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CNN NEWSROOM

Obama To Visit Survivors And Families Of Orlando shooting; Pulse Survivor Shares His Experience; Charleston Reverend Shares Her Views On Forgiveness And Gun Control; Body Of Two-Year-Old Boy Taken By Alligator Has Been Found. Aired 10:30-11a

Aired June 16, 2016 - 10:30   ET

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

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[10:34:05] CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: And good morning I'm Carol Costello. Thank you so much for joining me. I'm live here in Orlando, Florida and we are looking at live pictures of Air Force One. It's on the tarmac at Joint Base Andrews. President Obama will take off very, very soon. He'll be heading here to Orlando to meet with survivors and families of the victims.

Let's get right to CNN's Athena Jones. She's at the White House this morning. Joe Biden will be here, too. It's quite unusual for both the President and the Vice President to appear together at such a tragic time.

ATHENA JONES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol. It is unusual but I can tell you that the Vice President was with the President last year at around this time when he traveled to Charleston, South Carolina to memorialize the victims of that church shooting there, at Mother Emanuel. So it isn't entirely unprecedented, but the fact that both of them are traveling down to Orlando shows how important this visit is.

The White House believes this visit is very important. It's going to be an emotional trip. As you mentioned, the President and Vice President will be meeting with survivors, with victims' families, with first responders, the doctors, surgeons, and EMTs that worked so hard to save as many lives as they could in the early hours of Sunday morning.

We know that he's going to be delivering remarks. They should be brief remarks we expect, offering his condolences and his support. White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest said yesterday, he made particular note of the fact that it was the LGBT community that was targeted there in Orlando. And that he believes that offering support from the President will be a "powerful affirmation" for those American citizens.

But Carol, as you mentioned, this is a trip that has had to take place far too often. It's easy to lose count of the number of times a President has had to travel to a city, those affected by a mass shooting. At least four trips made just last year alone. By our count he's made at least nine of these trips over the course of his presidency. And the White House says he is deeply affected, deeply, personally affected -- who wouldn't be -- by experiencing the grief these families are feeling, up close. Now one thing we do hear from the President often times in his speeches and remarks at these trips, is that the White House, the government, the administration will be behind you, will be behind the community of Orlando, or whatever community it may be. Even after the T.V. cameras leave.

But the question of course on everyone's mind, certainly here in Washington, Carol, is what will happen? What happens next? Will there actually be any new gun control legislation. And so that is what we'll be watching in the coming weeks and days after this visit. Carol?

COSTELLO: All right, Athena Jones reporting live from the White House, thank you so much. With me now is an Orlando shooting survivor, Carlos Rosario. Carlos thank you so much for being with me this morning.

CARLOS ROSARIO, ORLANDO SHOOTING SURVIVOR: Thanks for having me, I really appreciate it.

COSTELLO: So the President and the Vice President will soon be on their way to Orlando. They'll be meeting with survivors and family members. Is that helpful?

ROSARIO: It's beyond helpful. It shows that there's a -- there was a movement that helped to get him to come here. It's such an honor for him, as a President of the United States, to acknowledge the LGBT community as people. And not just a category. It's just, it's a great feeling to have. I guess someone's listening.

COSTELLO: Take me back to that night. Where were you inside Pulse Nightclub when the shooting broke out?

ROSARIO: Yes, I was actually in the main bar. I was going to order my last drink. They were taking too long, so I was like, "you know what, let me just go outside." As I was walking outside and I was going to repeat my order to the bartender, that's when everything started. And it was so many shootings right after another. Like it was -- it sound like it never would stop.

Thank God I was one of the lucky ones that there was an exit there that was wide open. People were just flying through it. And there were so many people going through it that you kind of have to look and see when it's your turn to go through. And at that time that's when I went through and I made it out. Thank God.

COSTELLO: Before you did though, there were a few people who were hit by gunfire, one young woman in particular, she was shot in the hand. And you helped her out that night. What did you do?

ROSARIO: I was -- her name was Kalisha (ph), she's an amazing girl. She was shot on her forearm. And she was just so in shock that she wasn't even caring about her injury, she just wanted to talk to her mom at that point. But me thinking about her mom, I think her mom would have wanted me to help her and stabilize her wounds first before calling her. So that's what I did, I tried my best to hold pressure on her hand. There was four other people around you know, consoling her and talking to her and helping me. She made a full recovery. She made it out of there.

COSTELLO: She did, she used your cell phone to call her mom, right?

ROSARIO: Yes.

COSTELLO: And you listened to that conversation and grew quite emotional.

ROSARIO: Very emotional. I mean, the whole time that they were having a conversation I -- it was just tears coming down my face. Because it's like, this mother is like begging me and begging her to stay alive, to survive, that she wants to see us. That she wished she can be there and she couldn't. So it's just that you do let them heartache (ph).

COSTELLO: What did you say to the mom?

ROSARIO: At first when I called -- a mother's instinct is always correct the first time. I picked up my phone and I called her, and I was like, "hi my name is Carlos. I know you don't know me but..." And as soon as I said that she immediately already knew. She was like what's going on, what happened? And then that's when I processed that her daughter had been shot in the arm. And that I am currently with her and then that's when I passed the phone to her and they had a -- their conversation ...

COSTELLO: So we're standing down the street from the nightclub.

ROSARIO: Yes, this is down the street because they cleared that area to ...

COSTELLO: Is it kind of surreal to you to be standing here, the nightclub is down there, in light of what happened just a couple of days ago?

ROSARIO: I mean the first couple of days I think I was just so on an adrenaline rush I really didn't understand it. But I think it hit me yesterday where I was sitting at home and my nephew came up to me. And he sat on my lap and I was like, this -- I could have not been here for you. You know? So it set in a lot of emotions I think. And now recently it's starting to turn real for me.

COSTELLO: Do you pay attention at all to who this shooter was and why he did it?

ROSARIO: Unfortunately I did not. I was too far outside, it was like a wall.

COSTELLO: I mean, I mean news reports right now detailing who he was. Do you care who he was at all?

ROSARIO: I don't. I really don't care. I care because I want the families to see who it was. But to explain the reasoning of him and who -- how he became how he is now, it doesn't matter. I think what should be talked about are the lives and the what needs to happen, and what needs to keep moving forward, what's the plan now from now on.

COSTELLO: Thank you so much for stopping by, Carlos. And thanks for helping that young girl, and of course that mother. I'm sure they both appreciate it. Thank you so much. I'll be right back.

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[10:45:35]

COSTELLO: And welcome back I'm Carol Costello live in Orlando. You're looking at Marine One right now. The President's helicopter has just landed at Joint Base Andrews. He'll soon be getting off that helicopter and then boarding Air Force One. That plane will take off to Orlando where the President will meet with family members and survivors of the attack at the Pulse Nightclub. That'll happen around 12:30 Eastern time.

Newtown, Charleston, San Bernardino, a grim list of cities all too familiar with pain, with pain Orlando is feeling right now. A year ago tomorrow it was Charleston reeling. Nine African-Americans shot to death inside their church, Emanuel (AME). The church's new pastor, the Reverend Betty Deas Clark took part in the wreath laying ceremony here in Orlando yesterday.

Afterward I had the privilege of talking with her about forgiveness and her message to the people of Orlando.

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REVEREND BETTY DEAS CLARK, EMANUEL CHURCH (AME): We need to deal with it while we have the awareness. We tend to just say, well, we'll deal with it tomorrow, or soon, or next week or whatever. And then we forget about it. For us in Charleston, the spirit of forgiveness is still there. What most people don't understand is that forgiveness does not negate the other emotions such as anger, or rage. It simply means that in order for us to wake up every morning, to live through the day, we do not need the burden of unforgiveness.

COSTELLO: You know we're in the middle of a political campaign, and people are trying to find someone to blame.

CLARK: And maybe we're all responsible in some ways, some shape or form. If we don't go to the polls and vote, if we look at it both individually and collectively, I believe we'll find that we all have a piece of the puzzle.

COSTELLO: Many people in this country blame ISIS. They don't blame gun control, or lack of gun control, right? They blame religious extremism.

CLARK: Well if I just pointed out the things I don't like, or the things I don't agree with, then I can use that as my excuse or my point of identity as to what's wrong. What I believe is, it's a shared responsibility. I believe that we must deal with gun reform, we have to deal with that. It's nothing wrong with having the right to bear arms, I think we should. But I also think that we ought to make sure that those who bear arms, that they're qualified to do so.

COSTELLO: Donald Trump did break with the NRA. He said that if you're on the terror watch list, you shouldn't have a gun. Is that a step in the right direction?

CLARK: I believe so. I believe if you can't fly on an airplane, I don't believe you should have a gun. Because there's a reason why you can't fly.

COSTELLO: Do you see parallels between what happened in Charleston and what's happened here in Orlando?

CLARK: I say to the people here in Orlando, it is hard. You've had a lot to happen in a very short time. But time is so special because time brings about healing. Which you can't see today, which you can't imagine today. Tomorrow you can see it as a reality if you just keep moving forward. And that's what we've been doing.

COSTELLO: Is it unusual for a person who serves God to also work to promote gun control?

CLARK: No I think it's natural. I think it works together well. I grew up in a home where my father, my father was a hunter. He loved -- he was a deer hunter, he loved it. So guns were a natural part of my upbringing. But we had a great respect for guns. We knew that they were not toys. We knew that where they were, we were not supposed to go there. And I think we just need to draw some lines. We need to have some parameters. It's called gun control.

COSTELLO: Think it'll happen?

CLARK: It has to happen. If we are to leave a legacy to the next generation and future generations. We've got to get it right. And the time is now. Because enough is enough.

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[10:50:30]

COSTELLO: As I mentioned, tomorrow marks the first anniversary of the shooting during the South Carolina Bible Study. Nine people killed including the church's pastor. Tomorrow we'll have more of my interview with the Reverend Clark about how parishioners at AME Emanuel are doing today. I'll be right back.

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COSTELLO: A heartbreaking end to one family's nightmare. The body of that toddler snatched by an alligator has been found. His body had only a few puncture wounds. Now the search is still on though for the alligator that killed the boy. Victor Blackwell live in Orlando along with me to tell us more about that. Good morning, Victor.

VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN ANCHOR AND CORRESPONDENT: Carol good morning to you. We know that the beaches across Walt Disney World resorts will remain closed until further notice. And resort managers are now assessing and reassessing safety measures at the lakes, and lagoons, and beaches across the property. They're working to determine whether those signs, like the no swimming sign at that 7 Seas Lagoon are efficient -- or sufficient, I should say.

We also know that the President, or rather CEO of Walt Disney Company, Bob Iger, contacted the boy's family, the family of that 2-year old, Lane Graves. And we also know that Florida Official Wildlife have confirmed that they will find that gator that killed him. Carol?

COSTELLO: Victor Blackwell, reporting live. Thanks so much. I'd like to thank you for joining me today. I'm Carol Costello. AT THIS HOUR with Berman and Bolduan after a break.

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