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EARLY START

Trump Makes U.N. Debut Today; Emmy Awards Get Political; North Korea Crisis; Russia Investigations Heats Up; Equifax Executives Step Down After Breach; London Subway Bombing; Three Storms Raging In Atlantic. Aired 4-4:30a ET

Aired September 18, 2017 - 04:00   ET

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


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[04:00:07] UNIDENTIFIED MALE: ...where he face the tremendous opportunity others will reach. So many world leaders at the same time.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I personally thanks the right people. Hugs the right people and comes out with U.S. being very strong in the end.

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CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN HOST: Today, President Trump makes his debut at the United Nations general assembly. How will the president America first message be received by the U.N. World first mission?

DAVID BRIGGS, CNN HOST: And politics taking center stage at last night's Emmy awards in a surprise cameo by Sean Spicer left the Hollywood silence, the audience stunned, they were certainly not silent. Good morning everyone. Welcome to "Early start." I'm Dave Briggs. Hollywood was divided on whether Sean Spicer should be laughed at or laughed with at this point.

ROMANS: It was a big night but Sean Spicer there. I'm Christine Romans. It is Monday September 18 4:00 a.m. President Trump headed to the United Nations on the eve of a highly anticipated address to the general assembly. There is a lot on the line for the President who has been a frequent critic of the U.N. Last December President elect Trump twitted United Nations had such a great potential, but right now it is just a club for people to get together, talk and have a good time. So sad.

BRIGGS: Today the President has meetings scheduled with the French President and Israel Prime Minister Netanyahu before hosting a working dinner with Latin American leaders with all that is going on, the President still finding time to tweet often. Very often. On Sunday morning he retweeted a video that appeared to him knocking over Hillary Clinton with a golf ball. And yet another, he gave a new cute nickname to Kim Jong-un. Get more from CNN's Athena Jones.

ATHENA JONES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning Christine and Dave. This is a huge week for President Trump. He is taking his first turn on the most high profile stage in the world. We're talking about 193 member nations taking part in the U.N. general assembly this week. A lot of the world leaders are eager to take the measure of President Trump and what kind of message he delivers when he speaks before them on Tuesday. Specifically given the fact Trump has been a critic of the United Nations. He said the U.N. was not a friend of democracy, not a friend to freedom and the United States. It's not clear how much he is going to be tempering that criticism when he speaks on Tuesday. We did get a little bit of a preview from his nation security adviser H.R. McMaster speaking on "Fox News" Sunday. Watch.

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H.R. MCMASTER, NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER: He thinks the speech is a tremendous opportunity to reach so many world leaders at same time and emphasize three themes. First, protect the American people. Promote American prosperity and the third is really to help promote accountability and sovereignty.

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JONES: So there you heard General McMaster say this is a tremendous opportunity for the president to address so many gather of world leaders. It's also a chance for world leaders to hear from the President about how he is going to promote this America first agenda that we've heard him talk so much about. How he is going to promote that at a meeting of a global organization that is aimed at solving global challenges together. One key meeting is a lunch on Thursday with the leaders of South Korea and Japan. The key topic there, North Korea and its nuclear provocations. Christine, Dave?

ROMANS: All right Athena Jones thank you so much. A key part of the President's address to the world leaders tomorrow night will be the North Korea threat, nuclear threat, especially in light of last week's ballistic launch over northern Japan from Pyongyang. For more on this we turn to CNN Global Affairs Correspondent Elise Labott.

ELISE LABOTT, CNN GLOBAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: Well Dave, Christine, we do expect the nuclear threat from North Korea to feature prominently in the President's address to the U.N. General assembly on Tuesday. To top the agenda during his meetings with other world leaders. This annual U.N. gathering comes on the heels as you know, of North Korea's latest missile launch last week over Japan. That was in defiance of new U.N. Security council sanctions which were imposed because of North Korea's nuclear test earlier this month. You do see the Trump administration ratcheting up the pressure and rhetoric on North Korea. On Sunday the President alluded to those fresh U.N. sanctions, taking a swipe at the North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in a tweet saying, quote I spoke to President Moon on South Korea last night, asked him how rocket man is doing.

[04:05:00] Long gas lines forming in North Korea. Too bad. His top national security officials fanned out across the Sunday morning talk shows, U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Nikki Haley told CNN's Dana Bash on state of the union that the U.S. Security Council is close to running out of options and containing North Korea nuclear program and the United States may have to turn the matter over to the Pentagon. Take a listen.

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NIKKI HALEY, U.S. AMBASSADOR TO THE UNITED NATIONS: I think we all know that basically if North Korea keeps on with this reckless behavior, if the United States has to defend itself or it allies in any way, North Korea will be destroyed. We all know that and none of us want that none of us want war.

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LABOTT: Despite the hard line, I think this week you will see officials continuing to press up world leaders to turn up the pressure on North Korea to find a diplomatic solution. Dave, Christine.

BRIGGS: Elise thanks. President Trump keeping the lines of communication open this weekend with South Korean President Moon Jae- in. The two leaders agreed to intensify sanctions against North Korea after the latest ballistic missile test. Let's go live to Seoul. Let's us bring in CNN Ian Lee good morning to you. Diplomats from both North Korea and South Korea will be in the audience for the speech on Tuesday. What should they expect to hear?

IAN LEE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Dave. For the South Koreans, they're expecting more talk of unity and strength with their allies United States and Japan during this crisis. You'll likely hear more talk about sanctions and pressure. For the North Koreans, that is what they're going to probably be expecting as well, although they won't be as receptive to that sort of talk. And we heard from Korean state media recently saying that Kim Jong-un has called for an equilibrium of real force with the U.S. and make the U.S. rulers dare not to talk about military options against the state of North Korea. So you're having tough talk there from the north. Talking about an equilibrium would be difficult to match the U.S. pound for pound. But when it comes to the region it could be an arms race. If North Korea continues its nuclear program like that here in South Korea there's talks of either South Korea developing its own nuclear weapon or bringing in American nuclear weapons although the President has said he is still committed to a denuclearized peninsula. But it does make for a dangerous situation and the United States saying time is running out for a peaceful solution. Dave.

BRIGGS: And interesting op-ed in the New York Times solidarity against the North Korea threat, check that out on their website, Ian thanks.

ROMANS: All right the Russia investigations appears to be ramping up, President Trump's personal attorney Michael Cohen tells CNN he expects to appear before the senate intelligence committee on Tuesday. Cohen under scrutiny reaching out to the Russian government about a possible Trump tower in Moscow during the presidential campaign.

BRIGGS: And the "New York times" reporting the President's legal team is wrestling with how much cooperation to give Special Counsel Robert Mueller. He is now in possession of Russian linked ads ta ran on Facebook during the election. Mueller's team obtained a search warrant to get those ads. ROMANS: Politics taking center stage at last night's Emmy awards.

Host Stephen Colbert getting some lashed that the expense of the president by poking fun of his obsession with winning.

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STEPHEN COLBERT, LATE NIGHT HOST: Even during the campaign, Trump would not let it go. This actually happened. This exchange actually happened in the debate.

HILLARY CLINTON, FORMER SECRETARY OF STATE: There was even a time when he didn't get an Emmy for his TV program three years in a row and he started tweeting the Emmys were rigged.

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Should have gotten it.

COHEN: But he didn't. Because unlike the presidency, Emmys go to the winner of the popular vote.

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ALEC BALDWIN, ACTOR: I suppose I should say at long last, Mr. President, here is your Emmy.

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BRIGGS: Certainly the theme of the night, Alec Baldwin jabbing Trump after winning Emmy for his portrayal of President Trump on Saturday Night Live. The award show also pulling out the major surprise, Sean Spicer stunning the audience.

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COLBERT: Unfortunately, at this point, we have no way of knowing how big our audience is. Is there anyone who can say how big the audience is? Shaun, do you know?

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BALDWIN: This will be the largest audience to witness an Emmy, period. Both in person and around the world.

[04:10:06] COLBERT: Wow. That really suite my fragile ego. I can understand why you'd want one of these guys around. Melissa McCarthy, everybody, give it up.

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BRIGGS: I don't think Shaun expected that Melissa McCarthy jab near the end. The other winners include the hand maid's tail for best drama series. Nicole Kidman best actress and Big little lies and comedian Julia Louis-Dreyfus making history with the sixth Emmy for "v." ROMANS: Yes most Emmy's for a single role, Lena Waithe made history

for co-writing the thanksgiving episode of master of none. A really great show.

BRIGGS: Julia Louis-Dreyfus took a shot at President Trump as you might expect as well. Very political night.

ROMANS: All right executives are out in the wake of that huge security fail. Equifax's chief information officer and security officer are retiring immediately. The breach exposed the financial data are millions of Americans. They are now under federal investigation and troubling new information about how the problem was found and how it could have been prevented. A flaw in a web application tool. The maker of that tool says Equifax could have prevented the leak. Apache group discovered the flaw in March, several month before the hack and provided Equifax with a patch. Too fix it. Apache blames Equifax were not installing in a timely manner. Equifax admitted to CNN it knew about the vulnerability, but waited until it found suspicious activity to take actions. After the breach. 143 million people's information breached. Patching software in big corporations does take time. They tell us Equifax should have moved faster.

BRIGGS: We can all agree on that. No question. Second arrest has been made in the connection of the bombing of a London underground train on Friday that left 30 injured. Live to London, next.

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[04:16:16] BRIGGS: Two arrests over the weekend in connection with the Parson's Green subway attack in London. Police still searching for other possible suspects. Friday's terrorist incidentally leave 30 people injured. On Sunday they lowered the national threat level from critical to severe. Let's go live to London and bring in CNN Nina Dos Santos for the very latest. Nina good morning to you, what do we make of that terror threat level being returned to where it was before this attack.

NINA DOS SANTOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning. Well what it means in terms of the investigation is that officers probably believe they have everybody who could be an imminent danger to the public linked to this investigation within their sights. They had apprehended two suspects over the course of the weekend, an 18 year old man and 21- year-old man both having spent time in the care of a foster family, an elderly couple who had been fostering hundreds of children over the years including refugee children coming from places like war-torn Syria and Iraq. That property is the focal point to the police investigation now going on for a third day. There has been a second property also to the west of London, this time in a village called Stanwell that has been under lockdown as well. We don't know what the link is with one of those individuals. Authorities staying tight lipped about the identity of these two people they currently have. Holding them in a south London police station and questioning them under the terrorist. They have extra time to question them before they have to be charge. Dave.

BRIGGS: Nina Dos Santos live for us in London. Thank you.

ROMANS: All right just as the Caribbean was beginning to recover from hurricane Irma, there's now another dangerous storm heading directly for the island. Hurricane Maria is now strengthening. Expected to be a major category 4 hurricane. Latest forecast next.

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[14:22:48] ROMANS: Florida Governor Rick Scott and health and human services secretary Tom Price meet today with local officials in Monroe County, that is the Keys to discuss relief effort in the wakes od hurricane Irma. Residents of the lower keys finally allowed to return to their homes on Sunday more than a week after fleeing by some estimates a quarter of the homes are destroyed. Three storms are currently raging in the Atlantic and hurricane Maria, this hurricane is taking aim at the Caribbean again. Meteorologist Pedram Javaheri has the forecast for us.

PEDRAM JAVAHERI, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Good morning Dave and Christine. We're watching a storm system hurricane Maria that could intensify very rapidly. Notice the threat very high for Dominica, Guadalupe. We had Irma take that northerly track and make landfall last week. This storm system has more of a southerly track but could potentially intensify to category 4 as early as Tuesday night and make a landfall in eastern Puerto Rico. And model guide on this very confident in the initial track around Puerto Rico. Watching this for six or seven days out. A lot to change. We also watched hurricane Jose. Right now, a tropical storm watch. The models bring in uncomfortably close towards eastern Massachusetts, but notice another turn expected before it meanders further potentially off shore.

ROMANS: All right Pedram will be back every half hour. There's a 5:00 advisory so we will have more information in a little half the hour.

BRIGGS: At this point, it's a long way out but national hurricane center. Ahead all eyes on the president taste as he makes his debut in U.N. general assembly. President message coming at a critical time during this North Korean nuclear crisis and the Trump administration again laying all options.

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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I said yesterday I'm perfectly happy to kick this over to General Mattis, because he has plenty of military options.

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[04:29:05] UNIDENTIFIED MALE: But he thinks it has a tremendous opportunity obviously the reach so many world leaders at the same time.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I personally think he slaps the right people and hugs the right people and comes out with U.S. being very strong in the end.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BRIGGS: Who will he slap and hug? Today President Trump makes his debut at the United Nations general assembly. How will the America's first message to be received by the U.N. world first mission?

ROMANS: Politics took center stage at last night's Emmy awards, a surprise came by that guy Sean Spicer left the Hollywood audience stunned. Welcome back to "Early start." I am Christine Roman.

BRIGGS: And with the cameras, they are ready with all their political character shots. I'm Dave Briggs, 30 minutes past the hour. We'll play you more political jabs at the Emmys last night in just a bit. First all eyes on President Trump as he heads to the U.N. on the eve of his first address to the general assembly. A lot on the line for this President. Who's been a frequent critic of the United Nations? Last December President elect tweeted this, United Nations has such great...