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CNN NEWSROOM

Efimova/King Rivalry Ends After King Fails to Qualify; More Speak Out Against Doping; Trump Criticized over Second Amendment Comments; Germany Ups Security Following Attacks; Philippine's Duterte Under Fire For Insulting U.S. Ambassador; E-mails Show Close Relationship between Clinton Foundation, State Department; Justice Department Report Slams Baltimore PD; Was Brazil's Football Saved From Elimination in Rio. Aired 2-3a ET

Aired August 11, 2016 - 02:00   ET

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


(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[02:00:33] ISHA SESAY, CNN ANCHOR: This is CNN NEWSROOM, live from Los Angeles.

JOHN VAUSE, CNN ANCHOR: Ahead this hour --

(HEADLINES)

SESAY: Hello, and welcome to viewers around the world. I'm Isha Sesay.

VAUSE: And I'm John Vause. Our third hour of NEWSROOM L.A. --

SESAY: Starts right now.

VAUSE: Well, for a time, it was one of the most heated rivalries of the Rio Olympics, but now petered out. Russia Yulia Efimova and American Lily King were set to meet Thursday in a rematch billed as the Cold War in the water.

SESAY: Something like that.

VAUSE: Thank you.

SESAY: But King failed to qualify for the 200 meter breast stroke final Wednesday night and Efimova will swim for gold. King famously wagged her finger at Efimova earlier this week after beating her in the 100 meter race.

Our CNN "World Sport's" Christine McFarland joins us now live from Rio.

Christina, it will be disappointing to many that the grudge match will have to be rescheduled for another time.

CHRISTINA MCFARLAND, CNN WORLD SPORT CORRESPONDENT: Yes, that's right, Sesay. I think this duel in the pool is over. But I'll tell you, this story line is not. It's been a week now since the IOC decided to allow 271 Russian athletes to compete here in Rio. But what they didn't count on and what none of us expected was for the athletes themselves to speak out over the matter.

Lily King has become somewhat of a spokesperson in the past 48 hours for clean sports after she spoke out against doping. And she also lambasted her rival in the pool, Yulia --

VAUSE: Efimova.

MCFARLAND: Thank you so much. I've said it so many times in the past hour.

VAUSE: I'm here for you.

SESAY: It happens all the time, Christina. It's all good.

MCFARLAND: Thank you.

(CROSSTALK)

(LAUGHTER)

MCFARLAND: Efimova. Now, remember, guys -- I'll get back to this story. Remember, she's been convicted twice for doping over the past two years. So Lily has been very outspoken about it. And what she's done is inspired other athletes, as well, to speak out about their opinions about this. This is what we've seen in the past 48 hours. Michael Phelps spoke out about it, as well, saying he felt he had never raced in a clean race in his life.

But I think what's important to remember here, guys, is the Russian perspective in all of this. Just a couple of hours ago, I was down at the athlete's village, and I spoke to a couple of Russian journalists about how this is being received. One in particular said to me she was shocked that the athletes themselves were turning on each other over this issue. She also said she had spoken to Yulia and she told her she had been having trouble sleeping over the past week because of this doping drama.

It's also I think important to remember that Yulia, in fact, lives in the United States and she's coached by an American, a point that's been lost in all of this. And it will be interesting to see if the Russian athletes themselves, you know, whether they have something to say about the way that they're being treated here and the boos that we're hearing and have heard over the past couple of days.

VAUSE: Yeah. Look, it is interesting. Obviously, the athletes have a lot in it and those who are clean obviously don't have a lot of love for those who have been cheating. So you can understand where this is coming from.

Let's look at some of the positives from the Olympics. And Japan's has the first gymnast.

MCFARLAND: Yes, he is. And I saw him do it, John, which was an emphatic moment in the gymnastics arena tonight. He becomes the third in 44 years to win back to back all-around titles. And he was spectacular. But he almost didn't do it. He came very close to a silver because he was up against his Ukrainian rival and it game down to the high bar. He absolutely nailed it with a score of 15.8, which is extremely high in gymnastics. Afterwards, he said he also like the Michael Phelps of the gymnastics arena with three gold medals, though. He has a bit to go to catch Phelps at 21.

[02:05:13] SESAY: Good to have aspirations.

VAUSE: Good to have gold.

SESAY: Indeed.

Christine, before we let you go, can we talk about that whole green situation and talk about the water now. So obviously, we talked about this last night, the fact that the diving pool had turn green in Rio. Now we hear that something else has turned green.

MCFARLAND: Yes, that's right. The synchronized pool had turned green. Well, the water polo pool, adjust end to it, turned green, as well. It seemed to spread across the venue. And it is not a light green, it is a strong green. And everyone in there was watching the finals of the diving today. No one seemed to really mind.

But I think John will be pleased with this because he mentioned, I think yesterday, that you thought it was algae that was causing the problem in the pool.

SESAY: Yes, he did say that.

MCFARLAND: Well, that was confirmed today.

VAUSE: Ah-ha.

MCFARLAND: Yes, it was confirmed by the organizers. They said it was due to a proliferation of algae and a decrease of the alkalinity levels.

So, there you go, John. You muffle very smug with that.

VAUSE: Me, smug? Never.

(CROSSTALK)

SESAY: Something we're not used to around here, John being smug. Anyway --

VAUSE: Apparently, it's stinging the eyes of some of the competitors. They said that was chlorine.

SESAY: Yes, but they don't come out green.

VAUSE: Well, we hope.

SESAY: Not yet, anyway.

(CROSSTALK)

SESAY: Christina, thank you. You are our champion for being with us at this un-godly hour. So thank you.

VAUSE: See you tomorrow.

SESAY: Let's take a look at the medal count. The U.S. leads with 11 gold. China has 10. Japan has six.

VAUSE: Australia and Hungary have five apiece. Russia moves into sixth place with four gold. The U.S. leads overall in medals with 32.

SESAY: Thursday will be a busy day in the pool for American Michael Phelps. He will be competing for his 22nd gold medal in the 100 meter individual medley.

VAUSE: Yeah, but what's he done lately?

(LAUGHTER)

24 competitors will take part in the all-around gold for gymnastics. And the first round of Olympic golf begins featuring Americans Bubba Watson and Ricky Fowler.

SESAY: Something for some people to look forward to.

The spat between the Russian and American swimmers is prompting more people to speak out against doping.

VAUSE: CNN's Don Riddell has more now from Rio.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DON RIDDELL, CNN WORLD SPORT ANCHOR (voice-over): It takes sacrifice and determination to make an Olympic champion. But it takes courage and leadership to become a role model. At the age of just 19, American swimmer Lily King has achieved both here in Rio, taking stand against her Russian rival in the pool and all drug cheats, saying, "It just proves that you can compete clean and still come out on top."

MARK KING, FATHER OF LILY KING: Hopefully, this will create some momentum with the governing bodies, with FENA (ph), with the governing body of swimming, and hoping this can give momentum to push hard to do it right.

UNIDENTIFIED OLYMPIC ATHLETE: I think it was very brave of Lily. You know, just after she became a champion to speak out and be brave to show her opinion. And she -- I think she said what we all think.

RIDDELL: It all started with King's Russian rival, Yulia Efimova, declared herself number one after winning in the semis. Among other things, she was caught doping in 2013 and was banned for six months. But King beat her to the gold medal, saying, "You wave your finger number one and you've been caught drug cheating? I'm not a fan."

Neither, it seems, is the Olympics' most decorated athlete, Michael Phelps, who has voiced his support.

After the revelation of a state-sponsored doping program, Russian athletes have been cast as the chief villains of the game, rekindling sentiments of the Cold War.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translation): No, it's not war. It's an attempt to mix politics and sports. But I wouldn't want to do that because the international sporting tent was an idea of a nice little island where everybody was friends, talked, made peace. We in Russia have a strong state, strong sportsmen, and it seems that disturbs someone.

RIDDELL: But it's not just the Russians and it's not just the Americans taking a stand. Australian gold medalist, Mac Horton, clashed with his Chinese rival, Sun Yang, found to be taking prescribed heart medication, which was on the banned list and no longer is.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We won't be apologizing and this Olympic coming. Mac has every right to express that opinion. He has strong opinions on the need for clean sport.

[02:10:00] RIDDELL (on camera): Athletes used to assume that their governing bodies would protect them from cheats, but that confidence has been eroded because of four tests, inconsistent punishments and politics.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Athletes have to come together and say this is what we demand, this is where we're going to go with it and, you guys, the IOC and WADA need to follow us for a change.

UNIDENTIFIED OLYMPIC ATHLETE: People are starting to go speak up about it. Some of the people I have raced again have failed tests and that stinks to be racing people that have failed to test before.

RIDDELL (voice-over): There are many questions that need to be answered after these Olympics. Rules and politics needs to be addressed. The athletes say they've been too quiet for too long. But they're learning fast and they're not prepared to let it lie.

Don Riddell, CNN, Rio.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SESAY: We're turning now to U.S. politics. Trump Tower was the center of attention Wednesday when a man scaled the New York building. The 20-year-old used suction cups to move up the building's glass surface. Emergency crews tried for almost three hours to get him to come down.

VAUSE: The climber reached the 21st floor before being yanked inside by police.

SESAY: They did yank him.

VAUSE: And he's in. He posted a YouTube video asking for a meeting with Donald Trump after

his arrest. He was taken to hospital for a psychological evaluation and could still face a number of state charges.

Donald Trump is playing defense after his remarks to gun rights supporters.

SESAY: The Republican presidential nominee is facing sharp criticism, not only from his Democratic rival but also from inside his own party.

Sara Murray has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SARA MURRAY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Donald Trump is still trying to set the record straight.

DONALD TRUMP, (R), PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE: We have to protect our Second Amendment, which is under siege.

MURRAY: Blaming the media for the uproar over this comment.

TRUMP: By the way, and if she gets to pick --

(BOOING)

TRUMP: If she gets to pick her judges, nothing you can do, folks.

(BOOING)

TRUMP: Although the Second Amendment people, maybe there is. I don't know.

MURRAY: While some, including the Clinton campaign, saw it as a call to violence, Trump insists it was about encouraging Second Amendment voters to rally behind him.

TRUMP: There can be no other interpretation. Even reporters have told me. I mean, give me a break.

MURRAY: The GOP nominee airing his frustration on Twitter, "Media desperate to distract from Clinton's anti-2A stance. I said pro-2A citizens must organize and get out vote to save our Constitution."

But even as Trump's backers rush to his defense --

RUDY GIULIANI, (R), FORMER NEW YORK CITY MAYOR: What he meant by that was you have the power to vote against her. I saw it. I heard it. I know how it meant. I heard how the crowd reacted to it.

MURRAY: Other Republicans billed it as another misstep for a candidate with an affinity for making off color comments.

REP. PAUL RYAN, (R-WI), SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE: It sounds like a joke gone bad. I hope he clears it up very quickly. You should never joke about something like that. MURRAY: Senator Susan Collins, who isn't supporting the GOP nominee, says she believes Trump was talking about political clout but isn't surprised others came away with a darker impression.

SEN. SUSAN COLLINS, (R), MAINE: Donald Trump has made so many disparaging and reckless comments that it's not surprising that this one has been misinterpreted.

MURRAY: For her part, Hillary Clinton sought to use the outrage to her advantage. Her campaign releasing a statement saying, "This is simple. What Trump is saying is dangerous. A person seeking to be the president of the United States should not suggest violence in any way." And following that up with a fundraising e-mail, saying "Donald Trump does not deserve to win," along with Trump's quote.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VAUSE: Dan Rather is a veteran American reporter who has covered more presidential campaigns than most in more than six decades of journalism. He's currently the host of Access TV's "The Big Interview." He's been outspoken online critic about the Trump campaign. I spoke with him a little earlier.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

VAUSE: Do you think Donald Trump realizes his words, regardless of attention, could motivate someone to carry out some kind of act of violence?

DAN RATHER, HOST, THE BIG INTERVIEW & VETERAN JOURNALIST: I do. And I think to believe otherwise is to kid one's self. That Donald Trump has demonstrated time and time again that he's so eager to dominate every news cycle that he says things that just pop into his mind. And we've gone months and months now with members of his campaign staff saying, well, you know, he's going to stop this. He's going to go with the script. He's going to be more a standard candidate. But I think what's important here and -- you know, I try to be an objective and fair journalist. But it's important that people understand, this is not only not normal for an American presidential campaign. This is unprecedented. Nowhere in the modern campaigning for the presidency or, for that matter, anywhere in our history have we had a campaign and a particular candidate say anything close to what Donald Trump suggested in his statement about 48 hours ago. And to believe that, well, he didn't know what he was saying or that he was joking, I think most people, whether they're Trump supporters or Clinton supporters or don't know what they are at the moment would recognize it for what it was. And that was very dangerous talk.

[02:15:20] So the reason I wrote on Facebook, this crosses a line, we've never had a candidate lower himself to this standard before. And it's been very hurtful to Donald Trump. I have said for a long while that, you know, Donald Trump has his chance to win this election. If he doesn't win -- I still think he has a chance. His chances have been damaged very badly. But if he doesn't win, the turn will be seen from a historical standpoint when he made the statement about the Khan family, who lost their son in combat, when he made that statement, and followed up with the statement that could be read as an incitement to violence. If Donald Trump loses, we'll look back on this period as the time when the tide really began to turn.

VAUSE: On Facebook, you wrote that journalists can no longer cover Donald Trump like a normal candidate. What did you mean by that? How should he be covered?

RATHER: Well, first of all, he should be covered with deep digging investigative reporting because he has said things that are demonstratively untrue, which is to say -- journalists don't like to use this word -- things that are lies. So deep digging investigating reporting into what Donald Trump has said and what the record shows is number one. Number two is tough questioning. The kind of questioning that asks a tough question, ask follows up with a tough question, and keeps following up in the questioning. Let's face it, there's been a lot of sweetheart coverage of Donald Trump. There has been some of Hillary Clinton, as well. But that's not what the great tradition of American journalism is about. The role of journalists, any journalist worthy of their name, is to see yourself as one who challenges the candidate. There have been some exceptions but, by and large, Donald Trump has not been directly challenged with tough questions and follow-up questions. And for that matter, I don't think Hillary Clinton has been often enough, either.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VAUSE: That was Dan Rather talking to me a short time ago about his concerns over the Trump campaign.

SESAY: We're going to take a quick break now. Coming up, you'll hear how the Philippine president insulted the U.S. ambassador to his country, sparking a diplomatic row

VAUSE: Also ahead, German authorities are upping security after a spate of terrorist attacks.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(WEATHER REPORT)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[02:21:25] SESAY: Hello, everyone. Canadian authorities say they prevented a potential terrorist threat.

VAUSE: CBC, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, reports a suspect was killed Wednesday during a confrontation with police. That man was an ISIS supporter who had been arrested last year.

SESAY: Meanwhile, police are going after ISIS in western Germany.

VAUSE: Authorities carried out raids Wednesday targeting three people suspected of ties to the terror group.

Here is senior international correspondent, Fred Pleitgen.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

FRED PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: The raids began in the early morning hours of Wednesday and this happened mostly in the Western part of Germany and central Germany, as well. Now, five cities saw raids this morning. Four of those cities were in the West German state of North Rhine, Westphalia. They included the large towns of Dusseldorf and others. These raids apparently targeted three individuals, according to German authorities, and they say that it was both the home addresses as well as the business addresses that were raided. And German authorities are saying that these three men are suspected of having recruited both members and supporters for ISIS here in this country and that one of these men also is suspected of having provided both logistical and financial support to that organization. However, the German authorities would not elaborate on what exactly that support looked like.

We have to keep in mind that all of this comes amid a security situation that has many people concerned here in this country after a wave of incidents that's been taking place over the past couple of weeks. And earlier on Wednesday, the German minister of the interior came out and said that the raids that happened had on Wednesday were, indeed, part of a German strategy to be more proactive in the face of extremism. Thomas Maiziere (ph) said, and I quote, "There is an understanding between the federal and the state governments that we will act early and be tough and energetic in our searches in order to protect our population from threats."

Again, this coming, after in the past couple of weeks, there was a stabbing rampage on a commuter train in southern Germany, apparently carried out by someone who sought asylum here in this country, and also what many Germans believe to be the first suicide attack here in this country, which was carried out in Ansbach, also in southern Germany, and also apparently by someone who claimed asylum here in had this country.

On top of the raids that happened in western Germany, there were also two arrests that were made, one last Friday and one on Wednesday, targeting people the German authorities say who may have affiliations with ISIS. At least one of them may have been planning attacks here in this country.

Fred Pleitgen, CNN, Berlin.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VAUSE: The Philippines is trying to deal with a diplomatic spat with the United States saying it is committed to strong relations. That statement coming after the Filipino President Rodrigo Duterte insulted the American ambassador.

SESAY: Our Elise Labott has the details.

We have to warn you, her report contains the offensive and profane language used by Duterte.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) ELISE LABOTT, CNN GLOBAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte under fire for using a homophobic slur against the U.S. ambassador. In televised remarks to the country's troops, Duterte recounted a fight he had with Secretary of State John Kelly over Ambassador Philip Goldberg during Kerry's visit to Manila last month.

RODRIGO DUTERTE, PHILIPPINE PRESIDENT (through translation): I told him your ambassador is a gay son of a (EXPLETIVE DELETED). I was annoyed at him for interfering in the elections, giving statements here and there.

LABOTT: The State Department treading carefully with a key U.S. ally, summoned Manila's envoy to explain.

UNIDENTIFIED MANILA ENVOY: I think what we're seeking perhaps is a better understanding of why that statement was made.

[02:25:12] LABOTT: Duterte accused Goldberg, one of the State Department's most senior diplomats, of meddling in his country's elections, criticizing this joke Duterte made when he was mayor, about the 1989 rape and murder of a missionary.

DUTERTE (through translation): I was angry she was raped, yes. That was one thing. But she was so beautiful. I think the mayor should have been first.

(LAUGHTER)

PHILIP GOLDBERG, U.S. AMBASSADOR TO THE PHILIPPINES: Statements by anyone, anywhere, that either degrade women or trivialize issues so serious as rape or murder are not ones that we condone.

LABOTT: Duterte's inflammatory language has earned him the nickname "Donald Trump of the East" by the international media from "The Washington Post" to "The Guardian." He once cursed Pope Francis over the traffic caused by the pontiff's trip to Manila, and he said he didn't care about human rights, calling on police to kill drug dealers and other criminals who resist arrest.

(on camera): And in the same remarks, the president called Secretary of State John Kerry crazy for giving the Philippines a $33 million aid package despite his homophobic slur, joking that maybe he should continue to offend the U.S. more often.

Elise Labott, CNN, the State Department.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SESAY: Well, coming up next for our viewers in Asia is "State of the Race" with Kate Baldwin.

VAUSE: For everyone else, we'll take a short break. And with the release of more e-mails, there are more questions about the Clinton Foundation's ties to the State Department under Hillary Clinton. A closer look in a moment. SESAY: Plus, U.S. officials tell the Baltimore Police Department to

clean up its act after a blistering report details racial bias and abuse.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[02:30:14] VAUSE: Welcome back, everybody. You're watching CNN NEWSROOM, live from Los Angeles. I'm John Vause.

SESAY: And I'm Isha Sesay.

The headlines this hour --

(HEADLINES)

VAUSE: Hillary Clinton is facing renewed questions about the relationship between the Clinton Foundation and the State Department. A conservative watchdog group released 300 more e-mails from her time as secretary of state. In one e-mail, an official with the Clinton Foundation lobbies a senior aide to Secretary Clinton for a job for someone.

And Donald Trump pounced.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: It is called "Pay for Play." And some of these were really, really bad and illegal. If it's true, it's illegal. You're paying and you're getting things. Look at what she's done. Nothing. She's running for president. But it came out that her people "Pay for Play."

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SESAY: Well, a Clinton campaign spokesman called Trump's comments a classic Trump playbook move. He added, "It's clear that he continues to falsely attack Hillary Clinton as a method of distracting from his campaign's latest meltdown."

The latest e-mails show the close relationship between the Clinton Foundation and the State Department.

VAUSE: We get details from Drew Griffin.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DREW GRIFFIN, CNN INVESTIGATIVE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): There are nearly 300 pages of e-mails. Some of them show just how easy it was for Clinton donors to get Clinton favors.

Case in point, Gilbert Chagoury, a Nigerian-Lebanese billionaire, seen her with Bill Clinton at the opening ceremonies for the Chagoury Brothers multi-billion water front development in Nigeria. The project, done under the umbrella of the Clinton Global Initiative, to reclaim Nigeria's coastline. The Chagourys and Bill Clinton go way back. Gilbert Chagoury is

listed as donating between $1 and $5 million to the Clinton family foundation. And in this new batch of e-mails, it seems Gilbert Chagoury could use his connections to open doors. In 2009, Chigoury wanted to connect with a top U.S. official about Lebanon. Doug Band, who was heading the Clinton Foundation at the time, stepped in to help. He e-mailed Hillary Clinton's top aides at the U.S. State Department, Cheryl Mills and Huma Abedin, asking that Gilbert Chagoury be placed in touch with the State Department's substance person on Lebanon. Band, who once interned for (INAUDIBLE), reminds both Hillary Clinton aides that Chagoury is a key guy there, "and to us." He asked Abedin to call Jeffrey Feltman, the former U.S. ambassador to Lebanon, so the Clinton donor and the ambassador can connect.

Reached by CNN, former Ambassador Feltman said, "I have never met nor spoken with Mr. Chagoury. I was not aware of the proposal that he speak to me until this e-mail exchange was released."

In the e-mails, there are Clinton Foundation requests for a favor in finding someone a job, paying attention to someone who's ambassadorship was turned down, and intermingling of e-mails between State, the Clinton Foundation and others, giving the overall effect that it's really hard to tell where any lines are drawn.

Scott Amey, with the Project on Government Oversight, says, even if no legal lines are crossed, optics matter.

SCOTT AMEY, PROJECT ON GOVERNMENT OVERSIGHT: Government employees have rules that apply. They're supposed to avoid actual conflicts of interest, but they're also supposed to avoid appearances of conflicts of interest.

GRIFFIN: The Clinton campaign said of Judicial Watch, "No matter how this group tries to mischaracterize these documents, the fact remains that Hillary Clinton never took action as secretary of state because of donations to the Clinton Foundation."

Drew Griffin, CNN, Atlanta.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

[02:34:57] SESAY: This campaign has produced its fair share of heated and divisive rhetoric. As tempers have flared, things turn nasty, especially on Twitter.

Just ask CNN political commentator, Tara Setmayer, who is part of the Never Trump movement and has received a series of hateful messages and threats. The latest coming just last night. Let's put it on screen: "You sit, you fat lying black (EXPLETIVE DELETED) on CNN. It's now time to watch your fat black (EXPLETIVE DELETED). We now know where you live. We have been watching you real close. Time to get some real guards to watch your life, because we're going to take it from you." And it goes on and it is all awful.

Tara joins us now from New York.

It is truly nauseating. And I'm so sorry we're talking about this to begin with. I mean, what went through your mind when you first read this?

TARA SETMAYER, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Unfortunately, I've received a number of threats similar to this, this one being the worst. I mean, I have received threats of beheading me, of hanging me from a tree, violently raping me, all kinds of racial expletives. These are just words. But I can tell you that some of them, with the act of violence behind the threats, this is something different.

SESAY: You re-Tweeted the hateful message and you put out one of your own, and you said this: "All you Trump sycophants, you think his words don't incite violent psychos. Here's the threat I recently got."

Do you think the person who sent this message was inspired by the rhetoric from Trump?

SETMAYER; I can't say 100 percent, but I would say that it's awful coincidental, any time I'm on air and I have been vocally critical of Donald Trump's candidacy as a conservative, just to put that out there. I'm not a Democrat. I'm a conservative. And watching what is going on here and disapprove Donald Trump. So I've been vocal about that. And whenever I receive these horrible threats, it's usually after a segment where I had that discussion. So it's awfully coincidental. I can't say they weren't just a random person.

SESAY: Donald Trump's comments yesterday about the Second Amendment triggered a firestorm of controversy. Some took them as a veiled threat against Hillary Clinton. Mr. Trump has been dismissive of that reading of what he said. Let me ask you this, are we witnessing something new here in U.S. politics, this sort of tenor and tone?

SETMAYER: Without question. We have been in unchartered territory for several months now. And Donald Trump's ratcheted things up in a way that is dangerous. People getting assaulted at rallies, what we see on social media. The fact that the Secret Service had to address the comments made yesterday. I don't care what the supporters try to say. It was a double entendre and he had to walk it back when he said that would be a horrible day after he made the comment about the Second Amendment folks rising up if Hillary Clinton wins. And I'm pro Second Amendment. But these words matter. When you are running for the presidency, every word you utter matters, not only domestically but internationally, and Donald Trump doesn't seem to care about that. He is flippant with what he says and people make excuses for it. And the more excuses that are made, the more they are just making the election something that I think -- I don't know how we come back from this. This is not a good precedent we should be setting moving forward.

SESAY: We have seen a number of Republican lawmakers jump ship and make clear they will not be casting a vote for Trump in November. But the House Speaker Paul Ryan has stood by him. You know, he tried to say he hoped it was a joke gone bad, is what Speaker Ryan said. But at some point, will the gaffes become toxic for all Republicans? SETMAYER: You know, I would hope so. It became toxic for me many,

many months ago, and conservatives who just could not tolerate someone who doesn't have character and integrity and common decency. I'm disappointed in Speaker Ryan. He had an opportunity to take a stand and say that the Republican Party is not what Donald Trump stands for. But he took the politically expedient way out which is a mistake. I admire Speaker Ryan on a lot of issues. I agree with him on a lot of things. He could have been the future of the Republican Party but he ceded his moral high ground by continuing to tolerate and make excuses for Donald Trump, and everyone that continues to do that. I applause the Republicans who say, you know what, I'm an American first, and they put principle over party. Because it's not -- what moral high ground do we have to stand on moving forward if we don't have principles and standards? I don't know how we do that by continuing to excuse away this kind of nonsense.

SESAY: Tara, thank you for coming on to talk about the awful situation you are dealing with. Do stay safe. And thank you for joining us.

SETMAYER: Thank you. They can't silence me.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

[02:40:38] SESAY: She will not be silenced.

VAUSE: Absolutely. See her reaction on "A.C. 360."

SESAY: Yeah.

VAUSE: We'll take a short break. When we come back, the U.S. Justice Department is slamming the Baltimore Police Department calling for big changes. Details ahead on the investigation which found evidence of racial discrimination.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

VAUSE: The U.S. Justice Department issued a scathing report on the Baltimore Police Department describing a pattern of unconstitutional behavior.

SESAY: And the investigation found racial and gender bias as well as excessive use of force.

Here is Brian Todd.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Why are you dragging him like that?

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The arrest that rocked a major city. The death of Freddy Gray in police custody last year triggered days of rioting in Baltimore.

(SHOUTING) TODD: And a 14-month investigation of the Baltimore police. Now, a blistering rebuke from the Justice Department. A new report saying the Baltimore police disproportionately targets African-Americans for stops, searches and arrests.

VANITA GUPTA, U.S. DEPUTY ASSISTANT ATTORNEY GENERAL: Indeed, one African-American man was stopped 30 times in less than four years with none of the stops resulting in a citation or a criminal charge.

TODD: The report says Baltimore police have engaged in a pattern of excessive force for more than a decade and that a staggering number of police confrontations occur in two predominantly African-American dominant districts of the city, including Gray's neighborhood.

Kenny Abering (ph), who lives a block from where Gray was arrested, says he's been searched and roughed up by police just for walking down the street.

He says he worries about raising his 3-year-old son in the neighborhood.

[02:45:19] KENNY ABERING (ph), BALTIMORE RESIDENT: He's scared of the police. You know what I mean? He see people just sitting there doing nothing and then the police hop out and just grab. Hop out, say, come here, go through your pockets. No, they hop out and they grab you, slam you.

TODD: The Justice Department says, in some cases, Baltimore police supervisors ordered officers to specifically target African-Americans. It's led to a dangerous lack of trust on the streets. Police aren't getting the intelligence they need in those neighborhoods to pursue the worst criminals. Some residents are afraid to even call the police if they're in danger.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't even call them if I'm in my own predicament. I don't even mess with the police. I don't even call them if I'm in my own predicament.

TODD: The head of Baltimore's NAACP branch says even for those not charged, getting taken into police custody can be devastating.

TESSA HILL-ASTON, PRESIDENT, BALTIMORE NAACP: For a whole month waiting for court. They lost their job, they lost whatever possessions they had and they lose housing.

TODD: Police officials promise an overhaul with new training and tough new standards of behavior.

KEVIN DAVIS, COMMISSIONER, BALTIMORE POLICE DEPARTMENT: In terms of cleaning house, I've fired 16 police officers in 2016 alone. That's a small number, but those who have left this agency deserve to leave this agency. I'll continue to hold police officers accountable.

TODD (on camera): But that will also involve changing the police cultural in Baltimore. How hard will that one? The Justice Department report says, in one incident, a police supervisor ordered an officer to clear a group of young people from a corner. When the officer said he had no probable cause, the supervisor said, "Make something up." And that was with a Justice Department official riding along with them, observing.

Brian Todd, CNN, Baltimore.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SESAY: Time for a break now. Brazil's football team hadn't scored a goal in Rio before Wednesday's game. Just ahead, we'll see if their performance against Denmark was enough to save them from elimination.

VAUSE: It was.

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[02:51:17] SESAY: Well, Olympic athletes will compete for medal necessary 19 events Thursday, including women's all-around gymnastics. And American swimmer, Michael Phelps, could score his 22nd gold in the pool in Rio.

VAUSE: On Wednesday, a judo wrestler won his first fight of the games. He's competing on the refugee team after fleeing his native Congo three years ago. Great Britain's diving team has won its first gold of the game.

SESAY: Fiyad Aldehana (ph) is the first independent to win gold in Rio. He topped the field in shooting. He is Kuwaiti but officials bannedthe country from competing in Rio.

VAUSE: And another pool has turned green. This time it's the water polo pool, which is slightly the same color as the diving pool. Apparently, it's algae. I picked it.

SESAY: You get a medal.

VAUSE: A gold one?

SESAY: No, a chocolate one.

VAUSE: Thanks.

SESAY: To football now and some tense moments for host nation, Brazil, as it faced elimination after the first round.

VAUSE: But they didn't thanks to a strong offensive performance.

Here is Shasta Darlington.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SHASTA DARLINGTON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The home nation is breathing a collective sigh of relief after two draws that left fans deflated. Brazil has now defeated Denmark, 4-0, ensuring they stay in these Olympic gals.

This is what people told us.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm really happy. It's very good to see an Olympic game in Brazil. It's really good to see that atmosphere here. So I'm really, really good. I think Rio is doing a really good job.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translation): This is a country of football. The biggest sporting event on the planet in our own house. I was embarrassed. Now I'm relieved.

DARLINGTON: But the fact is, the Brazilian's women's team has been inspiring a lot more enthusiasm these days, quickly passing on to the quarterfinals. Some people have even taken their jerseys, crossed out his name, and written in the name of the famous footballer on the women's team.

Despite this victory, it is looking like the men's canary team is still very far from gold.

Shasta Darlington, CNN, Rio de Janeiro.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SESAY: Rio police say they are trying to find out who threw rocks at a media bus slightly injuring several journalists.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): We can guarantee the safety of journalists, athletes, guests, workforce, tourists. That's our primary responsibility. And we can guarantee that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: It happened Tuesday night. Rio's security director says it was an act of vandalism. It wasn't intended to hurt anyone. Regardless, he says police will increase their patrols.

SESAY: American gymnast, Simone Biles, will go for another gold medal on Thursday in the women's all-around competition.

VAUSE: By the time the games are over, she could end up with five golds.

Biles and her teammates spoke with CNN about the secret to success.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SIMONE BILES, OLYMPIC GYMNAST: Once I go out there and compete, it's up to me. I can't think about what everybody else is worrying about.

UNIDENTIFIED OLYMPIC GYMNAST: Sometimes I just think she's unhuman because she's so amazing. UNIDENTIFIED OLYMPIC GYMNAST: She is a very good competitor.

UNIDENTIFIED OLYMPIC GYMNAST: I'm always in awe when I watch her. But I have a lot of respect fore her. Normally, when girls are super, super talented, they don't work that hard. But she is super talented and she works very hard which is why she has been unbeatable.

BILES: My signature move named after me is called the Biles. And it's on floor. And it is a double a half out. So I will flip twice in a straight body and at the end I'll do a half flip. Everyone is so shocked whenever I do that skill because it's a forward landing so it's harder and to do half twist is hard, also. So nobody thought it was possible. So every time I do it, everyone gets so excited.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[02:55:24] SESAY: The fierce five.

VAUSE: Did you hear about the secret to success? Hard work.

SESAY: Is that something you're taking on board?

VAUSE: Work hard.

SESAY: Now you have to put it into practice.

VAUSE: Thank you.

SESAY: There you go.

We have lots of -- you are watching CNN NEWSROOM.

(LAUGHTER)

VAUSE: Lots more to come --

SESAY: Exactly.

You are watching CNN NEWSROOM, from Los Angeles. I'm Isha Sesay.

VAUSE: And I'm John Vause.

The news continues next with Rosemary Church.

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