A Day Away to Alabama Elections
DON LEMON, CNN HOST: ... reckoning. It will be decided by the people of Alabama and what those voters do when they go to the polls in just a few hours. Will they put politics ahead of principle? Will they vote for Roy Moore, the candidate who's accused of child molestation and sexual abuse of teenagers? The man who said America was last great under slavery?</s>ROY MOORE, (R) SENATE CANDIDATE: I think it was great at the time when families were united, even though we had slavery, they cared for one another. People were strong in the families. Our families were strong. Our country had a direction.</s>LEMON: So this is a man who once said getting rid of all of the amendments after the 10th would -- these are his words -- "eliminate many problems." It would also eliminate, by the way, the 13th Amendment, which abolished slavery. And the 19th, which gave women the right to vote. And there is a lot at stake tomorrow for women. Roy Moore faces multiple accusations that he pursued relationships with teenagers. And that he molested a 14-year-old and sexually assaulted a 16-year-old when he was in his 30s. Moore has denied all the allegations. And Alabama's voters, men and women alike, will have to decide if they believe him. But one man who apparently does believe Moore is President Trump, who is openly endorsing, and let's be real, campaigning for Roy Moore, even if he did it just across a state line, he still campaigned for him and also doing robo calls. The president faces his own accusations from at least 15 women ranging from sexual harassment and sexual assault to lewd behavior. One of those 15 women is Jessica Leeds, and she says Trump once groped her on a plane. She 2spoke out today.</s>JESSICA LEEDS, TRUMP ACCUSER: He grabbed me and he was trying to kiss me and everything. And as I recall, he didn't say anything and I certainly didn't say anything. I didn't yell or ask for help. I remember at one point looking over at the guy sitting in the -- across the aisle and thinking, well, why doesn't he come to my aid? I wondered where in hell the stewardess was. But it's when he started to put his hand up my skirt. And that was the last time I wore a skirt traveling.</s>LEMON: There's a lot at stake here. A lot at stake on Alabama's Election Day for people of color. Not just because of Roy Moore's disgusting comments about slavery or because of his reference to Native Americans and Asians as, quote, "reds and yellows," unquote. But because Roy Moore's biggest supporter is the man who began his entire campaign for the highest office in the land with these racially charged comments and then kept defending them.</s>DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: When Mexico sends its people, they're not sending their best. They're sending people that have lots of problems. And they're bringing those problems with us. They're bringing drugs. They're bringing crime. They're rapists. Somebody is doing the raping, Don. I mean, you know, it's -- you know, somebody's doing -- it's women being raped, well, who's doing the raping? Who's doing the raping?</s>LEMON: Yes.</s>LEMON: Actually, that wasn't the beginning. President Trump built the foundation of his run for office on the racist birther lie that Barack Obama was not born in the United States. And as president responded to deadly white supremacist violence in Charlottesville by claiming there were -- his words -- "very fine people on both sides."</s>TRUMP: You also had people that were very fine people, on both sides. You had people in that group -- excuse me. Excuse me. I saw the same pictures as you did.</s>LEMON: So in spite of that, in spite of what you've heard with your very own ears, Donald Trump says he's not racist.</s>LEMON: Are you racist?</s>TRUMP: I am the least racist person that you have ever met. I am the least racist person.</s>LEMON: Are you bigoted in any way?</s>TRUMP: I don't think so, no. I don't think so.</s>LEMON: Just as he says he is not guilty of any of the accusations that women have made against him. So here we are. Just days away, one day away from a day of reckoning for the people of Alabama. They will decide. For Roy Moore. For women. For people of color. For the Republican Party. And now it is up to the voters. And this is where we start. So with all of that, the eyes on Alabama tonight, and the election just hours away, I want to bring in now the always-outspoken Charles Barkley. He is a son of Alabama who is campaigning for democrat Doug Jones. Good to see you. How you doing, Charles?</s>CHARLES BARKLEY, NBA ANALYST, TURNER SPORTS: Nervous. Nervous. I got to say, I can't believe we're in this situation, where the people of Alabama are going to turn a blind ear to - blind eye to all the accusation accusations, all the rhetoric, all the racist B.S. Steve Bannon -- Steve Bannon is down here again, who's a white nationalist, who's a white separatist. He's campaigning for the third time for Roy Moore. And I can't believe the people of Alabama will let them get away with that, to be honest with you, Don.</s>LEMON: I want to talk to you a lot more about this, Charles, but I want our viewers to hear some of what you're saying because you have been campaigning there. I know all weekend, you were on stage today. Let's listen to some of it and then we'll talk.</s>BARKLEY: At some point, we got to stop looking like idiots to the nation.</s>LEMON: It wasn't an easy decision, I would imagine, for you, maybe it was, to go down there and take, you know, away from your personal life, your business, your family and start campaigning for Doug Jones.</s>BARKLEY: Well, I wanted to look my family and my friends in the eye and tell them they've got to get out and vote. I think sometime a lot of people are disillusioned with the American dream. They just become nonchalant. But this is about the big picture for Alabama. Listen, Alabama is a wonderful place. We've got some great people here. But these people have been held down for so long, they hide under the umbrella of religion. Don, when I got here, I'm looking at those Roy Moore ads, and they're the same ads that I saw 30 years ago, against gay marriage, against abortion, against any form of illegal immigration, and talking about, if you believe in God, the Washington insiders don't like you. It's the same religious facts that they've been using to win elections. And I wish some time people would look past, quote/unquote "their religious beliefs" and just try to do the right thing. You can't just win elections talking about, I'm against gay marriage. I'm against abortion. I'm against illegal immigrants. That's not a way to win an election. This is 2017. We are already behind the times here in Alabama. I mean, and it's just sad more than anything. We need to get everybody out and vote for Doug Jones. It's a really big deal.</s>LEMON: Do you think people, though, are hearing -- the people who need to hear you, Charles, do you think they're hearing you or are they just tuned into conservative radio or media that's just going to, you know, say to them what they want to confirm or reconfirm their own beliefs about Roy Moore? Because as I listen to the sound bites, I'm a son of the south, I can't believe the way some people are twisting themselves into pretzels trying to, you know, figure out a way that they can vote for Roy Moore. Why do you think people are so willing to dismiss credible allegations and crazy things that he has said on the record?</s>BARKLEY: Well, because in the south, one of the reasons the south is always behind the times, they use -- like I say, I looked at his commercials. All he talks about is, I'm a Christian, and Washington, they don't want my Christian values in Washington. He's against abortion. He's calling Mr. Jones, because he's pro-choice, he's calling him a baby killer. And he just showed all these pictures, talking about -- you know, Trump says the same thing in your thing. Listen, I think these Hispanic people are amazing. I think they do work that whites and blacks don't want to do. And to act like illegal immigration is the biggest problem in our country or in our state that's disingenuous. But there's a faction of people in the south who they got all the money and all the control. They just want to keep us dumbed down and keep all the money and the power. That has always been the case in the south and it's really unfortunate. I'm just hoping that the people realize, and you know, they always want to make this thing about black and white, Don. What America has become is rich people screwing poor people. That's what this whole thing is about. You look at Trump and his tax proposal. Who's going to benefit? People like myself. They don't do anything for poor people or the middle class. All those tax cuts are designed to help rich people like myself. And that's sad.</s>LEMON: Do you -- do you think that -- do you worry that what you're doing, Charles, may end up helping Roy Moore, because the people of Alabama will think you're talking down to them, you're condescending. Don't come down here, Charles Barkley and tell me how to run my life or what Alabama should be doing. Do you worry about that?</s>BARKLEY: You mean if I don't say anything? See, Don, that's the cache-22. If you say something, they complain, and when you don't say something, they complain. Hey, listen. I came down here because I -- listen, Don, you take all of these cameras, CNN, I've been watching CNN every week. You guys do a fantastic job. So at Doug's rally tonight, you think all these news people are down here because -- they're in shock. They can't believe that these people are going to try to elect Roy Moore. They're here to see a train wreck. I don't think they really care who's a senator in Alabama. All these news people are here because they want to see, are these people that stupid to vote for Roy Moore?</s>LEMON: Listen, I've said it over and over, I cannot believe, Charles, that we're in a place that someone will probably, maybe elected to be the next U.S. senator from Alabama who has the beliefs he has about slavery, about racism, about women and the accusations -- I can't believe that we are actually considering this in 2017 and then his own party is backing him, which is supposed to be the party for moral values. I can't believe that we're in this position. I think that you're right about that.</s>BARKLEY: Well, what makes me sad, like I say, Steve Bannon has been here three times. And like I say, he's a white nationalist, which is a white separatist, does not believe in race mixing. I don't understand if you're a good-hearted republican, why you think that's the right person who should be out-front campaigning for Roy Moore. Listen, this United States senator is supposed to represent everybody in Alabama. Black people, white people, Hispanics, Jewish, everybody. But if you're going to have a guy leading your campaign who you know for a fact, and it's been well proven, does not believe in race mixing, how is that acceptable in 19 -- in this century?</s>LEMON: Yes. Let's listen to Steve Bannon. Here he is.</s>STEVE BANNON, FORMER WHITE HOUSE CHIEF STRATEGIST: Judge Moore is a good man. Judge Moore is a righteous man. And Judge Moore, they've tried to destroy Judge Moore like I told you they would. Remember, I told you this? Months ago, I told you, politics of personal destruction. They tried to destroy Donald Trump and they tried to destroy Roy Moore. You saw how they did this. There's nothing too low for these people to do. They don't a bottom, right? When we go high, there's not only go low, there's no bottom to how low they'll go.</s>LEMON: Who's they and what is he talking about?</s>BARKLEY: Well, first of all, I don't know anything about those eight women, but this -- and like I said, I don't ever comment on people's personal lives, because that's not my business. But this notion that they got eight women to put their reputation on the line to smear Roy Moore, I think that's absurd. I don't ever want any woman to be sexually assaulted or harassed, but the notion that the democrats got eight independent women together to smear this guy, I think that's absurd. But not even that. Listen, I told you, I'm bothered by that. But the notion that a guy -- and let me go out on a limb here. I don't think that thing was that great for the slaves. Let's get that out of the way. He was talking about, it was great back in the slavery days. I'm going to go out on a limb, Don, I don't think it was that good for the slaves.</s>LEMON: I don't think that's going out on a limb. I get your sarcasm there. But I've got to say this. And again, back to my point. Someone who says what he has said, has the history that he has, has a record that he has on racism, on women, and defying the Constitution, being kicked off of the bench, he says the craziest things. And even sometimes members of his family say crazy things. Roy Moore's wife, Kayla, spoke at a rally tonight. She said this about her husband. Pay close attention to this, Charles.</s>KAYLA MOORE, ROY MOORE'S WIFE: Fake news would also have you think that my husband doesn't support the black community. Yet, my husband appointed the very first black marshal to the Alabama Supreme Court.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's right.</s>UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Amen.</s>K. MOORE: Fake news would tell you that we don't care for Jews. I tell you all of this, because I've seen it also. I want to set the record straight while they're here.</s>LEMON: What do you think, Charles? What's your reaction to that?</s>BARKLEY: Let me say, Don, I've got plenty of white friends, but racism still exists. Listen, just because -- hey, just because I got white friends, Hispanic friends, Jewish friends, that don't mean I'm stupid enough to think that racism does not exist. Listen, this guy talks about slavery was a good time. I just don't understand, if -- and I just feel bad for the people of Alabama, because they've got some amazing people. And we've got all of these news organizations down here, laughing at us, like we're a bunch of backwoods idiots. And I just feel sad. Because you got a few people who muddy the water for the great people of Alabama. Don, if somebody actually sent me a movie script and showed me these two candidates, there's no way that you say, there's no way that candidate can get elected. With all the things that's been -- all the accusations, all the times he's gotten let go, fired, kicked off benches. Some of the things he's said. There's no way that person would win an election. And I'm talking about just common sense. If somebody sent you this as a movie, you say, well, we know who's going to win this election, Doug Jones. But unfortunately, here in Alabama, this dude has a chance of winning this election and that's just sad.</s>LEMON: Well, Charles, what I want people to know, too, is that when by criticizing Roy Moore, who happens to be a republican, this is not about left versus right, conservative versus liberal. This is about someone who has had some reprehensible behavior, and for the most part, most people in America, in this great country of ours, cannot believe that we are at this point that this person is actually considered a viable candidate for the U.S. Senate. This isn't about -- this is not really about politics, is it?</s>BARKLEY: It has nothing to do with politics. I tell people, they throw these words around, these talk shows have gotten so out of hand, they're right-wing or they lean to the left, I hate both of those terminologies. Whether you a democrat, a republican, a liberal, or a conservative, listen, Roy Moore does not need to represent the State of Alabama. He does not need to represent our state. Doug Jones has never embarrassed us the way Roy Moore has. And think about it. Other than talking about religion and Ten Commandments and things like that, Judge Moore hasn't done anything for Alabama. He became well-known just because of the Ten Commandments thing. He's never accomplished anything other than that, and being controversial catering to his base.</s>LEMON: Charles Barkley, good luck. Thank you, sir. I appreciate your time.</s>BARKLEY: Hey, thanks for having me, man. It's going to be a long 24 hours, but I can't wait until Doug wins.</s>LEMON: All right. We'll see you back here, Charles, and we'll see you on the road. Thank you, sir. When we come back, President Trump's accusers step up and speak up today detailing their sexual allegations against Trump. The White House firing back, claiming there are eyewitness who refute the women's stories. But do their stories hold water?