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AT THIS HOUR WITH BERMAN AND MICHAELA

Massive Manhunt Underway For Alleged Cop Killer; Airport Shooting Suspect In Court, New Video Surfaces; Police Update On Officer's Slaying, Manhunt For Suspect; Trump's Huge Week Cabinet Hearings And News Conference; Trump Fires Back At "Overrated, Hillary Lover" Streep. Aired 11-11:30a ET

Aired January 9, 2017 - 11:00   ET

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


[11:00:03] POLO SANDOVAL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Several witnesses reported that this officer tried to speak to an individual who was described who was wearing what was described as a security vest. The individual turned around and opened fire.

Now police officers identifying the suspect as Markeith (ph) Lloyd, possibly involved in some other cases that the police department has been investigating. But again, this is a man that police are now searching for.

So as you may imagine, this is launching an all-out effort by local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies in Florida. Already several officials sounding off and speaking out about what is this tragedy that has struck the Orlando Police Department?

The Orange County mayor just a few minutes ago released a statement saying that the death of any law enforcement officer is an utter tragedy and a blow to our entire community. So again, this massive search continues there in Orlando.

In the meantime, as you may imagine, this police department is caught between the search and also heartbreak. This is video posted by the Orlando police this morning. The officer's body draped with an American flag removed from the hospital with what appear to be some family members behind those fellow officers.

So one can only imagine what this department is going through right now. They are paying respects to this officer that ultimately made that sacrifice. At the same time, they're tasked with the duty of protecting the community and also tracking down this individual considered extremely dangerous.

Again, a press conference scheduled any minute now, we should get more information then, guys.

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN ANCHOR: So having the identity of the man that they're looking for, do we know anything more about the officer who was killed?

SANDOVAL: Not much more. We do understand that she was a female officer, apparently was shot several times according to several local reports, possibly even hit nine times, was taken to the hospital, but that is where she eventually succumbed to her injuries.

So I think the question now is, of course, more about this officer, we should possibly learn her identity at any moment after this press conference and of course, where she comes from and how long she's been an officer.

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: All right, Polo, we're going to keep our eye on that news conference and bring you details when they happen. Polo Sandoval, thanks so much.

Happening any moment now, the accused Fort Lauderdale airport shooter will make his first court appearance maybe the first step towards getting some answers. This as new video brings terrifying new perspective to these killings.

BOLDUAN: He could eventually face the death penalty. Five people were killed in that shooting. This morning, there are so many questions about why it happened but also how the shooter was allowed access to a gun, considering his history of mental illness. Authorities took away his gun two months ago after an encounter with the FBI.

CNN's Rachel Crane is live in Fort Lauderdale with the very latest on this. So Rachel, he is in court right now. What's happening?

RACHEL CRANE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Kate, that arraignment -- he's facing three federal charges, all of which are eligible for the death penalty and that incredibly disturbing surveillance video emerged this weekend in which you see Santiago actually reaching into his waistband, pulling out the gun, and beginning the attack.

We also know that he told investigators that he went into the restroom to load the gun and that he came here to the Fort Lauderdale airport intending to carry out this attack.

But we've also heard incredible stories of heroism emerging this weekend, including one where a 70-year-old electrician threw himself --

BERMAN: All right, this is the news conference at Florida about the manhunt for someone who shot and killed a police officer this morning. Let's listen.

CHIEF JOHN MINA, ORLANDO POLICE: I announce that Master Sergeant Deborah Clayton, a 17-year veteran of the Orlando Police Department, lost her life today at approximately 7:40 a.m. Some of the details of the case, about 7:17 a.m., she checked out, attempted to contact a murder suspect at the Walmart, Princeton John Young.

Two minutes later, we received calls that an officer had been shot and immediately emergency assistance went out and officers responded. A suspect was spotted by a deputy sheriff, Captain Carter, leaving the scene.

He fired at the deputy near the area of North Plain, the Pine Hills Road, striking his unmarked vehicle. The deputy was not hurt. The suspect then car jacked the vehicle, fled, and later abandoned the vehicle near Rosemont and (inaudible) Parkway.

There is a manhunt currently under way for Markeith Lloyd. He is a suspect that this community is familiar with and he should be considered armed and dangerous. He is a suspect in the murder of a pregnant woman in the jurisdiction of Orange County Sheriff's Office.

One of our motor officers, Officer Robert Castro, was injured, not related to the shooting, but he was responding. He will be OK. He has minor injuries.

[11:05:05]We have a lot of police resources trying to catch the suspect. Local state and federal authorities are all working together diligently to bring him to justice and he will be brought to justice. I can assure the community of that.

I've spoken at length with Deborah's family. At the Orlando Police Department we're a huge family, we really are. You I always tell our officers that your families are our family. So we are giving everything her husband needs.

She's married and she also has two children. We're going to be assisting them through this very, very difficult time and also providing resources for officers during such a hard time. I've personally known Deborah for 17 years. I worked with her in different assignments.

She was extremely committed to our youth and really the community. She did so many different projects in the community. She organized several marches against violence by herself. That's how committed she is.

Deborah Clayton is a hero and she gave her life protecting the community that she loves. She will be deeply missed. I'm going to stick around for questions afterwards. Right now, I'm going to turn it over to the sheriff.

SHERIFF JERRY DEMINGS, ORANGE COUNTY, FLORIDA: Let me begin by first offering my condolences to the family of Master Sergeant Clayton. She's someone that I know very well. In fact I hired her when I was the Orlando police chief, to be a member of the Orlando Police Department.

And at one point we attended the same church. And so my heart certainly goes out to her family as well as the entire Orlando Police Department and the city of Orlando as we deal with those circumstances.

Chief Mina has provided a very quick summary of what brought us here today. I will reiterate some of the facts that the chief reviewed. The Orange County Sheriff's Office responded to this incident after an emergency call for assistance went out from their agency.

We had numerous members of my agency respond to this incident that started for us at about 7:19 this morning after a suspect description was put out. Based on the vehicle description, one of my captains from the agency was responding into the area, observed a vehicle matching the description traveling at somewhat of a high rate of speed.

The captain did a U-turn and the individual fled from the captain, also fired at least one shot at the captain, which is why we now also have charges pending for the subject for attempted murder of a law enforcement officer from that scenario.

As we kind of move forward today, the chief indicated that we have a significant manhunt under way in the broader Pine Hills area. I want to ask the citizens and the other members of the public, who are in that area to understand that there's lots of law enforcement officers there.

Allow us some space to be able to do our jobs safely and to bring this individual into custody. I say that because this morning we've had several other law enforcement officers, who have been injured as they have been pursuing this individual.

Sadly, I have to share with you this morning that in my nearly 36-year career, this is probably one of the toughest days for me in my career, because not only did we lose an Orlando police officer today.

[11:10:01]We lost an Orange County deputy sheriff as well, who was traveling on his motorcycle as a result of these broad efforts that we have under way. A motorist turned in front of him. Based on eyewitness testimony, he had a green light, he was not traveling at any inordinate rate of speed.

He was transported here to Orlando Regional as a trauma alert. And I have to say the physicians here, we appreciate their efforts, because I saw the sense of urgency with them.

And I know that they gave everything that they could to try to save the life of one of my deputy sheriffs, who unfortunately did not survive his injuries. I'm not going to identify that deputy sheriff at this time, because he's a single deputy sheriff without family here in the area. The family is in another location.

We're working with the authorities there to make the announcement, make contact with his family. So we will not release his information until after that has taken place.

And so for all of the metro Orlando area, Floridians, for people in this nation today, to lose two law enforcement officers during this law enforcement officer appreciation day, is indeed a tragedy. Again, I reiterate that we have work to do to locate the suspect that is responsible for this incident.

That subject has been identified as Markeith Lloyd Sr. Date of birth October the 8th, 1975. Those of you here in the media, you have been provided previously to this day with his photographs.

We have been looking for, actively, and very aggressively looking for Markeith Lloyd for the last a couple of weeks and have not been able to locate him. That indicates to me that he's receiving help from someone.

And we are calling upon sensible individuals to help us bring him to justice on this day. We have numerous charges at this point that are pending.

On behalf of the 2,500 men and women of Orange County Sheriff's Office, we're sad on this day for many reasons. We still have to work. And I know in looking in the eyes of my staff, they are 100 percent committed to continuing to do their jobs to keep this community safe. God bless you all.

BOLDUAN: You can see and you can hear the grief coming from these officers. The police chief and the sheriff in Orlando, announcing the very tragic news of the loss of this woman right here, Officer Deborah Clayton, a 17-year veteran of the Orlando police force, answering the call of duty this morning, shot multiple times by a suspect. A wife, mother of two, doing her job this morning, killed in the line of duty.

BERMAN: Unfortunately not the only law enforcement officer who died as a result of this. A deputy sheriff was also killed while on his motorcycle in connection to this. He was trying to take part in either the search, the manhunt is under way right now, a manhunt for a suspect named Markeith Lloyd.

He was the man allegedly at this Walmart who shot Master Sergeant Deborah Clayton multiple times. Markeith Lloyd is also wanted in connection with another murder in the area of a pregnant woman. He is to be considered armed and dangerous right now, as this manhunt is under way.

Several schools in the area are under lockdown right now. We will keep you posted on this and obviously our hearts go out to the families of Master Sergeant Deborah Clayton and the deputy sheriff who lost their lives this morning.

BOLDUAN: Absolutely, keeping a very close eye there and also keeping our eye on Washington as we need to turn to politics and the very jam- packed week ahead, the last full week of preparation before the president's inauguration.

[11:15:11]Starting tomorrow a full slate of confirmation hearings quick off for Donald Trump's cabinet picks. Wednesday the president- elect's long-awaited news conference coming, that of course is Trump's first in six months.

BERMAN: If he holds it, he cancelled that one he had scheduled in December.

Meantime Republicans in Congress pressed ahead with their plan to repeal Obamacare. Meantime, the president-elect is in Trump Tower ripping Meryl Streep, who, to be fair, ripped him first. More on that in just a moment.

Right now, let's go to CNN's Jason Carroll outside Trump Tower. Jason, tell us what's happening? JASON CARROLL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: A long list of things you've got there for me from both of you, guys there, John and Kate. Let's start with confirmation hearings set to get under way tomorrow. If all goes as planned, the man who could be the next attorney general, Jeff Sessions, will be in the hot seat.

In addition to that, you have General John Kelly, the man who could be the next man to head up the Department of Homeland Security. Despite all the complaints coming from the Office of Government Ethics, OGE, which has been complaining that they're not getting some of the paperwork in for some of these nominees in a timely manner.

Mitch McConnell, just seen coming into Trump Tower not too long ago, says that's basically a bunch of rubbish, he says all those who have been complaining about that, Democrats and some of the other critics, need to essentially, quote, "grow up," saying that the paperwork is coming in in a timely fashion.

The process is moving forward. As is plans for that press conference on Wednesday, as you said, it's been a while since we've heard Donald Trump answer questions from the press, which he seems to love so very much. The last time he held a press conference was back during December.

There were some unanswered questions then, there are still unanswered questions when it comes to repealing and replacing Obamacare. Repeal it, yes, we understand that's going to happen, but replace it specifically with what and when?

When you talk about that border wall, he says Mexico is going to pay for it. Mexico says they're not going to pay for it. U.S. taxpayers are going to get reimbursed, but when? These are some of the questions that hopefully we'll get some specific answers for come Wednesday -- John, Kate.

BOLDUAN: Great to see you, Jason. Thank you so much.

BERMAN: And now, Streep versus Trump or Trump versus Streep? It's not "Kramer versus Kramer," for which she did win best supporting actress, by the way. Her first academy award. The actress' discussion of Donald Trump in the Golden Globes last night had inspired some, it incense others.

It came as Meryl Streep accepted the Cecil B. Demille Lifetime Achievement Award. Watch this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MERYL STREEP, ACTRESS: There was one performance this year that stunned me. It sank its hooks in my heart. Not because it was good. There was nothing good about it, but it was effective and it did its job. It made its intended audience laugh and show their teeth.

It was that moment when the person asking to sit in the most respected seat in our country imitated a disabled reporter, someone he outranked in privilege, power, and the capacity to fight back. It kind of broke my heart when I saw it.

I still can't get it out of my head because it wasn't in a movie. It was real life and this instinct to humiliate, when it's modelled by someone in the public platform, by someone powerful, it filters down into everybody's life, because it kind of gives permission for other people to do the same thing.

Disrespect invites disrespect. Violence incites violence. When the powerful use their position to bully others, we all lose.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BOLDUAN: That's Meryl Streep. Meryl Streep was referencing Donald Trump's comments about a disabled reporter. The comments about more than a year ago. He was talking about a "New York Times" reporter. Then and now, many see what Trump did as mocking the man.

But the president-elect denied that was his intention, sending out a message this morning also taking on Meryl Streep. He wrote this in a series of tweets, "Meryl Streep, one of the most overrated actresses in Hollywood, doesn't know me about attacked last night at the Golden Globes.

She is a Hillary flunky who lost big. For the 100th time, I never mock a disabled reporter, would never do that, but simply showed him groveling when he totally changes 16-year-old story that he had written in order to make look bad. Just more very dishonest media."

Joining us right now to discuss is Donald Trump supporter, political consultant, Harlan Hill, Democratic strategist, Danielle McLaughlin, and CNN political analyst and deputy culture editor at the "New York Times," Patrick Healy. Thanks, guys, for all being here.

Patrick, we see the tweets, but importantly here, you spoke with Donald Trump about this overnight. What was he like when you talked to him about this?

[11:20:04]PATRICK HEALY, DEPUTY CULTURE EDITOR, "THE NEW YORK TIMES": Sure. I was working on our Golden Globes coverage here at the "Times" and decided, why not try to reach him and see what he has to say about Meryl Streep. So I called him up, he answered and he hadn't watched the Globes. He hadn't seen the speech, or, he said, heard about the speech at that point.

But his reaction was very quick. He described Meryl Streep as a Hillary lover and as someone whose attacks on him were predictable. But I pushed him on the argument, you know, that she was making was that he was using his own skills as a performer and a showman in an insidious way, mocking Serge Cokovaleski (ph) here at "The Times."

And sort of whipping an audience into a frenzy whenever he kind of wants it and you know, he as he's done many times before said in a tweet sort of pushed bark hard against that, saying that he wasn't mocking Serge.

That he was sort of attacking him for what Trump said was changing his story. But I think the point is that all of this stuff is still very live wire for Donald Trump. He comes out of a Hollywood culture over the last 15 years.

He has always been extremely proud of his ratings on "The Apprentice." He talked about his poll numbers like he used to, his ratings. It was something that clearly, you know, that struck a nerve because he does see himself as kind of a cultural figure.

BERMAN: Patrick, you said something casually that I don't want to let slide, which is that you called him up to find out his reaction and he picked up. This is the president-elect of the United States of America, a man in two weeks who will be the president.

And you were able to easily I think get him on the phone to comment on a speech at the Golden Globes. Why do you think he chose to just pick up and talk about that as opposed to not holding a news conference over the last six months?

HEALY: Yes. I'm not sure, John. I started covering him in July of 2015. As you do, as many journalists do, we have phone numbers, cellphone numbers, and home phone numbers of sources. As you know, John, when you call a source every day on their cellphone at 11:00 p.m., eventually they block you and they don't pick up.

So we try to be a little bit strategic here, not that I'm deputy culture editor and I was covering the Golden Globes, I wanted to talk to him about that. I also called him up on election night when I was a political reporter at 10:30, and he answered the phone. He talked to me a little bit about winning that night.

Your point is very fair, John. He hasn't held a press conference in months now. He's doing so on Wednesday. Reaching him a midnight with the purpose of talking about Meryl Streep's speech, you know, you have to make a judgment as a reporter, OK, are you going to then add on a question about his business relationships overseas.

I'm not diminishing those whatever, but I had to make sure this was a time and place to ask a question I wanted answered and then move on.

BOLDUAN: Harlan, what's your reaction to Meryl Streep and how Donald Trump reacted, speaking to Patrick about it at length last night and taking to Twitter to continue the discussion this morning?

HARLAN HILL, POLITICAL CONSULTANT: None of this surprises me. While Meryl Streep was busy politicizing the Golden Globes last night, Hillary Clinton was a couple of blocks from where we sit right now at a Broadway performance, she received several standing ovations from the crowd, went on for 10 minutes or something like that.

I think that that perfectly illustrates the metaphor for the divide in this country, the coastal elites live in a bubble, whether it's L.A., people like Meryl Streep and Hollywood elites or us here in New York. And there are many people in the middle of --

BOLDUAN: Keep going, but this is the video of what happened when she walked in. HILL: There parts of America that are really suffering. Their jobs are not sufficient. They haven't had pay increases in years. Their fear of ISIS is metastasizing and that it poses a threat here in the United States. Meryl Streep had an opportunity, if she was going to politicize this event, to talk about things that affect every day Americans, not this ridiculous gossip. I think that he should apologize for this and let's move on. But let's just get past this.

BERMAN: Just to be clear, it's not gossip, he said what he said about the reporter, but you did say he should apologize.

BOLDUAN: It would have been nothing a year ago.

BERMAN: To Harlan's point, Danielle, Meryl Streep, she said what she said, what we just showed there, then she continued to speak and said a little something else here that I think illustrates what Harlan is getting at. Let's play that.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

STREEP: So Hollywood is crawling with outsiders and foreigners, and if we kick them all out, you'll have nothing to watch but football and mixed martial arts, which are not the arts.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[11:25:02]BERMAN: So I don't like the formulation where you call certain Americans, real Americans, and not others. If you're a coastal elite, you can't like football. But isn't that type of language, that part right there, talking about football and mixed martial arts, why is it have to be separate?

DANIELLE MCLAUGHLIN, DEMOCRATIC STRATEGIST: I think you're right, that's probably one thing she could have taken out of her speech and taken back. She talked about empathy. She talked about the Hollywood foreign press, right? So she's talking about this idea that actors on a daily basis walk in the shoes of other people.

That is what you do when you're empathic. She was talking about this notion of Donald Trump as a reality TV personality and this interesting consul between reality and performance. He created a persona, but what it did in November 2015 was absolutely and disgracefully mock a reporter.

The next thing that he did -- he's never taken it back or acknowledged it. You think about the things that Trump has done over the years. He mocked Carly Fiorina for her face. He did the same thing to Ted Cruz's wife. He called Hillary Clinton not presidential.

Show me who you are, and I'll believe you. His pushback to Meryl is, she doesn't know me. What we saw for months in the campaign and for a decade prior was a person who was willing to latch onto a personal characteristic and make a mockery of it and she stood up to that. I think that's something that's not necessarily political but human.

BOLDUAN: Maybe this comes up in a press conference that is scheduled for Wednesday, we'll see. Not only if the question is asked, but if the press conference will happen at all. What Trump are we going to see, do you think? When you talk about Danielle's kind of getting at two Trumps, she doesn't know me, but what Trump are we going to see?

HILL: When he accepted victory on election night, he said that he wanted to be a president for everyone and I hope that that's the tone that he strikes on inauguration day. He's fighting against some real forces that I don't think are totally fair to him.

You have people in the media, which Meryl Streep touched on last night, calling him literally Hitler. They are comparing the president-elect of the United States to Hitler.

I think that if she's talking about giving license to violence, that sort of rhetoric, which has become mainstream in the media, is totally unacceptable. People in "The New York Times" --

HEALY: Meryl Streep didn't say that. She didn't even mention Trump by name. Clearly, she was talking about him and she made different sort of strategic decisions in there.

But having covered the Globes, having covered Hollywood, no one -- you would think in a way there could be a very sort of predictable, full frontal, name calling assault.

But what Meryl Streep was pointing out is what a lot of journalists and voters saw, which was that Donald Trump had a way of reaching his audience, of communicating, of performing at his rallies that were incredibly well-attended, that was effective.

And from her point of view, it was effective in the worst possible way, that he divided people, he riled people up, showed their teeth, you know, for instance. But the name calling, Hitler, no.

BERMAN: We have to go, I like both your points here. Wednesday, news conference. A few weeks after that, Meryl Streep will be nominated for another academy award, because it happens every time this year. So stay tuned for both of those events.

BOLDUAN: John, taking on Meryl Streep.

ROMANS: It's a great film. It's Harlan's favorite.

BOLDUAN: Great to see you, Harlan, Patrick, Danielle.

BERMAN: All right, warning shots fired, new information on the tense moments between a U.S. Navy ship and Iranian boats. We have breaking new details ahead.

BOLDUAN: Plus unfounded, emotional and amateur, that's the Russians government's take on U.S. intelligence reports that pointed the finger very directly at Vladimir Putin for the election hack.

Where does the president-elect stand on this day? Up next, we'll speak to a bitter rival of Vladimir Putin who has called Donald Trump a friend. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)