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CNN Live Event/Special
Trump Wins New York Republican Primary; Standing By For Trump To Speak After NY Primary Win; Trump Wins NY Primary; Clinton Leads In Early Vote; Standing By For Clinton To Speak After NY Primary Win; Trump Exceeds 50% Of NY Votes, Captures All At-Large Delegates. Aired 9-10p ET
Aired April 19, 2016 - 21:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[21:00:02] WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: As well lots going on, the polls are about to close in New York Sate. In fact they should be closing right now.
And with the polls closed CNN projects that Donald Trump, Donald Trump the billionaire Real Estate Magnet will win the Republican presidential primary in his home State of New York. We don't know how much he will win by. We don't know the delegate count yet, but we do project that Donald Trump will be the winner in the Republican presidential primary, a huge win, a huge win for Donald Trump. We also have a Key Race Alert.
On the Democratic side we are not able to make a projection. These are exit polls results look at how tight it is. This is the CNN estimate on the Democratic presidential primary based on exit poll information. Hillary Clinton at 52 percent, Bernie Sanders at 48 percent. Very close according to our CNN estimate based on these exit polls. Remember, though, these are exit polls. They are estimates based on voter surveys as voters left polling locations throughout today.
The final outcome may be different. Very often those final outcomes could change. We expect the numbers in fact the change throughout the night, but you can see how close it is based on the exit poll information on the Democratic side.
But let say they look at the Republican side right now because we have projected that Donald Trump is the winner. Jim Acosta is over at Trump headquarters. Jim, let's talk about it. I assume his supporters out there where you are they got pretty excited.
JIM ACOSTA, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yes, they're getting very excited, Wolf and we are jammed inside the lobby of Trump Tower right now here in Manhattan. You can see behind me all of the Trump campaign officials here in New York are here as well as Trump family members, the campaign manager Corey Lewandowski standing right behind me. We do expect to hear from Donald Trump any minute now.
They're getting the cheers going here and I can tell you from talking to people inside the Trump Campaign all day long over the last couple of days Wolf, they see this as a turning point in the campaign. Yes, they know that what happened in places like Wyoming and Colorado and Wisconsin were set backs for this campaign, but they see what's happening here in New York and the New York primary tonight and his home state is a reset for this campaign as they really look forward to some favorable terrain in the northeast and places like Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Connecticut and then moving out west to California where Donald Trump owns properties out there as well.
They see the next couple of months as being crucial to getting to that magic number of 1,237 and, yes, there are worries inside the campaign they won't get to that magic number, so we do know that they're starting make preparations to go after those on some of the uncommitted delegates who would be very much sold after in the coming - weeks.
Wolf, Donald Trump has said he's not going to wine and dine those people, he's not going to put them on Trump force one, he is 757 but they do want to try to sit down and talk with some of those jittery, nervous party regulars inside the GOP who they know here inside the Trump campaign have expressed some deep reservations about what some of what they've seen so far during this campaign.
But one thing I heard from a top Trump delegate official earlier today is what they're hearing from party regulars is that they don't mind Donald Trump's anti-establishment message, what they want to see is a professionally run campaign and they think they're going to get the start to that out there in terms of the image to the public later on tonight, Wolf?
BLITZER: Our Jim Acosta is over the Trump Tower, we're getting really to hear from Donald Trump, he'll be speaking very soon. We're told Jake and Dana, big win for Donald Trump. Very close though on the Democratic side.
JAKE TAPPER, CNN ANCHOR: That's right. And as we told you earlier this evening we are going to be having the Empire State Building change its colors according to who we are projecting will win and since CNN has projected Donald Trump will be the winner of the New York Republican primary we are turning the empire state building the dark crimson the red that signifies Donald Trump in this color scheme that we have.
We also have the Democratic contest to all as well. But Dana, I mean no surprise that Donald Trump won the State of New York, but the fact that it's being called so early suggests a very strong victory.
DANA BASH, CNN CHIEF POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Yeah absolutely. First can I just say I feel like I'm Nora Ephron movie? That's so cool that we can see that. It's a very New York thing.
TAPPER: You thought the magic wall was cool.
BASH: Yes. Maybe this is pretty amazing. But, yes Donald Trump, the fact that it was in a nano second after the polls are closed does give a sense of how well he's going do, but it is now time to look at the delegates. Not to take away from his victory, its important victory but every single delegate is so crucial for him.
If he can get close to that 95, it will make a very big difference going forward, not just for here, but next week. He's got a lot of states where he is expected to do quite well in the Northeast and in the Mid-Atlantic so the feeling inside the Trump campaign they hope is that as Jim was just talking to people I spoke to as well.
[21:05:01] Tonight, next week, the inside stuff that's going on in Florida with the Republican National Committee meeting this week where Trump advisers are going down to speak to try to assure the party even though the leaders are have having public spats, all of those combined the feeling is that the party will finally look at him and say, OK that's the front-runner, that's our guy.
TAPPER: I want turn to our Executive Editor of CNN Politics right now, Mark Preston. And Mark, right now the Democratic race is too close to call. The exit polls show a very, very slim margin of victory for Hillary Clinton, but too close to call as of right now. What do we know about the Democratic voters who went to the polls today?
MARK PRESTON, CNN POLITICS EXECUTIVE EDITOR: Well, let's take a look at the generational and policy differences between Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders. Let's look at the age of voters first of all. Right that Hillary Clinton overwhelmingly picks up the support of voters the age 65 and older. More than 7 and 10 of those voters supported the former Secretary of State, Bernie Sanders only gets 3 of those voters.
But, let's go to the other end of the spectrum and look at younger voters, 18 to 29-year-olds overwhelmingly supported Bernie Sanders. Again more than 7 and 10 of those voters supported Sanders. And, again should Hillary Clinton become their nominee those are voters she is going to have try to bring into the Democratic poll.
Let's talk about two issues that had been very hot these whole campaigns certainly of the last two weeks, who would better handle gun policy, Hillary Clinton 56 percent. Bernie Sanders at 39 percent. Now, we know that Hillary Clinton has made this a big issue.
We saw that in the CNN debate just last week, but on the issue of Wall Street which really has been the clearing call for Bernie Sanders, 59 percent of those who think that Wall Street is hurting the U.S. economy is backing the Vermont senator. Only 41 percent say that Hillary Clinton he would be the person to handle Wall Street.
So there you go Jake, a division among generational as well as policy differences.
TAPPER: Very interesting. And, Dana I think I saw some exit poll numbers earlier in the day suggesting that it's something like 60 percent -- 65 percent of Democrats who voted today think that Wall Street is bad for the economy and also something like half of the Republicans who voted today think that way about the economy. Its one the ways that we've seen this overlap in anger over some issues where you have actually Trump and Bernie Sanders having some issues that where don't say agree. BASH: That's right. It's the populous train that's been going through the Republican Party and even though Trump is of and for and about New York, he's never been about Wall Street. It's not his thing. In fact, he's been, you know, for him considering the fact that he's a mogul here anti Wall Street, so it does don't tell.
TAPPER: Let me go Wolf Blitzer right now we have a Key Race Alert. Wolf.
BLITZER: All right Jake, thank you. Let's get to a Key Race Alert right now. The first numbers actual numbers coming in. That we projected Donald Trump is the winner on the Republican side. Very, very early, only about 1,000 votes count so far, but you can see he's way ahead already, 68.6 percent to John Kasich was in second place 17.8 percent, Ted Cruz in third place, only 13.6 percent. Once again less than 1 percent. Very, very early on the Republican side, but we have projected Donald Trump will win the Republican presidential primary.
On the Democratic side also very early. These are the original numbers still coming in right now. You see Hillary Clinton with 60 percent, Bernie Sanders 40 percent, but this is still very early. Our exit poll information shows it's a close a very close race and we're not able yet to make a projection on the Democratic side. We'll see what happens. Anderson, over to you.
ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: A much a big night obviously for Donald Trump, Kayleigh your a supporter of him. How do you feel?
KAYLEIGH MCENANY, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: You know, tonight he said last week in Wall Street Journal op-ed, I'm unwilling to defend a system that empowers the party over the people. Well tonight the people spoke, they did so commandingly. You see Donald Trump getting possibly over that 50 percent margin, could take every delegate in New York perhaps, certainly looks like he's at least going to get over 80.
Tonight is a tremendous victory and I think the tide is turning in the race. As we go look forward to next Tuesday he's going to probably win Connecticut, Pennsylvania. He's doing exceedingly well and I think tonight the tides are turning and we're going to see for them and nominee.
AMANDA CARPENTER, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: You know, I'm so curious to see what Donald Trump says in this victory speech because he's made such a big deal about the system being rigged about, you know, but we're rigged is pretty -- rigged I think pretty terribly because he's winning.
So what is he going to say here? If this is his message that we have to beat the establishment, whatever that is, what is your vision to replace it because a scream that the systems rigged in every state where you don't win. In order to show some kind of consistency you have an obligation to say what the system should be. He's never done that. What kind of reforms is he proposing because if he's saying I want to win and that's not fair when I don't win, that's not good enough. (CROSSTALK)
MCENANY: That's he's system he wants every person to have a vote. That means the 1 million voters ...
(CROSSTALK)
MCENANY: That's mean the 1 million different franchise of in Colorado get to speak, I mean voters in Wyoming gets to speak. He wants everybody in the Republican Party to get to vote.
COOPER: Van?
VAN JONES, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: The amazing thing about Trump kind of watching him now is he's like there's all these rules and rules and it's so terrible. I'm like welcome to the federal government, dude.
[21:10:08] If you ever become president of the United States, you will not you cannot imagine the level of rules and bureaucracy. It's just not as easy to do the stuff that he set and he's learning that himself on the campaign trail.
PAUL BEGALA, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Well, and on the political side. A president has to unite a really impossibly diverse country but a party leader needs to unite his party and so far every time it looks like Donald Trump is going to win and going to be the nominee, he self sabotages. It's -- I don't know that shrinks.
(CROSSTALK)
COOPER: For a long time though he's been claiming he can be more presidential you're going to see that. I mean ...
(CROSSTALK)
GLORIA BORGER, CNN CHIEF POLITICAL ANALYST: I think when like to a ...
DAVID AXELROD, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: ... before I, no more presidential, but.
But, you know, I have to give him due here.
BORGER: Right.
AXELROD: I'm not sure strategically that given the fact that he is flirting with that 1,237 and he may land on one side of it or the other setting up a construct that says, if he's the clear front-runner and doesn't get the nomination that there's something wrong with the system, that seems strategically sound to me.
BORGER: Right.
AXELROD: I think he can be faulted for not knowing the system and Ted Cruz is running. (CROSSTALK)
BEGALA: But in the system. You can't get them by saying that they're corrupt.
BORGER: You know, but tonight.
AXELROD: But -- these folks also have -- within the party have to look at all of these polls that suggest that large numbers of Republicans think the right result would be the person who has the most delegates gets the nomination.
(CROSSTALK)
COOPER: It doesn't matter that he doesn't know the rules or hasn't pay attention, he's winning.
(CROSSTALK)
CARPENTER: No, it's true.
BORGER: Tonight. He's had a huge victory and right now he's the only Republican who has a mathematical real chance of clinching the nomination the old fashioned way which is getting it before you get to this convention.
(CROSSTALK)
MICHAEL SMERCONISH, CNN ANCHOR: I think the mathematical point because he's about to celebrate tonight one of the biggest victories of his campaign. Give him his just due.
BORGER: Why?
SMERCONISH: But also take a look at the internal numbers. If I told you that 40 percent said they were concerned or scared about a Donald Trump presidency you'd say that must be a Democratic number. No, that's a New York Republican number.
So on the very night that he'll have this enormous victory, 4out of 10 are saying I'd be frightened if he were the president as the Republicans.
NIA-MALIKA HENDERSON, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL REPORTER: Yeah, and you saw some similar numbers like that in Wisconsin, a state he lost surprising that it's that high in New York which is his state.
I think the fear comes from the fact that sure he's been able to have his coalition in the Republican Party, you know, 33 to 40 percent, but he hasn't turned toward the general at all. I mean that alone uniting the entire Republican Party. You see from most front-runners an eye toward the general and they need to expand and win independent voters, win African-American voters, win women voters. And I think that's what the fear is about.
COOPER: Do you think? And we're waiting for Donald Trump to speak. Do you think we see the same Donald Trump that we have seen all along? Does he start to try to make some sort of a turn or is that.
BEGALA: It took him months ago in an interview.
COOPER: Right?
BEGALA: Oh I could be more presidential just and we're still waiting on it. He's a very charming guy, he's a great speaker.
MCENANY: The re-tweet it happens of Heidi Cruz, which was a mistake.
BEGALA: Right.
MCENANY: Since then what has happened that has made him look unpresidential? Nothing, I would argue, we have see a new Donald the camp.
(CROSSTALK)
CARPENTER: The Cruz campaign of engaging in bribery and fraud and a little coordination of the Super PAC.
MCENANY: No, he has done repeatedly ...
CARPENTER: No.
MCENANY: ... at the system is rigged against him and I think that is the case when we looked at Georgia where you have Trump delegates were before ...
COOPER: We got another Key Race Alert. All right, let's just go to Wolf for that, Wolf.
BLITZER: All right, let's get this Key Race Alert right now. More numbers are coming in on the Republican side. Donald Trump, we projected he's the winner of the Republican presidential primary, but look at this. A few thousand votes are in very, very early. He's got 69.5 percent. Ohio Governor John Kasich in second place as of right now with 18.3 percent, Ted Cruz got only 12.1 percent. Once again, very early, but remember Donald Trump we projected is the winner.
On the Democratic side only 2 percent of the vote is in so far. Hillary Clinton has a pretty impressive lead, but this is very early. She's at 62.2 percent to Bernie Sanders 37.8 percent. She's almost 10,000 votes ahead, but once again this is very early. Our exit poll results show this was a very, very close race, but that is an estimate based on exit poll information.
We're waiting to hear from Donald Trump. He's getting ready to speak over at Trump Tower in New York City. We're also waiting to hear from Hillary Clinton. We'll have live coverage much more coming up, right after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[21:18:42] BLITZER: Donald Trump getting ready to speak over the Trump Tower in 5th Avenue in Manhattan. He is projected to be big winner tonight on the Republican side. He wins the Republican presidential primary.
The Democratic side, Hillary Clinton will also be speaking over at Hillary Clinton headquarters in New York. We're standing by to hear from her as well. We'll be hearing from Bernie Sanders. Very close race base on the exit poll information on the Democratic side. On the Republican side not very close at all, although we'll see how the delegates in New York state all 95 are sent out.
Now let's take a Key Race Alert right now. Take a look at this. On the Republican side, first of all very early, only 3 percent of the vote is in that Donald Trump way ahead, 68.9 percent. John Kasich at 18.5 percent, Ted Cruz in distant third only 12.6 percent. Once again very early, but an impressive lead in New York for Donald Trump.
On the Democratic side, 7 percent of the vote is in coming relatively quickly 61.6 percent for Hillary Clinton so far, 38.4 percent for Bernie Sanders. She's ahead by more than 32,000 votes right now, 8 percent of the vote is in, but remember still very, very early. The exit poll information shows it's a close race.
Let's go to John King right now on the Republican side. The key is going to be how he's going to do in all these congressional districts. There are 27 of them. He wins them all, it is huge tonight.
[21:20:04] JOHN KING, CNN ANCHOR: He does. The first test is get to state wide at large delegates by being over 50 percent of the vote. This is only 3 percent counted Wolf, but Donald Trump near 70 percent. We have every reasonably, of every confidence base on our exit poll and based on key precincts, based on the early results we're seeing that Donald Trump will end the night with a 50 percent plus win statewide.
Now get you at the large delegates. But your right 80 plus of the 95 count in this congressional district, so one of the thing we're going to have throughout the night is take the congressional district map and overlay the state and get a sense, you know, is Donald Trump getting over 50 percent not just statewide but in each of these congressional districts.
If you go under 50 percent then the winner gets two and the second place finisher gets one. So, is Trump get 95 or the Kasich and Cruz pick some delegates away? That's one thing we're going to watch, or will use this congressional map overlay to do it. As we do to that the reason I say that is look right here. As the map fills in predominantly for Donald Trump, we do have New York County known to most America and most New Yorkers as Manhattan.
At the moment right now John Kasich but again that 23 percent of expected vote in John Kasich ahead little bit no guarantee John Kasich is going to win Manhattan. A lot of votes to count but there is one congressional district right in here, if John Kasich for example were to hold that, you know, if he's at 45 percent he would get two. So we'll see what happens it looks like there's a possibility of Kasich picking up some delegates in this more modern areas, but you just go through and take a look here in the Bronx, Donald Trump in the early vote at near 70 percent, you come down here to Queens, 65 percent, you come here now Wolf, I think Kings County has a ring to it. Don't you? Brooklyn is what the world calls this.
Take a look at Kings County where by with me 75 percent there. And Donald Trump running very strong out here. Richmond County to run the valley, Staten Island to New Yorker's in most Americans here. Donald Trump running above 85 percent. So if you taken that statewide and a take look, real results so far, now you see Donald Trump at 70 percent. I don't have any question he's going to crack 50 percent. The question then will be congressional district by congressional district to see if he gets 95, or if it looks like Kasich at the moment is at threat to maybe take three, four, five of those way.
BLITZER: These are the counties not congressional ...
KING: Right.
BLITZER: ... district. And obviously the congressional district don't go inside, let's take a look at the Democratic side now.
KING: And again as you see so far we have some rural counties coming in. Throughout of the small counties 1.2 percent. The population here of Sanders running ahead out in the rural areas, but that's one of the things he wants to do among the rural Democrats to get some votes out there it's offset what he expects to be Hillary Clinton's advantage down here in the city. Towards the city as we have stretch it out.
But again so far New York City coming in all for Hillary Clinton. Let's just go through as we look. Up in the Bronx, 28 percent of the vote in. She's at 70 percent. That's quite impressive.
Remember Democratic congressional districts, Democratic rules, you get a little bit of a bonus in the districts with a heavy minority population. So down here in the city are very important.
If you come into look in the Manhattan area, Hillary Clinton at 66 percent running here in Queens down at 60 percent, in Brooklyn, she's leading at 58. And that state now at 52, and so in the city area Hillary Clinton doing quite well so far which is the base of the Democratic vote, but Wolf we have to see the part of the state you're quite familiar with, home town of Buffalo and up here watch this fall into see if Senator Sanders basically the exit polls we see a tight race. Let's count them see how it goes.
BLITZER: Yeah. Let's do it the old fashioned way. Let's count the actual votes. All right, let go over to Jake and Dana because they're watching. They are in New York right now. They are watching it very closely. Jake.
TAPPER: Thanks, Wolf. Yeah. We're looking at Donald Trump and the numbers coming in and boy is he dominating 80 percent of the vote of the Republican vote out of Staten Island.
Let's go to our CNN Politics Editor Mark Preston. Mark, we don't know the exact number right now, but it does look like Donald Trump is having a dominate evening. Why? What were the Republican voters looking for? PRESTON: Well, let's look at the quality right now. Quality is that New York Republicans were looking for specifically. The number one quality was a candidate who could bring about change and if you look at these numbers right there Donald Trump wins a decisively at 68 percent of those voters went for Donald Trump, John Kasich barely gets two and 10 of those voters and Ted Cruz down there at 13 percent.
As we told you earlier this evening, six in 10 Republicans wanted an outsider as their nominee. Donald Trump overwhelmingly wins those voters, 85 percent. Ted Cruz only picks up 9 percent of those voters, John Kasich picks up 6 percent. Perhaps the most important quality though is heading into November who can defeat Hillary Clinton.
Look at that Donald Trump at 56 percent. It really does give us the reasons why Donald Trump easily won his home state of New York tonight. Jake.
TAPPER: Very interesting. Mark Preston thanks.
And that's interesting also about the number on can defeat Hillary Clinton, but assuming of course she's the Democratic nominee. We expect that Donald Trump is the outsider. We see him feuding with the Republican National Committee every day, we expect him to have a reputation in this area for bringing about needed change, but the idea that he's the most electable, that's not necessarily an issue the Republican voters have cared that much about in this election cycle.
BASH: That's right because it the any time John Kasich opens his mouth talking about why he's still in this race he's answer is because I'm the only one who can beat Hillary Clinton in that's his arguments.
[21:25:09] And in this case it looks like New York voters did not say so, but I think that's also what happens when you're as dominate as Donald Trump appears to be here in New York tonight, across the board across the state. We'll see how he cares in every one of the 27 congressional districts whether he can really run the board and get all 95 delegates. But if those numbers or any indication, he could come really close.
TAPPER: All right, lets go to Wolf Blitzer who has a Key Race Alert, Wolf.
BLITZER: All right, let's take a look the Key Race Alert right now. Let's go to the Democrats first. Take a look at this 15 percent of the vote is now in. Hillary Clinton has a commanding lead, 60 percent of the vote is now and 61.8 percent, 38.2 percent for Bernie Sanders, she's up by more than 70,000 votes right now but we have not projected a winner on the Democratic side. The exit polls showed it would be pretty close, 16 percent of the voters in those she's got a commanding lead.
On the Republican side Donald Trump is the winner, but right now with 7 percent of the vote and he's ahead by 25,000, 67.6 percent for Trump, 19.5 percent for Kasich.
We're standing by to hear from Donald Trump momentarily also we'll be hearing from Hillary Clinton much more of our coverage coming up, right after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[21:30:50] BLITZER: Take a look at these live pictures coming in from Trump Tower in New York, a very, very happy Donald Trump getting ready to deliver a victory speech. Over there, we'll have live coverage that's coming up. We projected he is the winner of the Republican presidential primary in the southern state of New York.
Let's get a Key Race Alert right now. On the Republican side 9 percent of the vote is in, you see Trump with 65.1 percent of the vote to Kasich 21.2 percent, Ted Cruz 13.7 percent. Just change 10 percent of the vote is in, Trump still maintaining an impressive lead, 65.2 percent. We'll see if that holds throughout the night.
On the Democratic side we have not projected a winner, but right now with a lot of quarters the vote in. Hillary Clinton has a nearly 100,000 vote lead over Bernie Sanders. She's at 61.1 percent, 38.9 percent for Bernie Sanders. 24 percent of the vote is in, but we have not projected a winner in the Democratic contest in New York. Anderson.
COOPER: Wolf Blitzer, thanks very much. I mean, Kayleigh, when you look at Trump's victory in New York, it is extraordinary. I mean, it is not a wave of support, it's a tsunami of Trump support.
MCENANY: Absolutely, because he came in and he knew the temperature of this electorate. We see in state after state and diverse electorates from South Carolina to Nevada to New York, people are angry at the Federal government, not only that in most states the majority feel betrayed by the Republican Party. So Donald Trump knew that that's what people want.
COOPER: And there is Donald Trump and Melania Trump. He's not starting to speak yet. We'll bring you his comments alive. He's walking around with -- saying hello to well wishers there at Trump Tower.
It is from here though -- I mean he's got a lot of states which are very favorable for him. And so, I mean when you talk about momentum, when you talk about just the next couple of weeks, it looks very good for Donald Trump.
MCENANY: Absolutely. And when we look forward to next week and you've got Pennsylvania and Maryland and Connecticut, we are going to see, I think, the same margins of victory, the same sort of victory and he is going to be an unstoppable force. And I really think this whole conversation of an open convention might very well become now.
COOPER: It is interesting, Van, because Donald Trump all along has been saying he thinks he's going to get 1,237 before the convention.
JONES: Well, first of all, just look at his face and that family. Say what you want to about Donald Trump, nobody has criticized that family. And, you've got to imagine, you know, he goes to New York, he's a young guy, he's an entrepreneur, he's got some backer from his dad, he builds all these, you know, monuments to himself. And now he gets to walk through them having won decisively his home state, his home town with his family. But I hope this is his last happy day, there's a happy day of Trump. If you're a Trump, you're happy today.
CARPENTER: And look at the time of that this win occurred. He needed this moment to happen now. He's had a rough couple of weeks. This was the best time to have a New York win.
COOPER: And let's listen in.
DONALD TRUMP, (R) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Very nice, I have to say to the people that know me the best, the people of New York, when they give us this kind of a vote and it's just incredible and I guess we're close to 70 percent and we're going to end the very high level, and get a lot more delegates than anybody projected, even their -- in their wildest imagination.
So, I just want to thank everybody here. I want to thank my family. I want to thank ...
I really want to thank my team. My team has been amazing. And, you know, it's actually a team of unity, it's evolving, but people don't understand that. The press does understand it, they just don't want to talk about it, that's OK. Just keep talking, it's very important, keep talking.
But, this has been an incredible evening. It's been an incredible day and week. We went all over New York State. New York State has problems like virtually every other state in the union. Our jobs are being sucked out of our states, they're being taken out of our country and we're not going to let it happen any more, we're going to stop it.
Very importantly and I have -- and behind me, I have to say we have some of our great businessmen of the world. Carl Icahn is here someplace. Where is Carl? Howard Lorber, Ben LeBow, the great Steve Roth. Steve's building a big building on Central Park South. It's a tremendous success, I said, Steve, congratulations on the building. He said Donald it's nothing compared to what's happening with you. Is that right? My man, so anyway, we're proud of him.
[21:35:27] But we have our great leaders and it has been really something. It has been really something amazing and believe me, we are going to use our great business people to negotiate unbelievable trade deals so we bring our jobs back and we don't let our companies go to Mexico and all of these other countries any more. We're going to keep the jobs here. You're going to be very proud of this country very soon. We're going to build our military bigger, better, stronger than ever before.
Nobody is going to mess with us. That I can tell you, we're going to take care of our vets -- we're going, our vets are great people and we have forgotten our vets. Illegal immigrants are taken care of in many cases better than our vets, that's not going to happen any more. That is not going to happen.
We're getting rid of ObamaCare. It's going to be repealed and replaced that it is a total disaster with premiums going up 35, 45, 55 percent, it's going to probably end of its own volition. Were getting rid of it, bringing common core, we're not giving out, we're cutting it, it's going to be over and we're bringing education locally.
Local communities are going to take care of their educational needs and people have been waiting for that for a long time. So with all of the things that have happened today, tonight and over the week, I'll tell you what, this has been an amazing week.
All over New York State we went to Syracuse, we went to Albany, 20,000 people. We know an average, we'd have 15 to 20,000 people. We went to Rochester. We went Bethpage, we went all over. And you know what? The people of this country and the people of this state truly are great and amazing people.
We are going to be so strong again. We're going to be really -- I mean legitimately so great again and I just can't wait. So, we don't have much of a race anymore based on what I'm seeing on television. Senator Cruz is just about mathematically eliminated.
And we've won another state. As you know we have won millions of more votes than Senator Cruz. Millions and millions of more votes than Governor Kasich. We've won and now especially after tonight close to 300 delegates more than Senator Cruz. We're really, really rocked.
We expect we're going to have an amazing number of weeks because these are places and they're in trouble. They're in big trouble. When you look at Pennsylvania, when you look at Indiana, when you look at Maryland and Rhode Island and so many places, we have problems everywhere you look.
We are going to solve those problems. And one of the big problems -- one of the big problems is the economy and jobs and that is my wheelhouse. So again, I want to thank everybody. It's really nice to win the delegates with the votes. You know, it's really nice.
Nobody should be given delegates which is a ticket to victory and it's not a fair ticket and even though we're leading by a lot and we can't be caught, it's impossible to catch us, nobody should take delegates and claim victory unless they get those delegates with voters and voting. And that's what's going to happen. And you watch, because the people aren't going to stand for it. It's a crooked system. It's a system that's rigged and we're going to go back to the old way. It's called you vote and you win.
So we'll be going into the convention no matter what happens and I think we're going to go in so strong and over the next number of weeks we just saw our poll come out of California which is an unbelievable poll, but we're going to go into the convention I think as the winner, but nobody can take an election away with the way they're doing it in the Republican Party.
[21:40:04] And by the way, I am no fan of Bernie, but I've seen Bernie win, win, win and then I watch and they say he has no chance of winning. So they have the superdelegate the Republican system is worse. So I want to just thank you everybody. I have great, great admiration and praise for the city of New York and the state of New York. I can think of nowhere that I would rather have this victory.
So we love you all. Have a great evening. We celebrate and tomorrow morning we go back to work. I'm flying tomorrow morning. I'm flying tomorrow morning to Indiana. I'm going to Pennsylvania. I will be all over.
So we're going to celebrate for about two hours. Then early in the morning I get up and we begin working again. Thank you everybody and thank you New York. We love New York. We love New York. Thank you very much everybody. Thank you.
TAPPER: The winner of the Republican New York primary, Donald Trump with a dominate lead. And I have to say Dana Bash, listening to Donald Trump we've been talking for the last couple of weeks about how he has become a more disciplined candidate, how he has been saying fewer things that get him off message and we heard that man this evening. He did not refer to lying Ted.
BASH: Nope.
TAPPER: He referred to Senator Cruz over and over and over. He did not refer to John Kasich even by his first name. He called him Governor Kasich.
He stuck to two basic messages in addition to expressing gratitude. One is that the trade deals have been bad for the economy and that's why he's doing well in places like New York and why he thinks he will do well in Pennsylvania and in Indiana and Rhode Island and other places and then the second issue which he's been talking about quite a bit is how he says the system, in this case the election system, the Republican primary system, is rigged and that is one of the other messages that he's been delivering. It helps paint him as an outsider at war with the elite's.
And also helps him should he get to the Republican convention in Cleveland without that magic 1,237 number of delegates he needed. But that Donald Trump you heard this evening, that is the Donald Trump pivoting to become a general election candidate.
BASH: I could not agree with you more even when he did talk about the system being rigged, it was on a much more subdued level because he realizes and maybe more importantly the people he is now surrounding himself with realize that he has to work within that system to get the delegates, to keep the delegate he has now as they're actually being formally elected and chosen throughout the states that he won.
And to continue to win them going forward because the system is what it is. So he's trying to kind of walk a fine line as he does try to give off an air of somebody who is going to be the nominee. Whether he is or not, you know, that's a different story, but there's no question that this was a fundamentally different Donald Trump, candidate Donald Trump, and I think fair to say maybe less reality T.V. show Donald Trump.
TAPPER: Well, that we've been hearing those of us who have been covering Donald Trump now for almost a year have been talking to people who know him and many of them say there are two Donald Trumps and this is the second one, the first one causing a lot of agenda for his party, offending a lot of people, this is the second one that many of them predicted he would pivot to. Wolf let's go back to you in Washington.
BLITZER: Thanks very much. We just heard that Donald Trump, he spoke for eight minutes. He's had a victory speech, he is the winner in the New York state, Republican presidential primary, but now we have a major projection on the Democratic side.
And take a look at this. Hillary Clinton is the winner of the New York state Democratic presidential primary based on the actual votes that have come in, based on the exit poll information that we have, CNN now projects the former secretary of state is the winner of the New York state Democratic presidential primary.
They're going wild over there at Clinton headquarters in New York. Brianna Keilar, very excited over there right now. Hillary Clinton is the winner, set the seen for us. We will be hearing from her soon. They just heard us make the projection.
BRIANNA KEILAR, SENIOR POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Well you can -- you can see Wolf, and it's actually very hard to hear you because the crowd here is so loud, but they are listening to the projection right now on CNN and very excited.
This is her home state and there's really nothing like winning in your home state. A supportive crowd here, we are expecting that tonight is going to be a family affair with Bill and Chelsea Clinton on stage with Secretary Clinton.
[21:45:03] That something we actually have not seen since New Hampshire, but a lot of the enthusiasm here also I'm told comes to the fact that you have many campaign staff were some of them a lot whom are from New York and they have invited their families.
So, it's a very invested crowd. I should also tell you as the Sheridan Midtown here is bumping, this is where Hillary Clinton celebrated her 2006 re-election to the Senate and we're of course, Wolf, as we're awaiting her speech here, she will be celebrating 10 years later a win for the Democratic nomination in the New York primary.
BLITZER: What a win for Hillary Clinton in New York State. She is the winner of the Democratic presidential primary. Let's go over to Jake and Dana.
TAPPER: Thanks Wolf. Well, earlier this evening, when we projected that Donald Trump would be the winner of the New York Republican Primary, we turned at the top of the Empire State Building deep red, that was the color that CNN had designated for Donald Trump.
Now, let us turn the top of the Empire State Building, the color blue that we have assigned to Hillary Clinton. And Hillary Clinton dark blue and there you see it the Empire State Building, dark blue in honor as a projection of the victory of Hillary Clinton. And Dana Bash, I have to say, this is a big victory for Secretary Clinton. It's in a few weeks ago there were people allies of her as we thought, oh my God, it's possible, that she might not even win her home state. But at the end of the day, she did. She knows the state very well. She's campaigned here at statewide several times starting in 1999 for the sentiency and a big sweet victory for her this evening.
BASH: Oh, no question about it, a huge victory for her. Especially since, when you think about that Briana mentioned the 10 year mark, it really has been 10 years since she ran for re-election as senator here.
And of course, she ran on the New York primary, but as Clinton supporters remind us. Barack Obama didn't really compete here because, what was the point, she was a sitting senator.
So, this is something that is incredibly sweet for her, important and we'll see what happens when it comes to the personality of it, whether or not Bernie Sanders really can rack up some delegates. But, at this point, give her, her due. She has hometown win.
TAPPER: And we're going to -- we'll see what the margins are. We're expecting to hear from the Former Secretary of State and Former New York Senator, Hillary Clinton. Any minute now, we'll bring that to you live. We're going to take this very quick break.
More of CNN's election coverage, after this quick message.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[21:51:47] BLITZER: Donald Trump is the winner of the New York State Republican presidential primary. Hillary Clinton is the winner in the Democratic presidential primary. We're waiting here from Hillary Clinton, she'll be delivering a victory speech soon. We'll have live coverage to that coming up.
In the meantime, let's go over to John King. Now, the all important delegate allocation on the Republican side, Democratic side, that's critically important on the Republican side first.
KING: And we do know this, our decision team desk and they worked really hard. We should put them on the camera more often, because they're a great part of organization.
They are quite certain now based on these early results, based on their analysis of keep precincts, that Donald Trump. We do project Donald not only is the winner, but will win with above 50 percent state wide. It looks like he might end up there in the 60 percent poll part there. But Donald Trump will win above 50 percent state wide, which means, he get to the 14 at large delegates, all for Donald Trump, because he's above 50 percent.
Now, the question is for the other 81, you do those, those three for each of the 27 congressional districts and we're going to have to watch as the results come in. But, as you see this come in, and you just tap into these counties. Now, these are counties, not congressional districts. You have to draw the lines of the districts, which is look at what's happening, 51 percent up here, 49 percent here, 49.8 percent here.
So, when we put the congressional map overlay in later when we get them, we'll have to see if Trump can, if enough of the counting, the 51s bring him up.
Let's move over to a place you know well, Erie County, the home of Wolf Blitzer, Buffalo, 67 percent.
So, at the moment, Trump is on track. He's not only going to win 50 percent statewide, but he's running up pretty impressive numbers. Then it looks like he is going to get close to 95, which is all 95. I will say this, one county right now shaded for Ted Cruz, it's a tiny rural county and only 1 percent of the voters in right now, seven votes to 43. We'll keep an eye on that.
We just heard Donald Trump say, he was thrilled to get the support of the people who know him best. If there is potentially one, you can decide what degree of a scar it is on Trump's victory, it's in Manhattan right now that Donald Trump calls home. John Kasich is actually beating him by a little more than 300 votes was about 80 percent of the vote in. Not a lot of Republicans voting so far in Manhattan. We'll keep an eye on this to see if it changes as is it goes on.
But, if there's one scar on what otherwise is a very impressive Donald Trump win in New York tonight, it will be, if in his backyard of Manhattan he looses to John Kasich, what would that mean? It would mean, Kasich would get a couple, there's -- let me pull this back out.
A lot of Congress -- these areas stretches into several congressional districts. There's one right here in Manhattan, so it's possible three, four, five delegates for John Kasich based on this.
If that stays like that, we still have Donald Trump somewhere in the ball park of 90, 90 potentially more delegates as we count the votes in New York and you just watch as it fills in, Wolf. This is very impressive, very impressive for Donald Trump. He had two weeks from Wisconsin, Ted Cruz, obviously, beat him in Wisconsin, this is filling in, just a slam dunk for Trump.
BLITZER: And 31 percent of the voters and he's got 62 percent. That is very, very impressive.
You heard Donald Trump the first, Senator Ted Cruz, it's almost mathematically now impossible for him to get 1,237 on that first ballot. Does he have a point?
KING: Yes, he does. So, let's go over to the delegate map. We can show you that. Ted Cruz has to win in the 90 percent. So, what's left close on, you know, it's just inconceivable.
I'm going to give you this here. Let's say, Donald Trump, I'm going to give him all 95. It might be closer to 90, but let's give him 95 for now and see what that would put Donald Trump back here around a 50. To see Ted Cruz is on track to get a goose egg tonight. That's 95 delegates and he's going to get none of them, which leaves him back here.
[21:55:02] And then if you project forward to eight, well, I just want to say the rest of April. This is giving Donald Trump 75 percent of the delegates next Tuesday night.
Let's see if Ted Cruz can pick some up in Pennsylvania. Let's see if he can find away to fix him up in Maryland. But, at the moment, Donald Trump and we assume he gets momentum out of the big New York with, he was already leading and all these other states for next Tuesday. Then, Donald Trump is out here passed the 75 percent mark. Ted Cruz either be fixed up a few is still way back here.
It is mathematically near impossible. There is about that much of a chance. You know, you can just put a piece of paper through the possibility of Ted Cruz getting there, it's just not going to happen. It's not going to happen.
That's assuming Ted Cruz gets 90 percent in California, he's done well out in the west here, but it's just Ted Cruz knows this. And you've heard it from him in recent days, his only chance is at a contested convention.
The challenge now is to keep Donald Trump with a big win tonight, potential for another big wins, wins Florida ...
BLITZER: Five states next Tuesday.
KING: Right. There's a possibility. If you look at this map here, 955, there's a possibility that Donald Trump is even closer to 960 somewhere in that ball park, but at the end of April then there are 502 delegates left.
BLITZER: How does he get to the 1,237? That's the number he needs on the first ballot in Cleveland to avoid some sort of contested convention.
KING: So, let's just put this out a little bit. Put this all, race all we have to June. Let's assume Donald Trump, New Jersey winner take all, Donald Trump wins in West Virginia. Ted Cruz continues his success out here in the west, right. So, this scenario gives Indiana to Cruz. Watch this and pay attention as we go.
If we go out here now, and Donald Trump could win 70 percent in California, that's a tough task. But if he can win big in New York tonight, if he gets the momentum, they say he's going to spend T.V. money out in California. If he did that, when I get him, I just got up to 1,211.
Now, this is being very generous to Trump in winning the delegates here on pays like he looks like tonight, 70 percent in California, that would get him to 1,211. So, can you get him there? Well, can you do, can you take Indiana instead of having Ted Cruz win Indiana that gets you up to 1,222. Pick Washington or Oregon, let's say, he can somehow, come back, you know, and win Washington instead of Ted Cruz.
You know, unlikely, a conservative base state there, but back into some 1,236 ...
BLITZER: Wow.
KING: ... that you see that maps right there. But, look, this is a scenario, we just think of where we are. Now, we're trying to tinker to see if he can upset this state or do a little better in that state, but it's not hard, it's not hard. The best way to put this, is it's not hard to get Donald Trump to 1,210. It's not that inconceivable to get Donald Trump above 1,175 and 1,120.
And in a best case scenario to get Donald Trump either just over 1,237 or so close to it. And if he's at 1,225 and you arrived in Cleveland, it would be near impossible to see the Republican Party.
And, remember, that would be after June 7th. They would have time before the convention if he's at 1,020 or even 1,175, then you go back to the 54 non-committed delegates in Pennsylvania. You say, hey, I won your state with 50 percent, 50 percent plus, you've got to come to me. You go to the unbound delegates from Guam, America and Samoa, the Virgin Islands. You try the Lobby Marco Rubio delegates. Maybe you try to cut a deal with John Kasich.
So, where Donald Trump is on June 7th, you then have time before the convention. And if he's above 1,200, above 1,175, you would assume, the guy who wrote the art of the deal, would try to make some deals.
BLITZER: Yeah, June 7th, that's when California, the biggest prize of them all.
Let's go back to New York on the Democratic side. Take a look at Hillary Clinton, we projected she is the winner in New York. She's trying to get to that magic number of pledged delegates, although she doesn't have an impressive lead among the so-called, superdelegates.
KING: And remember, when the exit polls come in, we did have projection right after that, because it was 5,248.
As the results come in, we see at least so far, role over half of the county at 53 percent. And the vote totals right now, in more generous win for Secretary Clinton. Then those exit polls suggested.
Now, you see Bernie Sanders winning a lot of these counties upstate, including your home -- county, a very county up here, 5,148, it's more competitive up there if you look at it.
But, Bernie Sanders doing what his campaign said he needed to do, which was doing very well upstate. Although, in the urban areas, we come over here to Rochester, it's narrow, but Hillary Clinton winning there.
Move over here and let's look at Syracuse, a little bit bigger margin for her in Syracuse right there, 26 percent of the vote in. The bulk of the vote, of course, is down here in the city. And if you come down here to the city and take a look at it, the number one let's going to start out here in the suburbs and come down.
Westchester County, home of Chappaqua, now the home of the Clintons, 66 percent as you come down there.
You move down here, you come into the Bronx, she's getting right now with 70 percent counted, 70 percent of the vote in the Bronx.
We come into Queens, 60 percent of the voting Queens. In Manhattan, 66 percent, again, I love Kings County is the name, but most people call this Brooklyn, she is getting there 60 percent there in Brooklyn. The base of her national campaign headquarters and you come out here to Staten Island. She is above 53 percent.
So, in Urban, New York, in all of the boroughs where you have the African-American vote, the Latino vote, the traditional base of the Democratic Party. This has been the demographic lock, Clinton has had in this race, and that Sanders has been unable to pick.
And what the Clinton campaign will argue tonight is especially if numbers like this hold up, Wolf, not only will it add to the delegate lead, they believe when you project forward again, into Pennsylvania, into Maryland, into Delaware, when you do have the African-American base that she will have a good night tonight, a very good night next week and at that the math becomes pretty impossible.
[22:00:10] BLITZER: Stand by for a moment. I want to go over to Jeff Zeleny. He's over State College Pennsylvania, that's where Bernie Sanders spoke tonight.
