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New York A.G. Issue Cease & Desist Order to Trump Foundation; Clinton Speech in Toledo, Ohio. Aired 1:30-2p ET

Aired October 3, 2016 - 13:30   ET

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


(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[13:33:11] JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: All right. We do have breaking news coming from New York State where the Attorney General Eric Schneiderman has issued a cease-and-desist order against the Trump foundation, ordering the foundation to stop soliciting donations here in New York State.

I want to bring in our political panel to discuss right now, Eugene Scott, CNN politics reporter; and Alex Burns, CNN political analyst and national political reporter for "The New York times."

Alex, this deals with something actually first reported in "The Washington Post," a fine paper, not yours, but fine nonetheless, who noted that the attorney general in New York said the Trump foundation doesn't have the proper certification to solicit money.

Let me throw up as graphic here what the attorney general said specifically: "The notice directs the Trump foundation to immediately cease soliciting contributions or engage in other fundraising in New York and to provide the A.G.'s Charities Bureau with the information specified in Section 172" -- technical talk for I don't want the Trump campaign to raise money any anymore.

How big a deal is this?

ALEX BURNS, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: This comes out as excellent reporting by "The Washington Post" looking at a range of irregularities related to the Trump foundation, which Donald Trump doesn't seem to donate money to, and the money has been used for a range of interesting purposes. So I think this is not an inconsequential development, especially when his finances are already under scrutiny.

BERMAN: Hang on. Eugene, Alex, stand by.

Hillary Clinton is speaking in Toledo, Ohio. Let's listen in.

HILLARY CLINTON, (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: -- every single child should have a chance to live up to his or her God-given potential.

(APPLAUSE)

CLINTON: I could not be prouder to have Lebron joins our team as we head into the home stretch. Now, one thing I know, I'll just say it. Because I know it's for sure. I hope to be elected president, but I know -- Lebron will always be the king.

(CHEERING)

[11:35:13] CLINTON: I was listening to Kenyetta introduce me and I appreciate what she said because Toledo is the place people work hard, look out after one another and, yes, pay their taxes. Right?

(CHEERING)

CLINTON: You know, you recognize that we all have to do our part, because we are all in this together, and it matters. We believe honest work deserves honest pay. We believe everyone should have the right to join a strong union that will always have your back.

(CHEERING)

CLINTON: It's personal for me. I'm the granddaughter of a factory worker from Scranton, Pennsylvania. He went to work in the same lace mill every day for 50 years. He believed, he passed it down to my dad, who passed it down to me, that if he did what he was supposed to do, he'd have a good life, and his kids would have an even better life. That is the American dream.

(CHEERING)

CLINTON: And that is what has to keep going generation after generation. And because of my grandfather's hard work my dad made it to college. And then after serving in the Navy during World War II he started his own small business printing fabric for draperies. As a young girl I'd sometimes go to his print plant. It was a long building. No natural light. No windows, but he had these long tables where he'd roll out the fabric and then I'd watch him work with silk screens if you've ever seen that. He would take the silk screen, put it down, pour the paint in, take the squeegee, go across all the way down to the end of one over the next table, all the way back, and then if there was a second color to be added he would do that. He sometimes let me help with the squeegee. That was my favorite part.

(LAUGHTER)

And I -- I know he worked really hard. He worked really hard. He believed in hard work. He passed that on to me. He provided a good middle-class life for us.

So I am proud to stand with hard working families all over Toledo, Ohio, and America, who should have the same chance that I did to share in the American dream which should be big enough for everybody!

(CHEERING)

CLINTON: You know, fighting for kids and families has been the cause of my life, as Kenyetta said, when I children's years ago and it will be the mission of my presidency because I want to focus on what I call kitchen-table issues. You know, the ones that keep you up at night, like the cost of child care and college and prescription drugs and so much else. (CHEERING)

CLINTON: And that means we've got to create more good jobs, with rising incomes. That means we've got to have good schools in every zip code. That means everybody willing to work. And I say that very clearly, you've got to be willing to work, and if you're willing to work, you should be able to get ahead and stay ahead. That's the basic bargain.

(CHEERING)

CLINTON: Now, I don't know about you, but you wouldn't think that the theme of my campaign, getting an economy to work for everyone, not just those at the top, would be controversial. And yet, this is one of the defining debates not just of this election but of our time.

Now, I would say most American companies, most, are run by honorable, patriotic people who care about their employees and communities, but there are still too many powerful interests fighting to protect their own profits and privileges at the expense of everyone else.

(CHEERING)

CLINTON: And they are aided and abetted by the rules and incentives in our economy, who actually encourage people at the top to take advantage of consumers, workers, small businesses and taxpayers. That makes it tougher for the well-meaning CEOs to take the high road. And it gets even harder when we don't aggressively enforce the rules, when we don't enforce trade rules that allow other countries with lower wages and standards to get an unfair leg up, when we don't enforce rules on Wall Street, which exerts enormous pressure on publicly traded companies to prioritize boosting share prices in the short term --

(CHEERING)

[13:40:15] CLINTON: -- over building real value, investing in workers, plants and equipment over the longer term.

And let's be honest. The tax code rewards corporations for outsourcing jobs, and their profits overseas, instead of investing here in the United States. And --

(APPLAUSE)

CLINTON: -- it is riddled with loopholes that let the rich get even richer and make income inequality even worse. It tilts the playing field further against small businesses that can't afford lawyers and lobbyists. So with all of these pressures pushing in the wrong direction, it's even more important that we have an election about these very issues.

(APPLAUSE)

CLINTON: Because what I know will happen if we have an election where we have an agenda that actually would begin to level that playing field, we will rebuild the middle class. We will make work pay. We will create greater opportunities for a great percentage of Americans.

(CHEERING)

CLINTON: Now, I -- I know how hard this is. But I think we are on the cusp, if we win this election, to be able to get these things done. Right?

(CHEERING)

CLINTON: That means pursuing reforms that unleash the enormous, positive potential of the American private sector. We've got unmatched talent, innovation, entrepreneurial spirit, so when we work together, we can all benefit.

Now, I believe corporations that benefit from everything America has to offer should feel some sense of responsibility, not just to their biggest shareholders --

(APPLAUSE)

CLINTON: -- but to their workers, to their customers, to their communities and, yes, to our country, to the United States of America.

(CHEERING)

CLINTON: We have been moving off track for decades. I don't need to tell you that. You know it. You've lived it. You've seen it. But it is time to get back on track.

(APPLAUSE)

CLINTON: And you can ask anybody, who's ever worked for me or worked with me, who's ever served with me, when I tell you I'm going to try to do something, I will get up every single day and work my heart out for you.

(CHEERING)

CLINTON: So let's -- let's begin by making it clear that for most businesses, America is the most important asset on their balance sheet. This country of ours, this system of ours, the rule of law, the opportunity to get an education and go as far as your hard work and ambition will take you, and we created the biggest engine of economic growth in the world, the American middle class. So when the middle class thrives, the country thrives, and when it doesn't, we don't. Right?

(CHEERING)

CLINTON: And I'm going to use the White House and every tool at my disposal as your president to make the case that patriotism is profitable. Standing up for America, investing in America, will pay off.

(APPLAUSE)

CLINTON: Now, we have always had innovators and entrepreneurs who built real companies and create really value, but we should not and we will not respect those who get rich by cheating everybody else.

(CHEERING)

CLINTON: So today, I want to send a clear message to every board room, every executive suite across America, if you scam your customers, exploit your many employees, pollute our environment, or rip off taxpayers, we will find ways to hold you accountable.

(CHEERING)

CLINTON: But on the other side, on the other side, if you do the right thing, and you invest in your workers, and your communities, and our country's future, we will stand with you. That is the choice. Our goal is to make it easier for everyone to do better.

[13:45:24] Now, to understand why this is so important, consider the recent examples we've seen of egregious corporate behavior. Look at Wells Fargo.

(BOOING)

CLINTON: Really shocking. Isn't it? One of the nation's biggest employees bullying thousands of employees into committing fraud against unsuspecting customers, secretly opening up millions of accounts for people without their consent, even their knowledge, misusing personal information and then sticking customers with hidden fees. It is outrageous that eight years after a cowboy culture on Wall Street wrecked our economy, we are still seeing powerful bankers playing fast and loose with the law.

And then in a category by himself there's Donald Trump.

(BOOING)

CLINTON: Well, you may have heard that he has long refused to release his tax returns, the way every other nominee for president has done for decades. You can look at 40 years of my tax returns. I think we need a law that says, if you become the nominee of the major parties, you have to release your tax returns.

(CHEERING)

CLINTON: Now, a lot of us were wondering. What is he hiding? It must be really terrible. Well, "The New York times" has discovered at least part of the answer. Back in the 1990s, Trump apparently lost a $1 billion a single year on bad investments and failing casinos. Now, how anybody can lose a dollar let alone a billion dollars in the casino industry is kind of beyond me. Right?

(CHEERING)

(LAUGHTER) CLINTON: And it's just hard to figure. But as a result, it doesn't look like he paid a dime of federal income tax for almost two decades.

Now, while millions of American families, including mine and yours, were working hard paying our fair are, it seems he was contributing nothing to our nation. Imagine that. Not fair. Nothing for Pell Grants to help kids go to college. Nothing for veterans. Nothing for our military.

(SHOUTING)

CLINTON: Dissing America in this whole campaign. Right? He talks us down. He makes disparaging comments about our country. He calls our military a disaster. Well, it's not. But it might have been if everybody else had failed to pay taxes to support our brave men and women in uniform.

(CHEERING)

CLINTON: I -- I saw a newspaper article, and a gentleman named Steve Crouse, who owns the Glass City Cafe here in Toledo, sums it up pretty well in this article. He said, "I would feel guilty if I didn't pay anything. It's flat-out cheating the government."

Now, my friend, Bernie Sanders, was right yesterday when he said, Trump reflects a distorted view of the American people and what the country is all about.

(CHEERING)

CLINTON: And now, Trump represents the same rigged system that he claims he's going to change.

The whole story tells us everything we need to know about how Trump does business. After he made all of those bad bets and lost all that money, he didn't lift a finger to help and protect his employees, or all the small businesses and contractors he'd hired, or the people of Atlantic City. They all got hammered. While he was busy with his accountants trying to figure out how to keep living like a billionaire. And all the while using political connections to collect hundreds of millions of dollars in government subsidies and extra tax breaks for his companies. In other words, Trump was taking from America with both hands, and leaving the rest of us with the bill.

(APPLAUSE)

(BOOING)

[13:50:12] CLINTON: Now, he says he's the one who can fix things, but that is like letting e FOX guard the hen house, right?

(LAUGHTER)

CLINTON: Here's what I am really just stunned by. I get stunned every day in this campaign.

(LAUGHTER)

But here's one of the many things that I'm stunned by. He has put forth a tax plan that would cut his own taxes even more.

(BOOING)

It would be like you're paying zero. You expect us to pay you to stay in business, the rest of America? He would open the loopholes even wider. And according to a new independent study, he would actually -- listen to this, people, because this is a real shocker -- his plan would actually raise taxes for millions of middle class families.

(BOOING)

CLINTON: And you know the people that would hit the hardest? Are single parents, whose lives and challenges he doesn't care about. Certainly doesn't understand.

Now, many have likely already spent years paying more than he did. And he now would make that even worse. And what does he say about it? Well, y'all see the debate last Monday?

(CHEERING)

CLINTON: Well, in the debate --

(CHANTING)

CLINTON: In the debate --

(CHANTING)

CLINTON: Well, then you all know in the debate he said it was smart to avoid paying taxes.

(BOOING)

CLINTON: Yes, his campaign was bragging it makes him a genius.

(BOOING)

CLINTON: here's my question. What kind of genius loses a billion dollars in a single year?

(CHEERING)

CLINTON: This is Trump to a "T." He's taken corporate business and made a business model out of it. He abuses his power, games the system, puts his own interests ahead of the country's. It's Trump first and everyone else last.

(SHOUTING)

CLINTON: And there are lots of principled, law-abiding business leaders out there who are horrified by all of this. Not a sing willing -- not a single CEO of a fortune 100 company supports Trump's campaign.

(APPLAUSE)

CLINTON: Think about it. I've been endorsed by very successful people, Warren Buffett, Mike Bloomberg, Mark Cuban. I love what Mark Cuban said when he endorsed me. He said, look, I've been successful. He actually is a real billionaire.

(LAUGHTER)

(APPLAUSE)

CLINTON: And you know what, he used profit-sharing to help his employees.

(CHEERING)

CLINTON: Not bankruptcy, to fire people. And when he sold his first company, he shared the profits with his employees. And 300 of them became millionaires.

(CHEERING)

CLINTON: That's the kind of business practices I want to see more of in our country.

(CHEERING)

CLINTON: But here's what we've got to do. Even if Trump is one of a kind, we have to reverse the broader trends he represents. It's time to rewrite the rules and make this economy fair for everyone. And today I want to briefly share with you my plan for protecting taxpayers, consumers, small businesses and workers.

We're going to crack down on the worst corporate abuses and empower companies willing to take the high road and invest in good jobs, in higher wages and in stronger communities.

First, let's start with protecting taxpayers and making sure we have more fairness in the system. It is wrong that corporations and the super wealthy play by a different set of rules. A Wall Street money manager should not be able to pay a lower tax rate than a teacher or a nurse.

(APPLAUSE)

[13:54:50] CLINTON: I'll tell you something else. Our largest companies should not be able to get away with paying hardly anything at all. It is insulting when they engage in these games like moving their headquarters over to a foreign country, on paper, not in reality, to take advantage of lower tax rates. It's infuriating when they take tax breaks on one hand and give out pink slips with the other hand.

(APPLAUSE)

CLINTON: So, here's what we're going to do. We're going to close those loopholes. I have a list I'm going after.

(CHEERING)

CLINTON: We're going to make Wall Street corporations and the super rich start paying their fair share of taxes. We're going to pass something called the Buffett Rule, which means multimillionaires cannot pay lower rates than their secretaries and other people working for them.

(CHEERING)

CLINTON: We're going to put in place a new exit tax. If companies try to leave our country to avoid paying their fair share, if they try to outsource jobs, they're going to have to give back every tax break they ever received in our country.

(CHEERING)

CLINTON: And then we're going to put that money to work creating opportunities here in America.

Second, we're going to protect consumers. No American should ever be taken advantage of like thousands were by Wells Fargo. This isn't a new fight for me. As a Senator, I raised the alarm about Sun Pride Mortgages. I fought to hold reckless manufacturers accountable for toxic toys and household products that threaten our kids. I introduced legislation to protect Americans' personal data and combat identity theft. So, as president, I will make consumer protection a top priority across the entire government.

(APPLAUSE)

CLINTON: And that starts by defending and empowering the consumer financial protection bureau, which was created after the financial crisis. And the principal person who got it created was Senator Elizabeth Warren.

(CHEERING)

CLINTON: And under the leadership of Ohio's Rich Cordray --

(CHEERING)

CLINTON: -- the agency has already returned more than 11 billion to more than 15 million Americans who were ripped off by predatory lenders, credit card companies and others. And it is the one making sure that the defrauded Wells Fargo customers get their money back.

Now, I've got to say, I am so proud of what this new agency has done. Sometimes people say, well, you know, what does the government really do? Well, there's a lot of examples, but this is a primary one, standing up and making sure consumers get paid back when they are ripped off. And because of its success, Republicans in Congress keep trying to shut it down. And Donald Trump agrees with them. In fact, he wants to scrap all the tough new rules imposed on Wall Street after the crisis. Well, not on my watch, Donald. We're never going to let that happen.

(CHEERING)

(CHANTING)

CLINTON: Now, instead of gutting consumer protection, we should be expanding it. We should build on the Dodd/Frank financial reforms and go even further because Wall Street can never be permitted to threaten Main Street again.

And the Wells Fargo scandal sheds light on another threat to consumers we have to address. When the scam's victims, people like you and me who had accounts there tried to sue, they were shocked to learn there was a provision in the very fine print of their contracts that kept them from going to court to sue the bank for being cheated. Instead, they are forced into a closed-door arbitration process without the important protections that you get in a court of law. We are not going to let corporation like Wells Fargo use these fine-print gotchas to escape accountability.

(APPLAUSE)

CLINTON: And this is now common practice across a lot of industries, from nursing homes that mistreat seniors to for-profit colleges that defraud students.

You know, who reads all that fine print? I don't. And you get defrauded or mistreated, and they say, all of a sudden, you can't sue us. So we're going to reign in that abuse across everybody.

(APPLAUSE)

CLINTON: We also see a similar problem in some international trade agreements, like the Trans-Pacific Partnership. It sets up a dispute resolution --