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EARLY START

Trump Versus Bush; Bangkok Bombing Manhunt Widens; Deadly Police Shooting Ignites Protests. Aired 4-4:30a ET

Aired August 20, 2015 - 04:00   ET

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


[04:00:16] CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN ANCHOR: New Hampshire is the battleground for Republican presidential candidates Donald Trump and Jeb Bush, leading the pack at dueling town hall events, focusing their attacks on each other.

The manhunt widening in the Bangkok bomb blast. Police now hunting for at least 10 people involved in that deadly explosion. We are live ahead.

And breaking overnight: chaos in the streets of St. Louis. Protests erupt after an officer-involved shooting. We've got those details ahead.

Good morning, and welcome to EARLY START. I'm Christine Romans. It is Thursday, August 20th. It is 4:00 a.m. in the East.

Good morning, everyone. John Berman has the morning off.

Let's begin this morning with politics and two of the top presidential contenders, Republican presidential contenders, holding dueling town hall events. Donald Trump and Jeb Bush both in the key early voting state of New Hampshire, each getting their fair share of tough questions, both also taking the chance at taking shots at each other.

Did either do anything to improve his standing in the Republican polls?

CNN political reporter Sara Murray has more from New Hampshire.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SARA MURRAY, CNN POLITICAL REPORTER: Good morning, Christine.

Donald Trump held his first official town hall since becoming a presidential candidate here in Derry, New Hampshire, last night and it drew a big crowd, about 900 people packed into this venue to pepper him with questions, and hundreds of others were in an overflow room.

And the questions run the gamut, from immigration to illegal drug use, even to whether he has too much hubris to be president.

Now, on the top of Donald Trump's agenda was slamming his rival Jeb Bush. He went after him for being a low energy candidate. He went after him for his position on Common Core. He even went after him for having a small crowd at a nearby town hall.

DONALD TRUMP (R), 2016 PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Have I gotten under Jeb Bush's skin? I don't know. I will you tell this -- you mention the word skin and he said the other day one of the dumber thing I've heard ever in politics when talking about Iraq. That we, the United States, he said, have to show them that we have skin in the game, in order to go into Iraq. We've lost $2 trillion, thousands of lives, wounded warriors who I love all over the place, and he's talking about we have to show them we have skin in the game.

JEB BUSH (R), 2016 PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: You're talking about Trump, right? You can mention his name.

He is -- he is the current frontrunner. He has done a pretty amazing job to get to that point.

But here's a deal, we're a conservative party, aren't we, the Republican Party? I think what people will vote for is a proven conservative leader that's done it. Not talked about it. That's actually done it.

And I have a proven conservative record, consistent proven conservative record -- when no one was watching, longtime proven conservative record.

Mr. Trump doesn't have a proven conservative record. He was a Democrat longer in the last decade than he was a Republican. He has given more money to Democrats than he's given to Republicans.

MURRAY: Now, Donald Trump's next stop will be in Alabama later this week. And he gave us a little taste of what to expect saying, they already have tens of thousands of RSVPs. An aide to Donald Trump's campaign tells me they are moving the venue to a football stadium.

Back to you, Christine.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ROMANS: All right. Sara Murray for us in New Hampshire, thank you for that.

Now, Trump and Bush are not the only Republicans making their pitch to voters. Chris Christie, Carly Fiorina, John Kasich and Scott Walker all in New Hampshire as well. Some of those events lasting late into the night. They are focusing on selling their own credentials rather than bringing down other candidates.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GOV. CHRIS CHRISTIE (R-NJ), 2016 PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: You never wonder what I'm feeling. I'm going to show you. Third, you're never going to have to wonder what I'm willing to fight for because I'll fight for it. And fourth, you will never have to wonder how hard I'm willing to fight for it because you'll be able to see it with your own two eyes. CARLY FIORINA (R), 2016 PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: You will always know

what I think. You will always know what I believe. You will never get a sanitized sound byte from me or bumper sticker or rhetoric. I know what I believe. I know what I know. I won't falter and I will not shy away from a fight, which is why I can win that general election because I'll land every punch we need to land.

GOV. JOHN KASICH (R-OH), 2016 PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I have a record. When I talk it is not about what I am going to do. It is what I have already done. This is not just what I -- you know, here's what in theory what's going to happen. I have been able to do it.

GOV. SCOTT WALKER (R-WI), 2016 PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I'm not intimidated by anything. I'm not intimidated by protesters. I'm not intimidated by big government union bosses. I'm not intimidated by Democrats. And a lot of people notice, but I'm not intimidated by my own party's establishment because before I took all the rest of them on, I took on the establishment of my own party. I'll take on them in Washington, and anybody else who stands in the way of defending the American people.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMANS: Jeb Bush, Carly Fiorina and Scott Walker remained in New Hampshire today for meet and greet and town hall events there.

[04:05:02] Donald Trump is off the campaign trail until tomorrow.

Marco Rubio looking for support in the key state of Michigan. He will speak before the Detroit Economic Club about his plan to turn around struggling urban cities. Rick Santorum will be in Washington, D.C. to address an audience and take questions at the National Press Club.

An attorney for Hillary Clinton now confirming her personal server was wiped clean before it was turned over to the FBI. The acknowledgment comes in a letter to Senator Ron Johnson, chairman of the Homeland Security Committee.

Clinton's campaign also acknowledging there was information in the server now classified. But an important distinction, that information wasn't classified at the time it was received. That's according to her campaign, which is even pointing to a FOX News report to make its case. In one case, e-mail is marked sensitive, but unclassified. The other case, the material contains no marking.

The Clinton campaign trying to focus on the race on 2016 and possibility of an expanding field with the calls growing for Joe Biden to enter the race. A spokesman for Clinton now says he'd be a welcome addition.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BRIAN FALLON, SPOKESMAN FOR HILLARY CLINTON: Hillary Clinton herself and everybody affiliated with her campaign has deep respect and admiration for Vice President Joe Biden. There are a number of people on the campaign who worked for him directly. So, there's deep admiration and respect for him. He has more than earned the opportunity to take his time and make a decision. We are just going to continue to operate our campaign in the way that we always have, which is to presume we're going to have a competitive race regardless of what the rest of the field looks like.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMANS: Biden advisors have told him to make a decision by October 1.

More anger from opponents of the Iran deal after the revelation that Iran will inspect one of its own military sites. The deal was first reported by "The Associated Press". It says inspections of the Parchin site would be governed by separate agreements. Those deals are between Iran and the U.N.'s nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency. The West has long believed that site was used for covert nuclear military activity.

The State Department now trying to downplay those new concerns.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOHN KIRBY, STATE DEPARTMENT SPOKESMAN: The IAEA also has in place the most robust set of inspections, an inspection regime that has ever been peacefully negotiated with another nation. So, I will not talk about the details of these leaked documents or these draft documents from the IAEA. But I'll just tell you that we are comfortable, Secretary Kerry is very comfortable that the IAEA will have access and information that it needs to make a proper accounting of possible military dimensions for Iran's program.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMANS: Meantime, U.S. officials now voicing concerns Russia is moving ahead with plans to sell Iran a sophisticated missile defense system. The S-300 could damage Washington's ability to challenge Tehran's air space.

President Obama heading to New Orleans next week to mark the tenth anniversary of Hurricane Katrina. The president is expected to praise those who have a hand in the so-called rebirth of hard hit New Orleans and the Gulf Coast regime. The storm caused massive destruction and killed more than 1,800 people when it ripped through the Gulf region in 2005.

Eight minutes past the hour. Time for an early start on your money this Thursday morning.

Asian stocks are much lower. Shanghai down 3.4 percent. More of those big volatile swings we have seen in Chinese stocks.

European and U.S. stock futures down, too.

The Dow lost 162 points yesterday. The Federal Reserve indicating it is close to raising interest rates, but some want more improvement in the economy.

A big drag on stocks, oil. Oil prices tumbled 4 percent yesterday after a government report showing U.S. crude stockpiles rose.

Oil stocks were the biggest losers. Energy giant Chevron and Exxon both fell another 2 percent. Look at some of these names. Smaller companies like Marathon Oil and Chesapeake Energy plunged even further. Yesterday, one leading market strategist telling CNN Money, hey, you could see oil prices go to $15 or $20 a barrel.

Breaking overnight, fires are set as protesters march through the streets of St. Louis. All this sparked by a deadly police-involved shooting. Those details next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[04:12:10] ROMANS: All right. Breaking overnight in Thailand, police say the deadly attack on the shrine is not the work of a lone wolf. Police saying it must have taken ten people to carry out that carnage. Officials also saying it does not appear to be an active international terrorism. So, how are they reaching these conclusions?

I want to bring in CNN's Saima Mohsin live from Bangkok.

Saima, what are authorities zeroing in on here?

SAIMA MOHSIN, CNN CORRESONDENT: Well, Christine, we are trying to get to the bottom of exactly how they worked all of this out. Now, if we take a look at what they confirmed to us so far, we don't have any claims of responsibility. So, usually if it is an international network of terrorists, a major terrorist organization, they claim responsibility immediately. They want that level of power and fear to be instilled.

Of course, we don't have that. So, what we think is the Thai police are working on the process of elimination really. But since you and I last spoke yesterday morning, I have spoken directly with the police spokesman late last night, and he told me beyond that man in the yellow shirt identified as the main suspect, they identified two men they believe are his accomplices inside the shrine.

Now, one of them is the man in the white shirt, the other in the red shirt, on that CCTV footage. They are clearly standing in front of the man in the yellow shirt. Police believe to block him from view of everyone else around him while he took his backpack off and planted it under the bench here, just a few meters away from me here.

Now -- so they believe they zeroed in on three men inside the shrine. But given the fact there was a bombing the next day and they needed some help getting to and from, or perhaps being housed areas, they believe there must have been a network of ten men.

They also asked, Christine, Interpol for their help. Now, they are not sure if the men are in the country or out of the country or their nationality.

I tried to push the police spokesman on this last night. He said I don't know their nationality, I don't know their culture, their religion. So, they are not working with a lot of information. It really is a process of elimination.

But they are asking other countries for their help. They are asking Interpol for their help and they are now reviewing CCTV footage. Not just in this area, Ramkhamhaeng Soi (ph), but beyond in other parts of the city as well -- Christine.

ROMANS: All right. Saima Mohsin, thanks for that. Keep us posted as if anything develops this morning. Thank you, Saima.

All right. Back here, a tense scene on the streets of St. Louis. Police confronting dozens of protesters, firing smoke and tear gas into the crowd just hours after a fatal officer-involved shooting.

[04:15:01] Authorities say the suspected, a black teenager, pointed a gun at officers as they tried to execute a search warrant.

St. Louis police chief says demonstrators ignored calls to disperse. Police forced to shield themselves as rocks, bricks and water bottles thrown their way.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHIEF SAM DOTSON, ST. LOUIS POLICE: At the intersection of Page and Walton, they blocked the intersection. As officers approached them to ask them to leave the intersection, glass bottles started to and bricks started to be thrown at officers. Officers had to use shields to protect themselves from the objects that were being thrown at them.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMANS: Nine people arrested. Protesters set a vacant house on fire near the scene of the police shooting and reportedly burned an American flag.

All right. Jared Fogle, once the face of the Subway sandwich chain, now an admitted child sex predator. The former pitchman now facing up to 12 1/2 years in prison. He is pleading guilty to possessing child pornography and having sex with minors.

We get more from CNN's Ryan Young in Indianapolis.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RYAN YOUNG, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Christine, a lot of interest in this case. In fact, the courtroom was packed. Everyone watching Jared Fogle. He sat there, looking very nervous as he faced the judge, answering the questions. But we do know he pled guilty to child pornography. In fact, now we know there are 14 victims involved in this case, and he plans to pay each victim $100,000.

We learned details about the fact that he would leave Indiana, go to New York and pay for sex with minors. And, of course, court documents coming out detailing some of these interactions.

JOSH MINKLER, U.S. ATTORNEY: Let's call this what it is. This is about using wealth, status and secrecy to illegally exploit children. JEREMY MARGOLIS, ATTORNEY: He has volunteered to make restitution to

those individuals who have been impacted by his behavior. He knows that restitution can't undo the damage that he's done, but he will do all in his power to try to make it right.

YOUNG: Of course, Jared Fogle well known for being the Subway spokesperson for 15 years. It is believed he is worth some $15 million. But as he left the court today, he did not seem like he wanted to be in the spotlight of the cameras.

We are learning more details of what he will face next. In fact, he will have home confinement before he finds out what he will face in terms of charges and how long he'll be in jail. The government can speak up to 15 years in prison for Jared Fogle. And, of course, as this case evolves, we'll continue to follow it -- Christine.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ROMANS: All right. Ryan Young, thanks for that, Ryan.

A tragedy on the fire lines out west. Three firefighters killed battling a wildfire in north Washington state. Four others were injured. Officials say the fire in the small town of Twisp exploded just after residents were told to evacuate.

In Oregon, a wildfire that's burned 48,000 acres still raging out of control. The state's governor surveyed the damage in Grant County where dozens of homes have been lost and residents are dismayed.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GOV. KATE BROWN (D), OREGON: It is a devastation up there. It's really horrible. My heart goes out to the families over the loss of their homes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I have no faith in any of our government leaders. We need to do more. We have the laws. This was completely preventable.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMANS: The entire state of Oregon is facing severe or extreme drought conditions. Some 200 active duty military personnel have been deployed to help fight wildfires in seven western states.

Now, let's get to meteorologist Pedram Javaheri -- Pedram.

PEDRAM JAVAHERI, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Good morning, Christine.

Look at the fire conditions really led to a major problem in much of the western U.S. because the entire state of Idaho, and much of eastern Washington and Oregon and also parts of Montana dealing with air quality alerts, and the red flag warnings are prompted because we know a cold front is coming in. And actually, it does a pretty good job cooling the temperatures off. Unfortunately, it doesn't do much as far as bringing precipitation. So, the winds will be in place. That's a major, major issue.

And look how quickly it goes back up to the temperatures well above average. Seattle up to 85. Portland easily gets up to the 90s on Saturday and Sunday, while weather pattern this morning in Louisiana, 400 plus lightning strikes to tell you about, much of them kind of riding this southern parishes there, working their way towards areas of New Orleans in the next couple of hours. We are seeing some light to moderate showers in and around eastern Michigan.

But there is a front responsible for all of this. In the next 24 hours, as it crosses off towards the east, expect some windy conditions to pick up, certainly get on to some rain and also some thunderstorms into the afternoon hours of today as well.

But on a scale of 1 to 5, Christine, the severity of storms is a 1 here, with the main threat being for hail and winds and forecast across the northeast.

ROMANS: All right. Pedram Javaheri, thanks for that, Pedram.

Tom Brady could be on the verge of another come from behind win. A judge making clear that the suspension over deflategate is in jeopardy. The U.S. District Judge Richard M. Berman cited several weaknesses in the NFL's case. The judge is still pushing for a settlement, all sides are due back in court on August 31st if they can't reach a deal.

Donald Trump, one on one with CNN taking on Hillary Clinton. Why he says the former secretary of state's e-mail controversy will sink her candidacy. That's next.

(COMMERICAL BREAK)

[04:23:34] ROMANS: 2016 Republican frontrunner Donald Trump predicting Hillary Clinton's e-mail trouble will cause her the presidential election. He even tells CNN's Chris Cuomo, he thinks that it could be criminal in nature.

Watch.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: I think Hillary will have a hard time being in the election based on what's happening with the e-mails, the servers, maybe even the speeches. I think it's going to be a very hard thing for her to overcome.

When I look, Chris, what happened to Petraeus, on a much bigger level, great general, wonderful guy, everybody loves, and they destroyed his life over much less. I mean, in terms of confidentiality, in terms of importance, much less and far fewer. And it would seem hard to think anybody could have a much worse situation than him and escape.

CHRIS CUOMO, CNN ANCHOR: Well, the factual distinction would be that that was classified information with Petraeus and he knew it and he used it. Here, we do not know if Hillary Clinton was doing the wrong thing or mishandling classified information. Doesn't that matter?

TRUMP: It looks like it was and it looks like it was high level information. And what's the purpose of it? You know, it's always skirting the edge. What's the purpose of it?

In the end, she had something in mind. She didn't want people to know or something. But what is she doing? Why is she doing it?

CUOMO: You think this is going to really hurt her long time?

TRUMP: I think it's devastating. I think it's devastating for the election, but I think her bigger problem is not the election. I think her bigger problem is going to be the criminal problem.

[04:25:02] CUOMO: Really? You really think that this could turn out to be a criminal situation for Hillary Clinton? Because there is no reference from that from the investigators.

TRUMP: I don't think I'm the only one. I mean, the FBI is involved. They only do criminal. I don't think I'm the only one. Now, maybe it is somebody on her staff. But look, it's either criminal or it's incompetence. It's one or the other. It's either gross incompetence or criminal, and neither is acceptable to be president.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMANS: Donald Trump and Jeb Bush, they hold these dueling town hall meetings in New Hampshire. They are nine miles apart.

But the presidential candidates can't stop talking about each other. That's next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ROMANS: The race for president center stage in New Hampshire. Donald Trump and Jeb Bush competing for attention and attacking each other.

At least ten people believed to be behind the deadly bombing in Bangkok. We're live with new information on the manhunt.

Breaking overnight. Protests erupt on the streets of St. Louis. Buildings set on fire. Tear gas launched after a deadly officer involved shooting.

Welcome back to EARLY START. I'm Christine Romans. It is 29 minutes past the hour. Nice to see you all this morning.

Let's begin with politics in New Hampshire. Two of the top Republican presidential contenders holding town hall events just nine miles apart. Donald Trump and Jeb Bush both in the key early voting state of New Hampshire, each getting their fair share of tough questions, both also taking the chance to take shots at each other.

Did either do anything to gain support in the Republican Party?

CNN political reporter Sara Murray has more from New Hampshire. (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MURRAY: Good morning, Christine.

Donald Trump held his first official town hall since becoming a presidential candidate here in Derry, New Hampshire, last night and it drew a big crowd, about 900 people packed into this venue to pepper him with questions, and hundreds of others were in an overflow room.