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@THISHOUR WITH BERMAN AND MICHAELA

Fight Against ISIS Could Take Years; Eric Holder Stepping Down; Speculations Regarding the Next Attorney General

Aired September 25, 2014 - 11:30   ET

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


DR. DANIEL LUCEY, GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY MEDICAL CENTER: As the president said in his speech, just now this morning, if we do not act quickly and act sufficiently, run a marathon like a sprint to paraphrase him, in my opinion not only will this be a public health disaster, but it will be significant damage to the economy and the educational system such that people who are living and dying and surviving being cured of Ebola now in these three countries in west Africa risk being known as the Ebola epidemic generation.

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: Dr. Lucey, thank you for your insight. Thank you also for your trip back to West Africa. You said very shortly to battle this virus. We appreciate your efforts on every front.

Elizabeth Cohen, we appreciate you being there in Liberia as well. Thank you.

Ahead for yours @THISHOUR, the fight against ISIS. It could take months. It could take longer. Will President Obama be able to keep this coalition of Arab countries together for that long?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BERMAN: Our breaking news, Attorney General Eric Holder is stepping down. He will leave the Justice Department soon. President Obama will make the announcement from the White House at 4:30 p.m. today. We, of course, will bring that to you live. Holder is 63, one of three remaining original Obama cabinet members who are still in their posts. He will be leaving the post after nearly six years in office. I have to say already there is rampant speculation about who may be called on to replace him as attorney general. We'll address that in just a few minutes.

Meanwhile, the United States is pounding ISIS targets in Syria from the air, but, as we know, the United States is not alone, others countries, including United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Jordan are helping, Qatar also helping. How long will these countries be willing to stay in as part of this offensive?

I want to bring in P.J. Crowley, former assistant secretary of state and a distinguished fellow at the George Washington University Institute for Public Diplomacy and Global Communication.

Thank you so much for being with us.

P.J. CROWLEY, FORMER ASSISTANT SECRETARY OF STATE & FELLOW, GEORGE WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY: Thank you, John.

BERMAN: This coalition is crucial. I think the size of the coalition to a lot of people is surprising, that the president was able to get these five Arab nations involved in the military action, but is it lasting? Can it last if this operation goes on for months and months or years?

CROWLEY: I think it is very important that the Arab states, the Sunni majority states take a very prominent role as they have in this coalition. Ultimately, this is a conflict within Islam. They're the ones that have to ultimately resolve this with support from the United States and the West. I would say, John, that the president's strategy first focuses on the Islamic State and Iraq. That's where I think there's a consensus to try to help the Iraqi forces and Peshmerga push back ISIS. There's reasonable odds of success there. It's much more complicated on the Syrian side of the equation.

BERMAN: Do these Arab nations, the governments, do they want what the U.S. wants here, or are there interests right now in this battle different?

CROWLEY: I think in the context of Iraq, yes. The Sunni majority countries have resigned themselves to a Shia-led government. They want that Shia-led government to do better, be more effective, more inclusive, and to take the concerns of the Sunnis in Iraq into account. The United States wants that as well. Once you cross over into Syria, at the moment there's consensus about the danger the Islamic State poses and a recognition to throw the Islamic State off balance in Syria, disrupt the safe haven it has enjoyed. At this point, it becomes much more complicated. At some point, if the conflict is about the Islamic State, but also about the future of the Assad government. Again, there's unity there that the Assad government has to go. But the long-term vision regarding Syria, who would take a commanding position there, there are a variety of different visions on what Syria should look like five years from now or 10 years from now.

BERMAN: From the United States perspective, there's an encouraging side, somewhat unusual side. You have countries now actually trying to join this coalition. Tomorrow, British Prime Minister David Cameron will ask the House of Commons to vote on the U.S.-led strikes in Iraq. The Netherlands discussing it, also. It seems like nations are actually lining up to get involved. Will that continue do you think?

CROWLEY: I think we have to maintain a delicate balance here. Certainly the larger the coalition, the larger the political legitimacy for what's being done in Syria. We need to make sure this remains first and foremost a coalition where Arab states are central. We don't want -- we want this to be a conflict within Islam and not presented as a conflict between Islam and the West. That's what we faced in Iraq 10 years ago. But as much as we focus on dropping bombs on the ISIS sanctuary in Syria, ultimately the long pole in the tent is to improve the capability of the Syrian opposition. That's going to take months, perhaps years, to make them an effective force so they can take back from the Islamic State in Syria, essentially take territory from the Assad regime as well.

BERMAN: It's a battle against extremism in many ways.

P.J. Crowley, thank you very much for being was.

CROWLEY: Pleasure, John.

BERMAN: The Attorney General Eric Holder has announced he is stepping down. What's behind that decision and who will replace him? We'll discuss coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BERMAN: @THISHOUR we have learned that one of the last original members of President Obama's cabinet plans to step down. Attorney General Eric Holder's resignation expected to be announced later today at 4:30 eastern time at the White House. He's been on the job nearly six years. The White House put out this statement a short time ago that says, in part, "Eric Holder has revitalized the department's praised Civil Rights Division, protected the rights of the LGBT community, successfully prosecuted terrorists and fought tirelessly for voting rights." That's just to name a few of the accomplishments. That was from a senior administration official, not an official White House statement. Those are the talking points the administration has on Eric Holder.

Let's bring out our commentators, Maria Cardona, Margaret Hoover.

Maria, Eric Holder has been very close to the president over the last six years, he losing a member of his cabinet and a very close friend.

MARIA CARDONA, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: I think that's right, John. I think the president is sad to see him go. He's been one of the president's most staunch allies. Holder himself has gone through very rough times in the past. I think that speaks to the kind of commitment he had to see this job through, the kind of commitment he has to President Obama and his belief in everything that the president was doing as president of the United States and the difference that he could make at the Department of Justice.

I think everything that you mentioned from the White House statement really speaks to the kinds of things that he has been able to accomplish and to achieve for United States. And I believe because he's gone through such rough times, he wanted to pick a time when he was going out on top. I believe that the role that the Justice Department and he, himself, played in Ferguson really underscores that he is going out on top.

BERMAN: Ferguson was an issue where he got directly involved. He was really the point person for the federal government in trying to calm the situation there. As you also said, Maria, he was a lightning rod.

Margaret Hoover, Republicans have been in some ways involved in spats with him from nearly the very beginning.

MARGARET HOOVER, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: I think, John, there's no other member of President Obama's cabinet that has been more controversial, not just to the Republican Congress where we have seen him testify over and over again, but also, you know, to the American electorate. Early on in his tenure, if you recall, he wanted to have military detainees, al Qaeda combatants brought into the civil criminal justice system and tried in downtown Manhattan. He had a series of miss tapes at the beginning that got him on the bad side and sort of on notice.

To Maria's point, maybe he's leaving on a high note. But remember the Fast and Furious controversy, naming journalists as co-conspirators in leak investigations. There was a series of missteps you might say or misjudgments in the Justice Department that have made him a very controversial attorney general.

BERMAN: The Justice Department is such a crucial cabinet position among other things, but also politically controversial as well. So the question is what might a confirmation battle look like for the president's new nominee? We don't know what it might be. We don't know if the Senate will come back and try to get this done before the midterm elections or it could happen with a lame-duck session. What do you think? You think Republicans will pick a fight.

HOOVER: I think it depends on what else is on the plate of the Congress. We have really, really important things to do, for example, authorizing a vote to go into war against Syria.

BERMAN: No one lining up to do that, but go ahead.

(CROSSTALK)

HOOVER: It depends on who the president chooses to nominate? Is it going to be a highly controversial person or somebody that people can agree with?

BERMAN: Let's speculate, shall we?

(LAUGHTER)

Maria Cardona, for the last 48 minutes since we learned Holder was stepping down, people have been speculating who it might be. Deval Patrick, the governor of Massachusetts, someone who has worked in the Justice Department, someone who is a close friend of President Obama. What do you think?

CARDONA: I think the names are exactly right in terms of the discussions. We've also heard that he's looking at a former White House council, a woman, Kathryn Ruemmler (ph) as well as Donna Vary Chelly (ph) who also has worked with the administration. I think you're going to see a whole slew of candidates. But to your point, John, I do think that Republicans are going to have to tread lightly here, and I think the administration, the president will choose a candidate that can be supported on both sides of the aisle. We do have a lot on our plate right now. My hope is he will choose somebody who is clearly -- has the confidence and has all the requirements of an attorney general, will be great to see another African-American, a Latino, a woman. I think we have a lot of great candidates to choose from.

BERMAN: Today 4:30, President Obama, an event at the White House where he'll announce Eric Holder is stepping down. We'll carry that live.

Margaret Hoover, Maria Cardona, I appreciate you coming in to talk to me about this.

CARDONA: Thanks, John.

BERMAN: The suspect in the case of a missing University of Virginia student goes to court. We'll tell you where he was found. It was not near the University of Virginia. That's just in a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BERMAN: Welcome back, everyone. Amid the other breaking news @THISHOUR there is also this. The Dow down more than 200 points, 218 points, a couple hours after the opening bell. This is something we're going to keep our eye on all day. One of the things the stock market does not like is global instability. Obviously the conflict in the Middle East is something that has an eye of a lot of investors. We will keep our eye on that. There have been mixed economic reports over the last few hours.

Some other headlines we're following the man suspected in the disappearance of a University of Virginia student appeared in a Texas court this morning. The judge ordered Jesse Matthew held without bond. He is wanted on suspicion of abducting Hannah Graham with intent to defile. She was last seen September 13th.

The police chief of Ferguson, Missouri, is sorry. He was in the news. The riots, protests and everything that followed. Now, Police Chief Thomas Jackson has taped an apology telling the Brown family he is sorry for their loss and for taking so long to get their son's body off the street. He also apologized to peaceful protesters who feel police did not do enough to protect their rights. Ferguson has seen more turmoil this week after a memorial to Brown burned.

So we usually call it math and science, now referred to by the acronym STEM. It is a path often for many people to high-paying jobs.

Michaela Pereira kicks off our series, "The Science of Work." She explains why STEM should matter to you.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MICHAELA PEREIRA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: STEM, it stands for science, technology, engineering and math. There is a school of thought, there are more jobs than there are qualified people to fill them. The theory, train more Americans, reduce unemployment, and help the economy.

Let's look at the class of 2012. Just 16 percent of undergraduates got a degree in the STEM majors. That seems small, right? The Obama administration certainly thinks so and has invested millions to increase those numbers. Is it worth it?

Some say no. They say there is no skills gap, just a lack of competitive wages and training options from companies. There's no doubt STEM jobs are on the rise. The department of commerce predicts they'll grow nearly twice as much as other professions between 2008 and 2018 and that workers in other fields are more likely to be unemployed.

How about wages? The same report shows that STEM workers earn 26 percent more. In fact, the top-10 paying majors for the graduating class of 2013 were all STEM.

But before you reach for that bunson burner let me drop some knowledge. The Bureau of Labor says the vast majority are computers and I.T. Wages are higher, but not by much. Guess what? Career Builder says I.T. jobs are the hardest ones to fill.

So what about the big bucks? The five highest paying STEM graduate jobs according to "Forbes" are marine engineer, petroleum engineer, nuclear engineer, technology analyst and chemical engineer. The easy ones.

So as technology evolves and becomes a bigger part of our lives, one thing is clear, no matter what job you do, STEM will be everywhere. So make sure you're ready.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BERMAN: So nice. If Michaela can't be with us in person, she's there on the TV screen.

Thanks for joining us @THISHOUR.

"LEGAL VIEW WITH ASHLEIGH BANFIELD" starts right after this.

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