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EARLY START
The Hunt for ISIS: Obama's Strategy; Mystery Virus Infects Children; NBA Owner on the Way Out
Aired September 8, 2014 - 04:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN ANCHOR: The hunt for ISIS. President Obama promising a strategy to take down the terror organization, how he plans to do it -- as the U.S. launches new airstrikes in Iraq. And we learn new information about the British man ISIS has threatened to kill next. Live team coverage ahead.
Children sick from Colorado to Georgia. A rare respiratory virus infecting hundreds of kids. Why the CDC is so concerned and warns this may be just the tip of the iceberg.
Another NBA owner on the way out for offensive remarks on race. Bruce Levenson apologizing and selling his share of the Atlanta Hawks. What he said and what's next for that team ahead.
Good morning. Welcome to EARLY START. I'm Christine Romans. John Berman is off this morning. It is Monday, September 8th. It is 4:00 a.m. in the East.
Let's begin with President Obama's plan to take down ISIS. On the day before 9/11 and two days from now, the President Obama will address the nation. He is expected to announce a phase military campaign that could take three years to complete. And the president is already hinting he has no plan to seek congressional approval for his plan.
We get more this morning from Erin McPike.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ERIN MCPIKE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A looming question we expect Wednesday's speech to answer, Christine, is will the president propose airstrikes in Syria? It would be trickier than in Iraq because the U.S. does not support the Syrian government. We expect that the speech will layout the fine print of his strategy. And to that end, will he seek congressional approval? It's hard to tell so far.
Listen to how he couched that on NBC's "Meet the Press".
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I am going to be asking Congress to make sure that they understand and support what our plan is and it's going to require some resources, I suspect, above what we are currently doing. MCPIKE: Now, some members of Congress may not want to be on the
record with a vote like that just two months before the mid-term elections, but there are members of Congress who say congressional approval is necessary or important, like Texas Senator Ted Cruz who was on ABC yesterday.
SEN. TED CRUZ (R), TEXAS: It should absolutely take congressional approval.
MCPIKE: Now, the president also said he wants the American people to understand why ISIS poses a direct threat and that the U.S. has the capacity to deal with it. We keep hearing that the American public is so war-weary. But as far as ISIS is concerned, there has been virtually no polling, so it's unclear what the American people think and that is why President Obama has to make this case -- Christine.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ROMANS: All right. Erin McPike this morning -- thanks, Erin.
Meanwhile, the U.S. is ramping up airstrikes in Iraq, trying to stop is extremists from seizing a critical dam on the Euphrates River. If the Haditha dam falls to the extremists, this could literally open the floodgates on Baghdad.
I want to bring in Jomana Karadsheh, live from Baghdad this morning.
Another critical piece of infrastructure they're trying to defend this morning.
JOMANA KARADSHEH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Christine, for several weeks now and months, officials tell us that the ISIS militants in Anbar province have been trying to capture the Haditha dam, and the city of Haditha. If you recall, much of Anbar province has been under control of the ISIS, cities there like Fallujah have been under the control of ISIS for months now since January.
But, Haditha and the dam have been under control of the Iraqi security forces and Sunni tribes in the region. But this has not stopped ISIS extremists who have surrounded that area trying to capture it. And officials told us their immediate concern has been these continuous attacks that have been launched against the dam they say that the ISIS militants have carried out attacks like mortar strikes around the dam. And they were really concerned that this could damage the dam and caused flooding, that they said would be catastrophic for Anbar province, and also possibly reaching Baghdad. So, this has been their concern.
That is why on Sunday morning, they launched this ground offensive with the backing of the U.S. airstrikes. They say they have managed to make progress taking out some ISIS positions. The focus of the operation and this offensive has been a district called Barwanah. That's about six miles west of Haditha. That is what they say has been the launch pad. This is where ISIS militants have been using this area to carry out their strikes. So far, it's an ongoing operation. Iraqi security forces are saying
they are making some advances so far. Really, an expansion of the U.S. military air campaign a month since it started. It was focused up in the north where we saw much of the airstrikes taking place. And this is the first time that we know of publicly that U.S. airstrikes are taking place in that key Anbar province, bordering Syria and also considered to be the Sunni heartland.
ROMANS: All right. Jomana Karadsheh this morning for us in Baghdad -- thank you, Jomana.
A new detail this morning about the British hostage David Haines. ISIS, of course, threatening to kill this man, a long time aid worker. He can be seen at the end of the video of the journalist Steve Sotloff's beheading. And all of this hitting close to home for the England Muslim population.
Karl Penhaul monitoring developments live from London for us this morning.
Hi, Karl.
KARL PENHAUL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Christine, there's a real sense that the clock is ticking down for David Haines. He is a man in his 40s from Scotland. He was kidnapped by ISIS fighters back in March of 2013. He was working for French aid group at the time, helping out with tents, with delivering water and food to some of the refugee populations, some of the displaced inside Syria close to the Turkish border.
No word on any government efforts to try and negotiate his way out or perhaps rescue him. The government said that all options are on the table. But as you look at him and also look at the execution who is believed to be British as well -- well, people in Britain are saying what is in the mindset of Britons who head to Syria to fight for ISIS.
And over the weekend, I was talking to the family of the man who became Britain's first suicide bomber back in February. They were describing he was a normal person by all accounts. Not really within the profile you would expect. He was a Pakistani origin. His parents were Pakistani, but he was born and bred just outside London. He was in his 40s. He had a wife and three children.
He initially went to Syria to help out with an aid project, traveling with one of the many aid convoys that go there. And then, at the refugee camps, that is where he met either ISIS or al Nusra fighters from the al Qaeda faction. His family really never had any idea he was going to blow himself to bits on the attack on the Aleppo jail.
But this is what he told them in the last phone call.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HAFEEZ MAJID, BROTHER OF SUICIDE BOMBER: He said that he loved us all very, very much. And he said I know you are looking after the family and you are doing a very good job. And that, you know, if I had done any wrongs in my life, that I hope maybe you can forgive me for those wrongs.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PENHAUL: So, his family painted a rather complex portrait of why this man may have headed out to Syria, to fight for these jihadi units. This is what the British government now is trying to understand why the citizens are going out and also how to stop them -- Christine.
ROMANS: Just remarkable, Karl, to think of somebody born and raised there and then to end their life like that on the battlefield far away. Karl Penhaul, thanks for bringing that.
The State Department launching a massive social media blitz against ISIS by using terror group's own propaganda footage. They are hoping a video entitled "Welcome to the Islamic state land" will hurt ISIS recruitment of U.S. citizens. Right now, more than 100 Americans travel overseas to join ISIS.
Now, the video contains graphic images of beheadings, beatings, suicide bombings, urging viewers to think again and turn away from the terror organization.
Meanwhile, Secretary of State John Kerry is heading to the Middle East as early as today to strengthen the coalition against ISIS.
Congress is back in session today with the full plate of issues and not a whole lot of time. Republican leaders say they expect to meet with White House officials to discuss ISIS militants and whether to attack them in Syria. President Obama hasn't asked Congress for a vote on it. Republicans also plan to formally complain about the president's handling of the Bowe Bergdahl trade for five Taliban prisoners. Some lawmakers claim they did not get enough notice.
There is likely to be some back-and-forth over immigration. The president announcing he won't take any executive action on that issue until after the midterm elections.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I'm going to act because it's the right thing for the country. But it's going to be more sustainable and more effective if the public understands what the facts are on immigration and what we have done on unaccompanied children and why it's necessary.
SEN. MARCO RUBIO (R), FLORIDA: Last year, we tried to do that through a one-size-fits-all comprehensive approach, it didn't work. We don't have the support for that. The only way we're going to be able to address it and I believe we should is through a sequence of bills.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROMANS: Congress also debates a bill to fund the government until December. With critical midterms coming out with the balance power in the Senate, a stake both parties are likely to avoid any drama that could cost them in November. Time for an EARLY START on your money.
Stocks around the world is mix this Monday morning. U.S. stock futures pointing lower. It seems like nothing can hold this bull market down. The S&P 500 ended last week at a record high. The market climbing now for more than 2,000 days. This is the fourth longest rally in the last century.
General Motors taking a big step to the self driving car. The CEO Mary Barra announced GM will roll out a vehicle with semi autopilot mode about two years. It will drive itself by talking to other vehicles using new information sharing technology and using sensors. The system called super cruise will be first available in a 2017 Cadillac. Google, Mercedes Benz, Nissan and others are working on self driving cars. Fully automated vehicles are still thought, though, to be years away.
All right. Hundreds of children in Missouri hospitalized by a respiratory virus has health officials scrambling for answers this morning. Doctors say this could be the tip of the iceberg. Ten states from Colorado to Kentucky contacting the CDC for assistance, fearful this virus could spread. In Kansas City, dozens of children hospitalized daily, 15 percent of them in intensive care.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MARY ANN JACKSON, DOCTOR: It has been associated with clusters of respiratory virus illness, so that piece was well-known. But the clusters that have been seen in the past and reported have been small clusters of maybe 25 or 30 patients. We were seeing that many cases in a day.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROMANS: Health officials in Colorado, Illinois and Ohio are now reporting cases, with similar symptoms to this outbreak in Missouri.
A new warning about Ebola. What President Obama is now saying about the deadly virus.
Plus, the owner of the Atlanta Hawks selling the team after his offensive racially charged e-mails are made public. What Bruce Levenson is now saying, after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROMANS: Fourteen minutes past the hour.
President Obama warning the Ebola virus could mutate if it's not controlled. He calls the pandemic in Africa a huge national security priority. Mr. Obama's comments come as the White House requests $30 million from Congress to pay for the CDC's efforts to combat the deadly outbreak. So far, at least 2,200 people in the region have been sickened and those numbers could rise, that's because Ebola clinics in places like Liberia don't have enough space and people are being turned away. In a desperate move, officials in Sierra Leone are issuing a three-day
lockdown. Residents will be forced to stay on their homes beginning Friday, and also doctors can treat people through door-to-door screenings.
Meanwhile, the vaccine to cure Ebola is showing promise on monkeys, but researchers say the animals needed a booster shot for longer protection.
And the third American doctor infected with Ebola is recovering. Dr. Rick Sacra is being treated in a Nebraska hospital with an experimental drug different than the ones being treated with the two other Americans.
The grand jury in the Michael Brown shooting case still working through the evidence. They've been meeting every Wednesday and the tem is set to expire this week, but they will continue their work until they determine whether to indict Officer Darren Wilson. The six-year veteran officer of the Ferguson Police Department could face charges of murder or manslaughter unless it is determined he acted in self defense. Wilson gunned down unarmed 18-year-old Michael Brown on August 9th, setting off weeks of protests in Ferguson.
A young California boy viciously attacked by a mountain lion. This happened yesterday afternoon as the 6-year-old boy was hiking with his family on a trail near Cupertino, South San Francisco. Officials say the animal lunged at the child, dragged him away from his father. Another man jumped even in to fight off the lion.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The cat did make contact with the boy, did end up taking up to a brushy area. His parents did fight the animal off and the boy is in the hospital right now.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROMANS: Wow. The boy suffered no life threatening injuries and is expected to recover.
The battle over same-sex marriage back in court today. A federal appeals court in San Francisco will hear arguments on gay marriage bans in Hawaii, Nevada and Idaho. The same court struck down California's ban on gay marriage in 2012. More than a dozen state bans on same sex marriage had been overturned this year. The Supreme Court is expected to take up this issue in its next session.
Southern California drenched by storms. Up to 2 inches of rain in an hour falling in some areas, as remnants of the tropical storm Norbert, causing some flash flooding in riverside. Rising waters closing sections of I-215. Emergency crews called in with more than 70 cars stranded.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It was unreal how the water was coming down. So, I was hoping my car wasn't going to stall out, you know, in that water and gosh, again, it's just unreal to look at this and see this.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROMANS: The rains had little impact, though, on California's extended drought. Even after Sunday's storms, Riverside County remains well below its average rainfall for the year.
Yosemite National Park on fire, flames burning 7,000 feet, forcing 100 hikers to be evacuated by helicopter. Weekend winds spreading the fire, over 700 acres now, seven choppers and a plane and more than 100 firefighters are battling that blaze to Yosemite.
The controlling owner of the NBA's Atlanta Hawks selling his interest in the team after admitting he sent an offensive e-mail that some are calling racists. Bruce Levenson admitted to the league in July, he sent an e-mail to team management two years ago, insisting the Hawks fan base was, quote, "too heavily African-American."
More now from CNN's Nick Valencia.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NICK VALENCIA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: This started for Bruce Levenson back in 2012 when he wrote an e-mail to the Atlanta Hawks' leadership. He called it an inflammatory e-mail and we know that he self reported this to NBA league officials. What we don't know is what were the events that transpire to lead him to making this decision two years after that original e-mail was written?
We know the NBA had launched their own investigation and it was reported that Levenson perhaps did not want to put his family through that scrutiny that would go along with this investigation. We did reach out to Levenson and a man who answered the phone at his Maryland home, said he wasn't commenting to the media.
Now, to this e-mail. Let's take a look at what exactly what was said. We know that Levenson started off by blaming the Hawks low ticket sales on the majority black fan base. He goes on to say, "My theory is the black crowd scared away the whites and there are simply not enough affluent black fans to build a significant season ticket base. Please don't get me wrong. There was nothing threatening going on in the arena back then. I never felt uncomfortable. But I think Southern whites simply were not comfortable being in an arena or at a bar where they were in the minority."
Now, some find this situation that Levenson is in as ironic. Earlier this year, he was on CNN's "SITUATION ROOM" with Wolf Blitzer, blasting the then-owner of the L.A. Clippers Donald Sterling for the racist rant he went on earlier this year. Take a listen to Levenson's comments here.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BRUCE LEVENSON, HAWKS OWNER: When something like this happens, we quickly and we loudly and we clearly reject it. The fans spoke up. The players spoke up. Our NBA business partners spoke up. And every NBA owner spoke up. Nobody said this was OK.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VALENCIA: Now, we did talk to fans in the Atlanta area. And many condemned it. Others, though, said that this might be a ploy to Levenson to raise the value of his team. It's worth nothing that Donald Sterling made a lot of money after he sold his team. Perhaps, this could be the same situation for Levenson.
What we do know is that when Levenson bought the Hawks in 2004. It was estimated value of about $200 million. The team now, 10 years later and playoff appearances, the estimated value is $425 million -- Christine.
ROMANS: All right. Nick Valencia, thanks for that.
A star-studded affair fit for a queen. A final farewell for comedic legend Joan Rivers after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROMANS: All right. Twenty-four minutes past the hour.
She didn't get Meryl Streep crying in five different accents, like she wanted, but Joan Rivers did get the glitzy showbiz sendoff that she wanted. A host of household names from Donald Trump to Barbara Walters to Howard Stern packed Temple Emanu-El in New York to pay final respects to this woman who blazed so many trails, burned a few bridges and kept people laughing for almost half a century. The service was filled with songs from Broadway stars like Hugh Jackman and plenty humor to balance the tears.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DEBORAH NORVILLE, TELEVISION ANCHOR/HOST: It was Joan all the way. The sanctuary is filled with white Phalaenopsis orchids. You can't see the altar because there are so many flowers. She planned every step of it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROMANS: Rivers died last week following a surgical procedure on her throat. New York health officials are now investigating the clinic that performed it.
President Obama promising he has a plan to fight ISIS. How he expects to do it and why it could be a long battle. We're live after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
