspired so many with her story and just with her gift. And I'm just -- I'm still in shock at how this all kind of went down.

MALVEAUX: And tell us about what kind of singer she was. When you watched that performance, you know, what it's like to be on that stage, to be in that position and see what she was capable, how talented she was.

COLON: She was a pro. I mean, as far as I'm concerned. I mean, she had a lot of, you know, experience in doing the You Tube thing that she had done. She had millions of followers. And she was -- I mean, she got up there and sang like a pro. She really -- she's one of my favorite, you know, contestants out of all the seasons, because she just was so -- her technique was so good. If you watch any of her videos, you could put her up there, you know, anybody. She was really that good. MALVEAUX: And Christina Aguilera, one of the show's judges, of

course, tweeted this saying, so sad, passing of Christina Grimme. Beautiful member of "the Voice" family and true fighter. My heart goes out to her family and friends and fans.

A lot of people really remember -- she made an impression, and really remember her as being someone who was pretty special.

COLON: She absolutely was. I wish -- you know, I had the chance to know her. I have got friends that knew her quite well, but, I, unfortunately, did not get the opportunity to meet her, just from afar, like most of us. But it's just such a sad thing and such a scary thing for something like this to happen, you know. Musicians, we put ourselves out there. We want to be close to our fans. We want to engage with our fans. And, something like this just kind of, you know, throws everything up in the air. You just don't know how to, you know, how to move on from this and how to -- you kind of, you know, react.

MALVEAUX: Sure. And Javier, I want to talk about that. Because, obviously, you know, being a performer yourself, this was a venue, this was a situation where it was, you know, not a large, large audience, but certainly, you know, there was some security, but not armed security guards. She was there, signing autographs after the performance. People were -- did not go through magnetometers. Does it make you think maybe there needs to be more security in maybe a situation like this, or is it just kind of part of the business and what you do. You put yourself out there.

[13:45:32] COLON: I mean, it is a part of the business, but that doesn't mean that it shouldn't be secure. I mean, as artists, we should feel secure. And, you know, being able to go out into the audience and meet with our fans afterwards. And you know, when you're at a venue, you should feel -- you should expect that you're in a safe place. I mean, it's -- it's just so -- it's so difficult. I mean, there's some venues do it really well, and the bigger you get as an artist, you know, when you're Christina's status or Adam, or any of the coaches at that point you play in arenas, you are playing, you know, amphitheaters and, you know, coliseums and stuff, and the security there is very good. But when you're at the level that, you know, you're playing theaters and smaller clubs and venues like that, they don't -- it's not that they don't take security seriously, it's that they might either don't have the budget for, you know, armed security or just the proper security in general, or they just haven't budgeted enough for it. So it kind of gets left to the wayside.

MALVEAUX: Yes, Javier, just finally, any thoughts for her family?

COLON: I just - I can't even imagine what they're going through. My heart is broken, you know, with them and I wish that they can heal and get through this really difficult time and my thoughts and prayers of myself and my family will be with them.

MALVEAUX: All right. Javier Colon, thank you so much. We appreciate those sentiments. Still ahead, new details in the Stanford rape case and the massive

public outcry since a judge sentenced Brock Turner to just six months in jail. Why he may only serve three months. That up next.

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[13:50:59] MALVEAUX: It was a sentence that drew the criticism of millions, just six months in jail for sexual assault. That's what Judge Aaron Persky handed down to a former Stanford University student Brock Turner after he was convicted of sexually assaulting a woman behind a dumpster. And he could be out in as little as three months. Amid public outcry, some witnesses wrote character letter they (INAUDIBLE) apologized. That includes Leslie Rasmussen who plays in a rock band with her sister were since her letter became public, appearance, a tour scheduled for the summer have been canceled.

I want to bring in our legal team, Avery Friedman, a civil right attorney and law professor in Cleveland and Richard Herman, a New York defense attorney and law professor joining us from Las Vegas. Good to see you guys both.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Good to see you.

MALVEAUX: Yes. I want to start off with this case. Very difficult. Avery, let's start off with you. People very angry, very upset. The judge saying that look, he took some factors like Turner's history and age into account. There are many people who don't feel like the punishment fits the crime. How do you see it?

AVERY FRIEDMAN, CIVIL RIGHTS ATTORNEY: Well, I think that's a legitimate question. Honestly as experienced lawyers we know it's very difficult to second guess the judge. But what's missing here Suzanne is proportionality. What we knew from the trial was this was 20 minutes of sustained criminality. We had behavior that resulted in three felony convictions. And it seems to me that if we are going to look at equal justice and proportionality, let's say it's an impoverished kid, minority kid who is charged with the same thing. Believe me, this would not be three months or six months. And I think what is missing here is the proportionality, frankly, I think it's -- I agree with the millions. I think it's a terrible decision. And I think there is going to be a lot of action which follows this.

MALVEAUX: And Richard, the sentence already lenient, how does it somehow get dropped to simply three months? It used to be six months, and then there was call for a two-year mandatory sentence and now we have three months?

RICHARD HERMAN, Yes, what's happened here, Suzanne, is just the California prison population is so overcrowded that the prison just can't hold them. You remember Paris Hilton saying out of prison (INAUDIBLE) about 20 minutes. So I think it took. So, you know, it will probably less than three months. So we have to deal with that.

But it's hard not to have a visceral reaction to this particular sentence. Understand this. This was not a rape conviction. They couldn't even get pass the preliminary hearing stage on a rape charge. So it was sexual assault. Three counts felony. The judge weighed several factors and when the presentence report came in, Suzanne, the recommendation by the presentence officer who was female by the way deviated from the two-year mandatory minimum to one year. The judge then took those factors into consideration, his age, the fact that he has a clean criminal history, that he was remorseful. There was no chance of him harming society because this was what the probation officer found. The judge reduced it to six months in prison, mandatory federal sex offender registry, three year probation with no alcohol. You know, it doesn't seem onerous but that sex offender registry, that's is pretty rough. And he is going to deal with that for the rest of his life.

MALVEAUX: Well, Avery, we have learned more about his history, I mean, since the initial story broke in terms of court documents about previous use of potentially of drugs or alcohol. And you brought this up here. And it's something that a lot of people are expressing on social media that perhaps if Brock Turner was not a white male, that he would have been treated very differently, that he would have gotten a much harsher sentence, that history bears that out, is that a fair criticism?

FRIEDMAN: I think it's exactly a fair criticism. But you couple that with the fact that Mr. Turner represented to the judge that he was inexperienced and the use of drugs or alcohol. And I think what the history demonstrated is that it was quite different than that. So again, there is no way, I think, a fair judge making this decision considering the factors that have been mentioned fails to consider the idea of proportionality. That's what's wrong here. I mean, to me, at least two years, three years. But six months, actually three months, he's scheduled, Suzanne to be released on the second of September. It just seems outrageous.

MALVEAUX: There are a lot of people who agree with you and who are certainly asking for that judge to be recalled. We'll see how that effort goes. Richard Herman, Avery Friedman, thank you so much. Good to see you both.

Coming up, Mitt Romney ripping into the Republican Party, his own party, saying the current situation, well, it's just breaking his heart. That is ahead when NEWSROOM continues.

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[13:59:39] ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.

MALVEAUX: Hello, thank you for joining me. I'm Suzanne Malveaux in for Fredericka Whitfield.

We are following breaking news this out of Utah. Fresh attacks now on the GOP coming from Mitt Romney today. Romney carrying the main Republican in a summit in Utah for not holding Trump accountable for his words and his action.

Our CNN politics reporter Teddy Scheifer is there with the details.

So Teddy, specifically, what is Mitt Romney said today. What is he saying?