Skip to main content

tv   Erin Burnett Out Front  CNN  October 6, 2017 4:00pm-5:00pm PDT

4:00 pm
gofundme.com/mary and stay with cnn later tonight for a special on all the victims of the shooting massacre. las vegas lost. airs commercial free later tonight, 9:00 p.m. eastern. hearts go out to all, all those families. that's it for me. thanks for watching. erin burnett "outfront" tarstar right now. "outfront" next, breaking news, signs of a much bigger plot in las vegas. the source says the gunman booked several hotel rooms in the weeks before the shooting. his van loaded with explosives to detonate under gunfire and what is on the note pad that he left behind in that suite? plus, new questions about how long john kelly is going to last as trump's chief of staff. a source telling cnn tonight, quote, kelly is like the janitor. just like the latest guy brought in to clean up. ouch. are his days numbered and is trump treating national security like an episode of the
4:01 pm
apprentice? sadly, yes. let's go "outfront." and good o evening. i'm erin burnett. tonight, the breaking news. the first shots. vest garretts believe steven paddock fired his first shots at two jet fuel tanks at the nearby airport according to a source. that he obviously if you think about the distance there was fired back from his hotel room. authorities believe he fired on those tanks, aimed there then opened fire on the crowd of concert goers in las vegas. two of the bullets struck one of the tanks, but failed to actually explode it. the shots crossed over the concert site, so you can see there on the other side, you're right along the airport there at mccarren international hitting the tank, which was about 700 yards from the sniper. 700 yards. that's a far shot. could paddock have been trying to blow up the tanks? also, we're learning more about the shooter and his meticulously planned murder.
4:02 pm
they found 50 pounds of an explosive. you're going to see how much in just a moment. if his car came under fire, this could have been the result. and that's about half the amount of the explosive that was in his car. imagine that in a garage underneath a casino. we also now know he traveled the world taking at least 20 cruises and we're going to tell you more about where later this hour as these are crucial clues. another mystery, a note found in his room. investigators say it's not a suicide note, but it's unclear what it is because they are telling cnn that the numbers on the page are of significance to paddock. and we're learning that he may have considered using tracer bullets to increase his deadly accuracy so he could see. let's show you a video that shows tracer bullets fired at night. so you can actually see what you're hitting. the advantage of course to the shooter is it gives you a
4:03 pm
precise look at where shots are going. increasing accuracy and almost certainly causing higher casualties. the disadvantage is that the bullets would give away the shooter's vacation, location, i'm sorry, because of that, paddock may have decided against using them because he wanted to shoot for a longer period of time even though perhaps with less accuracy. so many new details breaking tonight. but a lot more focus on what was in the shooter's car. >> that's a chilling part of this investigation, erin. what else could hefb planning? the under slefr coming to the conclusion because of the explosive materials found in his kare, that he beliecar, the the be quote nefarious. five days after the horrific shooting in las vegas, a focus on the explosive material found in the gunman's car which contained a suitcase and duffel
4:04 pm
back full of ammunition and 50 pounds of tannerite. >> i don't know what he was going to do with all of it. i wish i did. >> bomb sniffing dogs led authorities to the shooter's car. this shows the power of 30 pounds. a little more than half of what the shooter had stocked it may have been used for target prices or placed there with the intent to explode if the car were fired upon. steven paddock's suite was filled with weapons and extra rounds, but a source says he also attempted to purchase tracer ammunition at a recent gun show only fail iing because vendor was sold out. the glowing rounds seen here to help track ak ray is in the dark. all it seems part of a deadly and premeditated plan. >> you have to think back to this individual's background. very organized. he's an accountant. an auditor. he planned this out very well.
4:05 pm
>> cnn has learned he also booked three separate rooms here at the ogden in las vegas between september 17th and 28th. that same week, more than 100,000 fans attended the life is beautiful festival. paddock and his girlfriend were avid tralers, they say he has taken at least 20 cruises, many to europe, with stops spain, italy, greece, jordan and united arab emirates. danley accompanying him on nine trips. >> it was his discussion of travel his hair stylist recalled. >> his girlfriend was with him just doing her thing. he sat down and was tell iing m about her leaving to go to the philippines and he was going to be home alone hanging out for a while by himself. >> she says the haircut and conversation was two months ago, indicating just how far back the
4:06 pm
time line may go. but among vest garretts, frustration mounting a week in. >> we have run down more than 1,000 leads in this investigation. while some of it has helped create a better profile into the madness of this suspect, we do not still have a clear motive or reason why. >> now, erin, he did say that they wanted to, investigators waned to reiterate no one else was in the room at the time of the shooting, but the sheriff stressi must have seen somethin. you could hear the frustration in his voice. >> and you could. brian todd is "outfront" in las vegas and brian, you know, this is some crucial new information that you're learning this hour. about the shots. that perhaps his first aim was not at individual concertgoers. that was clearly part of the plan, but he first aimed somewhere else. >> that's right, erin.
4:07 pm
a source close to the investigation telling us tonight that he fired on those aviation fuel tanks before he fired on the crowd in that small stadium there on the las vegas strip. those fuel tanks were about 1,000 to 1,100 feet away. sources told us before the fuel tanks were not punctured and there was not a danger to the public, but now, we're learning he did train his aim on one of those fuel u tanks. we believe one was hit and again, sources saying they were not punctured and there wasn't a danger public. however, now, it speak to the intent of the shooter. did he try to puncture a tank and maybe cause a huge explos n explosion? maybe to divert attention before he started firing on the crowd? not clear. they're look iing into ha tonig, but we know he fired into those tanks before firing into that crowd on sunday night. also learning from the same source that the note pad that was found, excuse me, the note,
4:08 pm
the sheet that was found in his room contained only numbers, not letters or words that the numbers were told by sources are significant to the shooter, steven paddock, but was just told they're not quite clear what the numbers mean. so on that note, only numbers. no words or letters and they are analyzing those to see what they mean. >> thank you very much. and "outfront" now, nevada's lieutenant governor, good to have you with us again. you just heard we're learn iing that investigators believe the shooter may have shot at those fuel tanks first. possibly to charge a major explosion. that's a far shot. that's real aim. why do you think he did that? >> it's a long way. that's a long way from where he was shooting. i've been out to the scene of that concert and it's a long shot. i can only assume he was just trying to inflict as much harm and may ham as he could. it shows how deprived and sick
4:09 pm
this individual really is. >> source also telling cnn that investigators have that note pad. we have kind of a picture of it. a little blur ary, but that's note pad. pen to it. with numbers on it. no words, only numbers, that they say is significant to the gunman. significant how? i know you're getting briefed. do you have any sense of f the significance here? >> erin, we're looking down at every possible piece of information and evidence tracking down all the information we can. as you know, over 1,000 leads have come in that we continue to follow. this is one of them. this is part of the information in the evidence that's being investigated. i don't have anymore information on that at this time. i can just tell you, there are over 100 individuals now in the investigation looking at every clue and we continue to work hard to come up with some answers. >> so 100 investigators working on this right now? >> yeah, over 100. 100 people working on this
4:10 pm
across the country when you put together the las vegas metropolitian police department with the fbi. >> so, you've talked to me about the shooter's electronic devices. you say they recovered them from his home, hotel room. they were able to break in, no password issues. are there any clues in there or are they coming up empty? >> they continue to download and evaluate and scour those electronic devices and so far, based on our latest briefing, we haven't got any more of the information we hoped to have on a motive. just keep in mind, something i know you've reported on, this is not the typical situation where you have somebody who leaves a suicide note or posts on social media or says something to somebody. this killer does not fit the typical profile and this investigation may take longer than others in the past because he's not fitting that profile. >> we know vegators, they said
4:11 pm
today they had reviewed vol ummentes. have you viewed any of the video? do you know there's a full sense of he checked in at this time, the binteraction at the front desk, every single thing he did? >> i haven't seen any of the video myself. i've within briefed and heard the briefings on what's being evaluated on those videos, but there's a lot of video as you say, erin, and the vest garreins are putting together a timeline. for example, they know there were multiple trips when he was bring ng thing in the guns and ammunition. he was careful to do it at different hits so there wasn't a lot of suspicious raised over an eight-hour shift and i think kind of concealed himself that way. i'm confident we've got a video that we evaluated that and we continue to scour to come up with more answers.
4:12 pm
>> which is important. that he brought in all those guns at different times. over a period of time and as you say, on different shifts. the same people at the front desk programs would not see him. you mentioned 1,000 leads so far that have been run down. you know that's at least what you had been chasing down. yet, they're not sure if someone else knew about the plan. is it possible there is someone who knew, who was clearly supportive of it? who is out there? >> well, one of the things that we are asking the public to do is to come forward with that kind of information. lea released a public information campaign where clear channel has partnered with the fbi. we'll have billboards across the city and our community asking for the public to come forward with information. to call 1-800-call-fbi. if you have factual information that we can use in this investigation, we're asking for the public's help. we don't need any windows.
4:13 pm
any rumors. what we need are facts that people may have that we haven't been able to process yet. >> well, i thank you very much, lieutenant governor. >> erin, thank you very much and if i may just close out by saying thank you on behalf of the las vegas community to our friends across the country and the world and in particular, thank you on behalf of the victims and victim's family. i just left the hospital of these victims who continue to be in intensive care fighting for their lives ab bd the world is comforting las vegas and we're grateful. >> thank you. next, the timeline. every move in the weeks and months could leave clues that let people understand why and how. plus, the president's chief of staff tonight struggling. struggling to survive, to control the white house chaos after the secretary of state called the president a moron. are john kelly's days numbered? and a deadly storm headed for the gulf coast at this hour. nate has already left 21 dead.
4:14 pm
that storm gaining power. hurricane warnings now on that gulf coast. trz ♪ ♪ you nervous? ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪
4:15 pm
(vo) do not go gentle into that good night, old age should burn and rave at close of day; rage, rage against the dying of the light.
4:16 pm
do not go gentle into that good night. ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ not necessarily after 3 toddlers with boundless energy. but lower back pain won't stop him from keeping up. because at a dr. scholl's kiosk he got a recommendation for our best custom fit orthotic to relieve his foot, knee, or lower back pain,
4:17 pm
from being on his feet. by reducing shock and stress on his body with every step. so look out world, dad's taking charge. dr. scholl's. born to move. when it's time to toddlers see things a bit differently thanks to pampers easy ups while they see their first underwear you see an easy way to potty train pampers easy ups our first and only training underwear with an all around stretchy waistband and pampers superior protection so you'll see fewer leaks and they'll see their first underwear pampers easy ups, an easy way to underwear pampers tonight, investigators know where the las vegas shooter traveled. he took at least 20 cruises which included some unusual stops. united arab b emirates, jordan,
4:18 pm
then spain, italy and greece. the shooter's known girlfriend was only with him on nine of those 20 cruises. now, art roderick, criminalologist casey jordan and james fallon. thanks to all. art, let's start with this. this is just yet another piece of who the shooter was, how he spent his time and right now, every piece matters. sxwl i think we heard the press conference earlier, they're going to be putting up billboards. if you know something, please call us. this means they're trying to fill out the complete profile of this individual's life going back years to figure out what he did. these trips are interesting. who did he meet, talk to, who did he see. hopefully, all these people will come in. did he get on the ground in some of those locations that are kind of sketchy? all this is going to be put together in this profile that they're putting together right now. >> and james, we know the
4:19 pm
shooter the note pad, numbers, no wards. numbers that investigators believe are significant to the gunman. what could they be? >> this is a man who is a a king of odds. he knows the problablility of everything. he set up this whole banquet of slot machines and he knew the odds of causing mayhem then being able to get away. and then moving on until we got the mayhem and could escape. he had all these odds laid out and making it out of there each step of the way. that's you know, in a world where you don't understand love, you have some emotions, but you don't understand love, you have no emotional empathy, everything is a slot machine, including all the humans and i think he went through and he had a pad of paper in his mind all the time of probableties that he could carry this out and show the world the brilliant man that
4:20 pm
underappreciated brain that and in the end, he getses what he wants. he wants us to be talking about him. in, after he's gone. this is heaven for him. >> because the thing is, when it comes to that pad of paper, he knew, maybe he thought he was going to get out of there alive. they believe now he thought he would. he was prepared for that. it would appear he left the note knowing full well that someone was going to find it. >> no mistake. this guy was not an idiot. he was highly intelligent. i don't think he planned on getting away. i think he, you know, not for anything, he was wearing slip on shoes and white socks. >> we could see those pictures. >> this is not a run away outfit. i think he knew, if he was able to get out, i think he just planned on doing more mayhem before he died, but he certainly didn't think he was going to get away with it. those numbers could be bank
4:21 pm
account number, could be probab probability. but as an accountant, he dealt in harsh realities. he liked to put numbers into columns, everything had to be exact. it's odd someone that linear would be a professional gambler. i have to wonder and i agree, wanted to show us how smart he was. there's something we'll find out down the line, total financial ruin, or terminal illness that would explain why he would plan this over the course of a year. >> it was certainly planneded over a long period of time. in terms of what perhaps could have happened next. we learned today that the gunman's car had 50 pounds of tannerite in it. 50 pounds is the number we had. two suitcases with hundreds of rounds of ammunition.
4:22 pm
here's an explosion of half of what that amount looks like. >> this car was parked at the parking garage in the lot. >> i think he could have pancaked that garage. in other words, brought down a couple of levels on top of the vehicle. that's half of what he had in the vehicle. 50 pounds is a lot of tannerite. we used to use it for target practice when shooting long distance targets so you could see you've impacted the target. that, you saw the shrapnel flying out from the vehicle. had another 1600 rounds of ammunition to it and nobody's going to get anywhere around that car and a lot of people are going to be injured from flying shrapnel. >> and anybody in the garage and what about structurally above? >> that would create a crater.
4:23 pm
if it was on the ground, it would have raeted a crater. in the garage, i think it would have collapsed a couple of levels there. >> so, james, we're report thag the gunman got his haircut in the morning. these are as i said, these small details are what we have. he could womcome in from gambli all night, to mesquite and be reeking of alcohol. what does this tell you? does this fit any sort of what you are putting together of a profile? >> well, you know, murder, gambling, alcohol, these are all feed into the same system of the brain. the hedonistic hot spot of the brain. everybody's got their own sort of thing that turns you on. as he was going along, he felt less and less pleasure out of things he was doing, like a loser, and he was going to well, while he had the injury, he was going to go out in a big way, so he was doing things, that
4:24 pm
addicts do. to try to get a buzz. and but if you're numb, if you're effomp thetically numb, you can't experience love, where do you get it from? if you're older, that goes away. then you're stuck. like what am i doing here? i'll show you. >> casey, speaking of love, the gunman's relationship with his girlfriend doesn't appear to be anything like that. maybe from her side, she says that it was, but certainly not from his. she was only on nine of his cruisers. on the haircuts, she said she would come with him, but just sit there waiting out of earshot. fits with very sub serve yent p profile. as you learn more about her, what do you think about her role in his life and whether she had any inkling that something was amiss. >> i don't believe she had any inkling. this man has so many traits of an addictive personality, definitely as a career gambler
4:25 pm
and also if he's drinking. the thrill is gone and he's looking for something more enticing to keep his life spicy. now, we know the girlfriend left her husband or got dwoised from him and had a job, so the four years they were together, she live nd his home, didn't work and she was under his thumb. i think that she was emotionally and psychologically as so many partners of addicts are, codependent, enabling and just never challenged him. she was in denial. and when they say how could she not know? she didn't know. she knew better than to challenge him, than to question where he was or going or why he wasn't going with her. why would a woman when the boyfriend says here's a ticket, leave the country and she did. i would say why, why do i have to leave? >> that's not a normal situation. it would be absolutely bizarre. >> that's an interest iing taken the whole thing. i tend to see where you're coming with that. the, when you look at this guy,
4:26 pm
i mean, you know, we have, we were talking about this in the green room, what an outliar this individual is. we've covered a lot of mass shootings before. categorize them fairly quickly and -- he's like the jeffrey dam r to put together and take a look at when it's all said and done. >> thank you very much. and next, growing questions about how long john kelly is going to last as trump's chief of staff. a guy who everybody praised and says was going to be the guy to fix things. one source says he'll be around maybe for months and that's it. and the calm before the storm. president trump still refusing to explain what he meant by that cryptic and scary comment. is he playing a dangerous game? for yourement plan? s start here.
4:27 pm
or here. even here. and definitely here. at fidelity, we're available 24/7 to make retirement planning simpler. we let you know where you stand, so when it comes to your retirement plan, you'll always be absolutely...clear. ♪ time to think of your future it's your retirement. know where you stand. ♪ time to think of your future okay, iunderwear that's'd say this, bactually pretty.er leak surprised? it's called always discreet boutique. it looks and fits like my underwear. i know what you're thinking. how can something this pretty protect? hidden inside is a super absorbent core that quickly
4:28 pm
turns liquid to gel... ...for incredible protection. so i feel protected... ...and pretty. new always discreet boutique. whoamike and jen doyle?than i thought. yeah. time for medicare, huh. i have no idea how we're going to get through this. follow me. choosing a plan can be super-complicated. but it doesn't have to be. unitedhealthcare can guide you through the confusion, with helpful people, tools and plans. including the only plans with the aarp name. well that wasn't so bad at all. that's how we like it. aarp medicare plans, from unitedhealthcare.
4:29 pm
4:30 pm
new questions tonight about chief of staff john kelly. and his standing in the west wing. kelly you may remember was brought in to control the chaos at the white house and so many people around him, in fact, everyone who's worked with him, has raved about him and his integrity, but less than three months into the job, he's running into the same reality others have run into it. there is no control with donald trump. as one source tells cnn, quote, kelly is like the janitor. just the latest guy to be brought in to clean up. dana bash has been working her sources on the story and what are you learning about what
4:31 pm
happened on wednesday morning between the president and kelly? >> well, eastern, we were told that the president was so furious at the tillerson situation that chief of staff, john kelly, was forced to navigate between the two men who are at this point, fed up the one another. sources familiar with discussions between kelly and the president who i'm talking to elise and gloria borger as well, they say that kelly suggested to the president in a nuance way that if tillerson left, kelly's own ability to do his job properly could be the at risk. it's generating more than a few whispers here in washington about just how long kelly is going to last. >> when you've heard oof the tillerson situation, apparently calling the president an f'ing moron. so, what do you think this episode says, dana? there are so many who said, kelly coming in here, whatever you think of his politics, he's a man of integrity, good at what he does. you need people like him in
4:32 pm
there. and now, that's in question. what is his standing in the west wing. >> we talked to one source tonight who said for john kelly, every day ends in a why. w-h-y. when kelly was brought into the white house as you were talking about this, he was taking over for reince priebus and the headlines were blaring that kelly kuz woing to impose military style order ore on administration. he closed the open door policy, holding and it's thot lost on sources that we talked to, but kelly is running into the same buzz saw reince priebus faced because there is no controlling or managing donald trump. think of the thipgs that have happened in less than three months. that john kelly has taken over. >> fire and fury. >> talking about north korea. talking about both sides being to blame in charlottesville. stoking the nfl controversy.
4:33 pm
somebody said look, it's a tough job and you are not going to change the president. by the way, those are three examples. we could go on and on. >> we could and i know there are some close to kelly who say what is the calculus by which he took this job? out of patriotism or something else? that's something the president makes him incredibly angry that somebody would be doing it in spite of him as opposed to because of him. there are some i know who said that the deck was stacked against kelly, wasn't it? >> yeah, look, the president for example, he still finds ways to talk to his friends despite kelly's attempt at limitations. one of those friends who i talked to said the president is praising kelly for bringing discipline and chaos to his own white house. but as you know, his opinion on most matters including people around him, varies. given the day and given the descriptions and circumstances of that day and kelly is not
4:34 pm
immune to that, but you know for the first time that we remember, today, sarah sanders was asked at the white house briefing whether the president has confidence in his chief of staff. she said emphatically yes, but the fact that question arose tells you a lot, erin. >> thank you very much, dana. please stay with me because obviously, there's a lot to talk about here. i want to bring mark preston in. another thing i have to say here as dana is talking about sarah sanders weighing in here, she has no idea, i mean, be honest. how does she know because he could just come out in five minutes and say the opposite and make her look like a fool, that's the truth. >> that is. and it's interesting, when she was challenged today on another subject, she said listen, i would trust the president before i would trust reporters. that's okay. i understand she thinks she's paid to say that, but the bottom line is when she stands at that podium, can't always trust what she says. not a knock against her so much is that a knock against that
4:35 pm
position and that basically, you're parroting whatever you think the president is going to be happy to hear you say. >> in terms of the chief of staff that i think surprised a lot of people that he did successfully, keith schiller, the long time aide, bodyguard, confidant of donald trump that we know of many years, no longer just walk in. right. kelly was able to impose an order and a discipline to control who was getting into trump and speaking to the president. it seemed to me that at some point, that would chafe on the president deeply. he relishes being the person that everybody comes to. >> no question. again, as i mention and you know this. saying two things and really mean it. one is that he believes that general kelly has done a good job b of changing the dynamics in his own white house. the other at the other end, he does tell the friends who he's able to call, whether he sneaks
4:36 pm
them or just getting them on the phone, you know, when hemts to because he is the president, that you know, he does change and makes it clear that he does enjoy the free wheeling dynamic that is always the way he has been from anybody who knew him in his business days. it is how he thrives. it's a different situation, so he needs someone like kelly, but it is a very, very tough one for anybody in this particular white house. >> mark, also though it is something that should concern everybody in this country. if you lose one chief of staff and then a few months later, you lose another one, an increed kred bly tightly guarded general by many, i've spoken to some, politics, all speak to his integrity and patriotism. if he can't stay in this job, then who? >> you can always find somebody who wants it. this and that will be, will put
4:37 pm
us on a faster path to destruction. the fact is, you have this general who has this built in dna of service to the country. that in itself might be keeping kelly in the position that he's in, and when he took the job, the whole goal for him was to bring order to the white house. knowing he couldn't necessarily bring order to president trump. well now, it's just gotten very out of control, the chaos has truly reigned at this point and if general kelly goes, you have to wonder does james mattis would go. that's when i think all the house of cards that is the administration right now collapses. >> that would be destabilizing. i think we could all agree on that. before we go, what does this mean? the people who again seem to be surviving all of this, the only people, jared and ivanka, with whatever e-mail crisis they're involved in now, but they are the ones, they are the ones who yet again will seem to survive.
4:38 pm
>> no question. and you know, look, blood is thicker than water. than politics and all the above. and they are still around. and they don't appear to be going anywhere. and the president doesn't seem to want them to go anywhere. you know, another dynamic in this, particularly with regard to the tillerson situation has been historically since the beginning of the administration, we know from reporting, the secretary of state chaffing at the idea that jared kushner kind of has his own national security portfolio. and that's just one example of potential problems, but at the same time, again, erin, you know this because you covered this family in the business world. there's probably no one as close and he chose to bring them in, make them advisers and doesn't seem to be changing anytime soon. >> thank you both very much. and next, no one seems to be able to explain what the president means when he said
4:39 pm
this is the calm before the storment not even trump himself. and his vp completely punting tonight. wait until you hear this. and breaking news. hurricane warnings issueded for new orleans. nate barrelling towards the gulf gaining strength this hour. listen up, heart disease. you too, unnecessary er visits. and hey, unmanaged depression, don't get too comfortable. we're talking to you, cost inefficiencies, and data without insights. and fragmented care, stop getting in the way of patient recovery and pay attention. every single one of you is on our list. at optum, we're partnering across the health system to tackle its biggest challenges. if you have moderate to severe ulcerative colitis or crohn's, at optum, we're partnering across the health system and your symptoms have left you with the same view, it may be time for a different perspective. if other treatments haven't worked well enough, ask your doctor about entyvio,
4:40 pm
the only biologic developed and approved just for uc and crohn's. entyvio works by focusing right in the gi-tract to help control damaging inflammation and is clinically proven to begin helping many patients achieve both symptom relief as well as remission. infusion and serious allergic reactions can happen during or after treatment. entyvio may increase risk of infection, which can be serious. while not reported with entyvio, pml, a rare, serious brain infection caused by a virus may be possible. tell your doctor if you have an infection, experience frequent infections, or have flu-like symptoms, or sores. liver problems can occur with entyvio. if your uc or crohn's medication isn't working for you, ask your gastroenterologist about entyvio. entyvio. relief and remission within reach.
4:41 pm
our guests can earn a free night when they book at choicehotels.com and stay with us just two times? fall time. badda book. badda boom. pumpkin spice cookie? i'm good. book now at choicehotels.com
4:42 pm
the energy conscious whopeople among usle? say small actions can add up to something... humongous. a little thing here. a little thing there. starts to feel like a badge maybe millions can wear. who are all these caretakers, advocates too? turns out, it's californians it's me and it's you. don't stop now, it's easy to add to the routine. join energy upgrade california and do your thing. tonight, president trump doubling down. still refusing to say what he
4:43 pm
meant when he said the meeting was quote the calm before f the storm. >> mr. president, what did you mean by calm before the storm yesterday? what did you mean by that? >> thank you very much. you'll find out. >> i guess it's fun ny to him. ryan is "outfront." trump refusing to say what he meant. he was surrounded by his military leaders and said this was the calm before the storm. i guess he e thinks that's funny, although they said today he didn't mean it as a joke. h the white house failed to offer a sense of what he meant. >> the white house had multiple opportunities today to clarify what the president was talking about and push us off from any idea that some sort of serious military intervention was afoot based on the president's comments. listen to what sarah sanders said today in the press briefing in response to a direct question on this topic. >> as we've said many times before, i know the president has
4:44 pm
as i have from this podium on quite a few occasions, we're never going to say this advance what the president's going to do. and as he said last night in addition to those comment, you'll have to wait and see. >> so, again, we still don't know what we are waiting to see in this instance. as we mentioneded, there are a number of foreign policy challenges this administration is dealing with now, whether it be north korea or iran. of course, a fight against isis. no more clarify today from the white house exactly what the president was talking about. >> all right, thank you very much. ryan nobles. at least you would think in a week when the american people want to feel a calm frtheir commander in chief, certainly not getting it. form former state department spokesman john kirby is "outfront." john, look, no one wants to touch this. tonight, the vice president pence was asked what president trump meant. here's how he answered that question moments ago.
4:45 pm
>> just refer you to the white house for further exposition on that comment. >> of course pence is the vice president, john, so he is the white house. so, no one knows. even his top advisers aren't going to call the president out for scaring people. is it dangerous? >> i think it's irresponsible for sure. for any commander in chief to make a threat like that because it sends messages to not just allies, but adversaries and people all over the world including our troops. now, we found out a fourth now soldier down in africa, this is, these have real consequences. that said, i think when you listen to the vice president's comments, it just convinces me any way all the more that his comment last night was unthe tethered to any real operation anywhere. he was simply plagplaying for t. he was surrounded by the admirals and generals and wanted
4:46 pm
to make a show of it. if he had been tieing in some sort of operational event in the future, i think you would have heard the vice president say look, we don't talk about operations, our military is engage d around the world. instead, he ticks it to the white house. i honestly think it was him playing to the cameras. >> on something that was not playing to the campaieras, much more serious, was criticized for what appeared to be an insult to military commanders, which would not be the first time he has done that. here's what he said yesterday and of course in the past. here he is. >> move iing forward, i also ext you to provide me with a broad range of military options when needed. at a much faster pace. >> i know more about isis than the generals do. believe me. >> the generals have been reduced to rubble. they have been reduced to a point where embarrassing for our country. >> what do comments like these mean to the military, noting that he continued with this sort of vain as recently as last
4:47 pm
night? >> i think what he said yesterday this that room, in terms of i need options from you faster with cameras there doing it publicly, that had to be a punch in the gut to these guys. they thrive on earning the trust and confidence of their sue per yors and when you hear something like that on camera from your commander in chief, you're probably looking around saying you talking about me, my command? do i need to do something different in but two things here, erin. one, operational planning is something the military does really well. i know almost all those men at that table yesterday. i can tell you, they take it very seriously. they don't, they don't hue to bureaucracy. number two, sometimes, operational planning takes time and you want your commanders to do it in a thoughtful, measured, b deliberate way, so i think it was totally irresponsible for him to do this and come meetly uncalled for. >> thank you very much. next, the breaking news. get out now. that's the message now for hurricane warnings posted along the gulf coast. nate gaining strength and threatening new orleans. and so many every day heroes
4:48 pm
playing a role in saving lives in the las vegas massacre. include i including the countless taxi drivers who drive into the danger to help. >> i got a guy shot in the corner! [mascot] hey-ooo! whoop, whoop! [crowd 1] hey, you're on fire! [mascot] you bet i am! [crowd 2] dude, you're on fire! [mascot] oh, yeah! [crowd 3] no, you're on fire! look behind you. [mascot] i'm cool. i'm cool. [burke] that's one way to fire up the crowd. but we covered it. talk to farmers. we know a thing or two because we've seen a thing or two. ♪ we are farmers. bum-pa-dum, bum-bum-bum-bum ♪
4:49 pm
everything i did circled smaround that cigarette when i started taking the chantix that urge just slowly diminished and it was a great and empowering feeling. along with support, chantix (varenicline) is proven to help people quit smoking. chantix reduced my urge to smoke. when you try to quit smoking, with or without chantix, you may have nicotine withdrawal symptoms. some people had changes in behavior or thinking, aggression, hostility, agitation, depressed mood or suicidal thoughts or actions with chantix. serious side effects may include seizures, new or worse heart or blood vessel problems, sleepwalking or allergic and skin reactions which can be life-threatening. stop chantix and get help right away if you have any of these. tell your healthcare provider if you've had depression or other mental health problems. decrease alcohol use while taking chantix. use caution when driving or operating machinery. the most common side effect is nausea. i don't even think about cigarettes anymore. ask your doctor if chantix is right for you. many insurance plans cover chantix for a low or $0 copay.
4:50 pm
4:51 pm
. breaking news, new orleans under a hurricane warning as nate gaining strength in mexico. it's expected to get stronger coming up to the gulf coast. making landfall as hurricane. new orleans mayor is doing a mandatory evacuation. meteorologist allan is at the cnn weather center. what's the latest track here in. >> the track has moved further to the west, now including the city of new orleans. here's the latest, winds picked back up to 60 miles per hour, win gust up to 70 miles per hour. from here it will head back out into the open water of the gulf of mexico. the warm water is the fuel that's necessary for the storm.
4:52 pm
because of that this is why we expect intensification up to a category 1 form as it makes landfall. the question is why is it continuing to the northwest and likely going to impact texas. it's not going to go too far east, because you have a giant high pressure system sitting over the panhandle of florida, that's going to prevent it from ending up over there. why not further west as it has been, you've into the the trough which is associated by a cold front which is produced bad weather as we speak over the plains. that is not only going to produce bad weather in texas but also for the land fall. it's going to be a steering mechanism to push the storm off to the northeast to allow it to impact cities like atlanta, washington, d.c., new york as well as boston. >> so, i can see that track now. when you're saying the storm hitting seizure a category 1, sometimes it's the flooding that can does mass devastation, i
4:53 pm
know in this case we saw that with harvey. that is a real question and concern tonight with nate. >> you're right. i think so many people are focusing on the number, oh, this isn't a three, four or five, won't 'a big deal, keep in mind the category strength only has to do with the winds. it has no bearing on the storm surge and flooding potential and those are going to be lie with this particular storm. take for example, new orleans, belukssy, know vil looking at five to 6 feet of storm surge. so that's the thing, erin, i think people need to focus on. the category may not be as high as irma or harvey but the storage damage impact could be just as impactful. >> thank you very much allison. as we watch that. next, taxies heading into chaos in las vegas. more people risking their own lives to help others. >> i looked around, there's
4:54 pm
nobody else -- so i had to move in. banging their head on a low ceiling. drinking spoiled milk. camping in poison ivy. getting a papercut. and having their arm trapped in a vending machine. but for everyone else, there's directv. for #1 rated customer satisfaction over cable switch to directv. call 1-800-directv.
4:55 pm
4:56 pm
. tonight as investigators search for a motivate, a why in a massacre we are hearing more stories of humanity and survival. so many who were injured in the
4:57 pm
shooting were helped by people they don't know. so many were cab drivers who drove into the scene to help them and get them out. >> reporter: fireworks, that's what cab driver win fred thought he heard as he waited to pick up a pair in mandalay bay. with bullets still flying, he drove across the street to help. >> i said oh my god, it's like a -- zone, everybody was screaming, crying. people on the ground. i see a lot of wounds in the back, head. >> reporter: people crowded around him banging on the car begging for help. >> will you please come to the corner. in the corner i got a guy shot in the corner. >> reporter: so he jumped out and opened his doors, rescuing six people, all of them shot. and what kind of wounds did you
4:58 pm
see? >> really bad, one in the back, one in the neck but i didn't know if they were dying while i'm driving. >> reporter: he rushed his wounded passengers to sun rise hospital. not knowing any of their names he still has no idea if they're alive. >> does it weigh on you that you don't know what happened to them? >> sometimes you cannot sleep thinking about what's going on, you know it really takes a told on me. >> like this cab driver many others rushed to the scene and helped. transport and wounded wondered who came to their aid. >> somebody stopped in the car, there was already four people in the vehicle, there wasn't enough room for me, somebody gave up their seat, they weren't injured, somebody gave up their seat for a complete stranger to go and take their seat. if it wasn't for all that happening i wouldn't be having a
4:59 pm
this conversation at all. >> reporter: another taxi driver was also at mandalay when it began. people started jumping into our car. >> they said go go there's ab active shooter there's people dead every where. and then all of a sudden other people started to get into my cab. i think i had five or six people in any car. i said okay, nobody else nobody else. >> for this cab driver there was no choice, he had to help. >> i'm just a human being. i need to help these people. i look around, there's knob else. >> reporter: and he really was at a loss on where to find the hospital, he had only moved here recently. this was his fourth night on the job. the woman who was sitting in the front seat, she had been shot in the shoulder he asked her to look it up on google maps to find out where the hospital was to drive them there. all of this, erin, whether you look at this in the face of such
5:00 pm
humanity, people in a split second showing the contend of who they are. just amazing stories, erin. >> just amazing stories we had seen. people we were talking to -- we were talking to jonathan smith yesterday, he said i'm no a hero i just did what needed to be done. thank you so much. "ac 360" is next. breaking news out of las vegas, john berman here in for anderson. new word on what the gunman first took aim at even before he began firing on 22,000 people at the music festival below. cnn's brian tomas has that and more. brian, the shooters target may have not been the first target at the concert. what are you hear g from your sources? >> reporter: a short time ago, investigators believed the gunman fired first on a aviation fuel tank before he fired