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EARLY START

Senate Votes on Dueling Bills Today; U.S. Recognizes Venezuelan Opposition as Leader. Aired 4-4:30a ET

Aired January 24, 2019 - 04:00   ET

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


[04:00:18] CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN ANCHOR: Advantage Pelosi. The president calls off the State of the Union hours after vowing to deliver it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Did he keep -- make a deal to keep his wife out of trouble?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DAVE BRIGGS, CNN ANCHOR: Comments like that have Michael Cohen's family scared for their safety. Now Cohen delaying his testimony to Congress.

ROMANS: Iowa Senator Joni --

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SEN. JONI ERNST (R), IOWA: I was the same person as a week ago. The only difference is that you know more about me now than you did a week ago.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMANS: Iowa Senator Joni Ernst says she was not ready, but she is confronting painful memories of abuse and rape after they were publicized in divorce papers.

BRIGGS: And five people are dead after a gunman storms a bank in Florida.

Good morning, everyone, and welcome to EARLY START. I'm Dave Briggs.

ROMANS: And I'm Christine Romans. It is Thursday.

BRIGGS: Good morning.

ROMANS: Friday eve, January 24th, it is 4:00 a.m. in the East. Good morning, everyone.

The State of the Union address is on hold indefinitely. President Trump blinking in his high stakes battle with Nancy Pelosi. After a daylong power struggle with the House speaker the president actually backing away from a fight, remarkably tweeting this, "This is her prerogative. I will do the address when the shutdown is over. I'm not looking for an alternative venue. I look forward to giving a great State of the Union address in the near future."

BRIGGS: That rather stunning capitulation from the president coming 11 hours after he firmly vowed to somehow deliver the address from the House as planned, writing, quote, "It would be very sad for our country if the State of the Union were not delivered on time on schedule and very importantly on location." But Pelosi did not budge, refusing even to consider allowing a vote to let the president speak.

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REP. NANCY PELOSI (D), HOUSE SPEAKER: The government is still shut down. I still make the offer as for the mutually agreeable date, as the original date was, mutually agreeable so that we can welcome him properly.

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ROMANS: You might recall Pelosi initially claimed security was the reason for delaying the president's address. Here's what Mr. Trump had to say about postponing his speech.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: Nancy Pelosi, or Nancy as I call her, she doesn't want to hear the truth and she doesn't want it hear more importantly the American people hear the truth. So we just found out that she's canceled it and I think that's a great blotch on the incredible country that we all love. It's a great, great, horrible mark.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMANS: So the White House was caught off guard by Pelosi's pushback. CNN has learned the president's team believed the speaker was only suggesting the address be postponed so they decided to call her bluff. Pelosi pressing her advantage late last night, tweeting, "Mr. President, I hope by saying near future you mean you will support the House passed package to end the shutdown."

BRIGGS: Meanwhile day 34 of this partial government shutdown is dawning and there are signs the administration is bracing for the shutdown to go on for who knows how long. The "Washington Post" reporting that White House acting chief staff Mick Mulvaney has asked agency heads to list vital programs that would be jeopardized if the government remains closed into March or April.

The "Post" also reporting that House Democrats are prepared to back increased spending on border security, but not a wall. That is if the president agrees to reopen the government first.

ROMANS: The Senate is set to vote today on dueling bills that would do just that. Neither is expected to pass but there are signs a fracture within the GOP, at least one senator, Cory Gardner of Colorado, is expected to vote for the Democrats' clean bill that does not include border wall funding. And Ohio Senator Rob Portman also has concerns about this president's strategy.

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SEN. ROB PORTMAN (R), OHIO: I never believed that shutting down government provided leverage. One I think it's a bad idea to shut down government. The taxpayer ends up losing. Families of workers end up losing. The economy ends up getting hit. So it really doesn't make sense.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMANS: By the way, back pay owed to federal workers now tops $6 billion.

Our Manu Raju has more from Capitol Hill.

MANU RAJU, CNN SENIOR CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Christine and Dave. Now later today the Senate will vote on competing plans that would reopen the government, but both of those plans are expected to fall short of the 60 votes needed to reopen the government. The one plan being pushed by Republicans that would essentially implement what President Trump has been calling for, $5.7 billion, to fund his border wall, as well as some immigration changes including three years of protections for people under the Deferred Action Childhood Arrival program, the so-called Dreamers, to ensure that they don't get deported over the next three years.

Democrats say that that -- some of those changes that are being proposed as well as his demand for the border wall just simply they will not accept, they wouldn't want to discuss immigration until after the government is reopened.

[04:05:10] And the second plan essentially would do just that. It would reopen the government, punt any discussions about immigration, border security for the next three weeks, so in the beginning of February they could discuss again what they could do to come up with any sort of bipartisan deal on the border wall.

But Republicans are resisting that measure. So the big question is what happens next after these bills likely go down. There will be further discussions between members in the Senate on a bipartisan basis, but will they get support from their leadership? Will they get support from the White House? Will the president move forward and declare a national emergency? How will this be resolved? All uncertain.

House Democrats put this in, plan to continue to pass legislation that would reopen the government while Mitch McConnell, the Senate majority leader, has made clear, Christine and Dave, that he wouldn't take back -- he won't take up any bill that the president doesn't support. So it's unlikely that those will get passed in the Senate anytime soon -- Christine and Dave.

BRIGGS: All right. Manu, thanks.

For 800,000 federal employees, the end of this workweek means a second paycheck missed and that has all five former Homeland Security secretaries including newly departed White House chief of staff John Kelly very concerned. They co-signed a letter to the president and Congress that says, quote, "We write to you today with a simple message. Fund the critical mission of DHS." In addition to Kelly, two of those former secretaries served in the Obama era with two others from the Bush era.

ROMANS: One critical component of DHS is the TSA. And the shutdown taking an enormous toll on its agents. In Minneapolis, St. Paul, for example, they have been forced to support each other with this makeshift food bank at the airport. And air traffic controllers facing serious challenges, too.

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ALBERT NAVARRO, AIR TRAFFIC CONTROLLER: It does affect your sleep at night. How can you be well rested when you're not -- you don't know when the next time you're going to get paid. Pretend like your last paycheck was in December, and you do not know when you will get paid again.

PAUL RINALDI, PRESIDENT, AIR TRAFFIC CONTROLLERS' ASSOCIATION: The biggest toll I have right now is the human toll. The fatigue in my work environment right now where I'm seeing routine mistakes are actually happening because they are thinking about which credit cards can I consolidate up for zero interest, who is giving you a break on your phone bill, or which company is helping you out so you can skip your mortgage.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BRIGGS: Compelling. 87 accidents have not been investigated by the NTSB since the shutdown started, that includes plane, car and train accidents. And some of the nearly 6,000 Secret Service staffers coping without paychecks are carrying special challenge coins. They read in part, "United States Secret Service essential personnel."

ROMANS: One of the president's top economic advisers says the economy could show no growth in the first quarter if the shutdown drags on. The American economy essentially stalling in the first quarter because of the shutdown.

Listen to what White House Council of Economic Advisers chairman Kevin Hassett told our friend Poppy Harlow yesterday.

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POPPY HARLOW, CNN ANCHOR: Could we get zero growth? I just want to nail this down.

KEVIN HASSETT, CHAIRMAN: WHITE HOUSE COUNCIL OF ECONOMIC ADVISERS: Yes, we could.

HARLOW: We could. OK.

HASSETT: We could. Yes. HARLOW: Wow. All right. Wow.

HASSETT: If it extended for the whole quarter -- if it extended for the whole quarter, and given the fact that the first quarter tends to be low because of residual seasonality, then you could end up with a number very close to zero.

HARLOW: Yes.

HASSETT: In the first quarter.

HARLOW: You talk to the president --

HASSETT: But then again, the second quarter number would be humongous if the government reopened.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMANS: It's if the government reopens, I think he said there which is something that got a lot of attention yesterday. Hassett also said that he thought chances of the U.S. entering a recession in 2020 are close to zero.

Now some economists, though, are predicting a downturn maybe by next year. He pointed to strong job gains as a sign of a healthy economy.

Meanwhile Boeing is urging Washington to reach a deal to reopen the government warning that a prolonged shutdown could hurt its business and the entire aviation industry. Boeing along with other aerospace and defense firms are scheduled to report their earnings next week. But one after another you're hearing from these big companies, these important CEOs who are saying this is stupid, self-inflicted, it's going to hurt their business and there will not be a complete snapback in terms of getting all of the economic activity back if and when you reopen the government.

BRIGGS: Undermining President Trump's chief argument for re-election.

ROMANS: Yes.

BRIGGS: The strength of our economy.

Former Trump lawyer and fixer Michael Cohen is postponing his public congressional testimony scheduled for February 7th citing ongoing threats against his family. A source telling CNN Cohen's wife and father-in-law feel threatened by attacks from President Trump and his attorney, Rudy Giuliani.

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TRUMP: Did he make a deal to keep his wife who supposedly, maybe I'm wrong, but you can check it, did he keep -- make a deal to keep his wife out of trouble? He should give information maybe on his father- in-law because that's the one that people want to look at because where does that money -- that's the money in the family. RUDY GIULIANI, PRESIDENT TRUMP'S LAWYER: I'm telling you, come from

the Ukraine. The reason that's important is, he may have ties to something called organized crime.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[04:10:04] BRIGGS: The president was asked about the postponement Wednesday.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Michael Cohen today, he says he's been threatened by you and Mr. Giuliani. He and his family being threatened.

TRUMP: No, I would say he's been threatened by the truth. He's only been threatened by the truth.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMANS: Democrats meantime say not testifying is not an option for Cohen and they're considering whether to subpoena him.

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REP. ELIJAH CUMMINGS (D), OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE CHAIRMAN: We will get the testimony as sure as night becomes day and day becomes night.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMANS: Cohen reports to prison to begin his three-year sentence in March.

BRIGGS: For the first time Republican Senator Joni Ernst is speaking out about painful moments she endured in the past. The highest ranking woman in Republican Senate leadership and an Army combat veteran says she was forced out as a survivor of mental and physical abuse following public reports of her divorce papers earlier this week.

Ernst told Bloomberg News, quote, "I didn't want to share it with anybody. In the end of the era of the hashtag Me Too survivors, I always believe that every person is different and they will confront their demons when they are ready. I was not ready."

ROMANS: Ernst described a violent episode where her then husband Gail Ernst grabbed per by the throat and pounded her head. She also told Bloomberg News she was raped during her time as a student at Iowa State. Ernst said she has and always will work hard to support people who have been in her shoes.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ERNST: I have always been a strong proponent of working for those survivors of sexual assault and domestic violence, understanding now that people will view my work in those areas not as a senator that is working to support them but now as somebody who has been in that situation that will be supporting them. But what I want to remind everybody is that I'm still the same person as I was a week ago. The only difference is that you know more about me now than you did a week ago.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMANS: Ernst denied allegations made by her husband in that divorce affidavit that she had an affair. CNN has attempted to reach out to Gail Ernst for a response, but we have not heard back.

And it's a reminder, it's just so unfair to be forced out, to talk about something you're not ready to talk about. And she's right, I think, that in the Me Too Movement, every woman deserves to be in control of that story.

BRIGGS: Yes.

ROMANS: You know?

BRIGGS: Heartbreaking. Maybe she can help some others dealing with similar circumstances. Maybe there's a silver lining.

ROMANS: All right. 12 minutes past the hour. A major shift in Venezuela, the U.S. recognizes the opposition leader as president as the nation deals with economic turmoil and corruption. CNN has a report from Caracas next.

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[04:16:50] ROMANS: A mass shooting inside a bank in Sebring, Florida, leaving five people dead. Police say a gunman barricaded himself inside the SunTrust Bank branch Wednesday and opened fire. The suspect identified as 21-year-old Sebring resident Zephen Xaver now in custody. Police say he himself contacted authorities.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Our subject contacted or consolidated dispatch center and said he had entered the bank and began shooting. We've suffered a significant loss at the hands of a suspect criminal doing a senseless crime.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BRIGGS: Police still have not released the names of the victims. The suspect's father says he is heartbroken for those who died and says his son, quote, "wasn't raised to be like this." Zephen Xaver had worked as a correctional officer trainee for two months before resigning two weeks ago.

ROMANS: Relations between the U.S. and Venezuela are building toward a flash point at blazing speed. It started less than 24 hours when the Trump administration recognized Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaido as the nation's president.

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MIKE PENCE, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Today freedom broke out in Venezuela with the recognition of the new interim president. Maduro is a dictator are with no legitimate claim to power.

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ROMANS: The U.S. move a below to Nicolas Maduro whose election last year was condemned around the world as a fraud, as a fraudulent power grab. For just a few years Venezuela has fallen into a deep crisis despite immense oil wealth. Corruption and failed socialist policies have crashed the economy. There is hyperinflation, widespread hunger and disease.

BRIGGS: Now the crisis has deepened, huge protests yesterday left 10 people dead. Maduro gave U.S. diplomats 72 hours to leave the country, but a senior administration official dismissed that order as, quote, "meaningless."

Stefano Pozzebon reporting for CNN from Caracas.

STEFANO POZZEBON, JOURNALIST: Yes, Christine, Dave, historic moments we have witnessed here in Caracas yesterday when Juan Guaido swore himself in as the new president of Venezuela in order to call for free and fair elections as soon as possible. And right now, there are two people claiming to be the president of Venezuela and the White House -- the United States -- are throwing their support behind Juan Guaido, behind the Venezuelan opposition, with all the implications that that support mean, implications in the economic sphere, in the political sphere.

Let's talk about the economics. There is of course a lot of trade especially oil trade going on between Caracas and Washington. President Trump has said that all options are on the table when it comes to restore the Venezuelan democracy.

Nicolas Maduro has reacted to the support by the United States to Guaido by cutting down and breaking all political and diplomatic relationships with Washington and the United States are so far stood firm and say they still recognize Guaido and are still waiting for democracy to be restored here in Caracas -- Christine, Dave.

ROMANS: Fascinating.

[04:20:04] BRIGGS: Stefano, thanks. It is a crisis more than 30 million people in jeopardy.

ROMANS: Absolutely. In our neighborhood, right, you know?

BRIGGS: Three million people have already left.

All right. A nurse has been arrested facing charges after a woman in a vegetative state gave birth at a health care facility. What led police to him and what his co-workers are saying now.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) ROMANS: A nurse at an Arizona health care facility now charged with impregnating a woman in a vegetative state. The woman unexpectedly gave birth last month. 36-year-old Nathan Sutherland was caring for the woman at the Hacienda Healthcare facility.

[04:25:04] Sutherland was compelled by a court order to provide a DNA sample to investigators. Police say the crime lab determined his DNA matched the baby.

BRIGGS: Investigators are looking into whether he assaulted anyone else or whether this woman was assaulted more than once. A co-worker at the facility feels betrayed.

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ELEANOR RIGGERS, FORMER CO-WORKER: I cried. I just cried and cried. I cried more for her than for him. I think he is a coward. I think he is the lowest scum imaginable. And it just kills me because I considered him a friend.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BRIGGS: The woman's family is aware of the arrest but not commenting. Hacienda Healthcare said every member of the company is troubled beyond words to think that a nurse could be capable of seriously harming a patient. Bond is set at a half million dollars. Sutherland's next court appearance January 30th.

ROMANS: Obviously he was fired immediately.

All right. Two California campers rescued after being trapped in their vehicles surrounded by snow for 14 days. In the Los Padres National Forest, emergency responders and medics lowered from a rescue chopper were finally able to reach the couple on Wednesday. They were airlifted along with their two dogs to safety. The two had run out of food and water by the time they were rescued.

BRIGGS: A night to remember for James Harden. The Houston Rockets star put up 61 points against the Knicks in Madison Square Garden. Houston needed all of them, they won 114-110. Harden on a historic tear, he scored at least 30 points in 21 straight games. Only one player has done better than that in the history of the game, Wilt Chamberlain. Incredible run he is on.

ROMANS: All right. The impact of the government shutdown gets worse by the day. 800,000 federal employees will miss another paycheck tomorrow. That comes to a grand total of $6 billion out of their pockets.

The president will miss a big day himself, the State of the Union is off.

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