Romney Picks Up More Endorsements
JOHN KING, CNN ANCHOR: Good evening. I'm John King. We're tracking two breaking stories tonight. The only known eyewitness to the Trayvon Martin shooting speaks to our Anderson Cooper. You will hear his description of exactly what he saw. And Mitt Romney picks up two big endorsements, and we're learning of a secret meeting with rival Newt Gingrich. Tonight, for the first time, CNN can give you an eyewitness account of the fatal shooting of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin. Our Anderson Cooper spoke to this eyewitness just moments ago.</s>ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: What did you observe after the shot?</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: As I said, it was dark. But after the shots, obviously, someone -- the one man got up, and it was kind of like that period of him -- I can't say I actually watched him get up, but maybe only within like a couple seconds or so, then he was walking towards where I was watching. And I could see him a little bit clearer and see that it was a Hispanic man, and he was -- he didn't appear hurt or anything else. He just kind of seemed very -- I guess -- very worried or whatever, walked like on the sidewalk at that point, and put his hand up to his forehead. And then another man came out with a flashlight.</s>KING: Senior legal analyst Jeffrey Toobin joins me now. Jeff, you went up and visited with the Anderson Cooper staff and heard more about the interview. I want to focus on what we just heard in that snippet. He said it was a Hispanic man. That would match obviously the description of George Zimmerman, the man who acknowledges he shot Trayvon Martin. He didn't seem hurt, he says, although he does say later he had his hand up at his forehand. What do we make of the part we just heard?</s>JEFFREY TOOBIN, CNN SENIOR LEGAL ANALYST: Well, the big issue that remains at the heart of this case is who was the aggressor in this confrontation and does Zimmerman have facts at his disposal that would be a good defense either in general or specifically under Florida's unique law? Certainly, I think this is not the smoking gun one way or the other. But, again, particularly when you combine it with the video that was released by ABC yesterday of George Zimmerman appearing unhurt, his argument that he was somehow injured and under threat looks a little tougher to make based on this interview and based on the video.</s>KING: When you were up visiting with Anderson and his team, what else significant did you learn about this eyewitness account?</s>TOOBIN: What I learned is that this is going to be a tough witness at trial because this person doesn't have a really clear view of precisely what happened, who was the aggressor, and this person heard someone yelling help. But I don't think this person knows in particular whether it was -- which one of the two people it was. So again, that's an important piece of evidence that, if this person knew, would be important.</s>KING: And you just heard -- let's contrast here. Let's play a little game here of compare and contrast. You heard the eyewitness there saying Mr. Zimmerman, presumably, a Hispanic man, walked away, didn't appear too hurt, did have his hand on his forehead at one point but walking away almost matter-of-factly is the way that was described by the witness. Let's listen here to an account from George Zimmerman's father who says his son told him he suffered quite the beating.</s>COOPER: What did you observe after the shot?</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: As I said, it was dark. But after the shots, obviously...</s>KING: That's the wrong piece of tape there. Let's see if we can go back and play -- this is Zimmerman's father describing what his son told him.</s>ROBERT ZIMMERMAN, FATHER OF GEORGE ZIMMERMAN: After nearly a minute of being beaten, George was trying to get his head off the concrete, trying to move with Trayvon on him into the grass. In doing so, his firearm was shown. Trayvon Martin said something to the effect of you're going to die now.</s>KING: Jeff, a very different account there. I'm going to walk over here. You talked about that video that was released. The city has now put this police video up on the Web site. I want to bring it up here and show it. We do know this. Let me turn this around for you here. We do know this. He was treated at the scene by the Sanford police if you look at the police report. We need to be careful in saying that. If he did have some injuries, he did receive some treatment in the police car. But what you're looking for here, you look up here and if he had a broken nose or bandages, there is certainly no bandages in the face. If he was hurt, at least from this video it doesn't appear he was significantly hurt. When you match that up with what we just heard from the father, I want to bring up another piece of the video here, let me move this one aside, I just want to show the back. If you pull this one out here, again this gets grainy as you stretch it out, you do see a small bit of red here -- oops, it's moving on me -- you see a small bit of red there -- let me move this down -- you see right here on the back of the head there's a little bit of red there when you stretch it out, and it's hard to see on television. But when you look at this, it certainly doesn't give the impression that this is someone that was severely beaten if he then gets in the cruiser and goes down to the police station.</s>TOOBIN: Right. Also in that video you see he's not limping at all. If he had injuries, and he might have had some injuries, they are very, very minor or so it clearly appears. Also, let's keep in mind, George Zimmerman shot this guy. He didn't take a swing at him in self-defense, he shot him dead. So the amount of -- there is potentially an argument of disproportionate response given the amount of injury he has. Now, again, Florida law may be somewhat helpful to Zimmerman on that front. But it's worth keeping in mind that, you know, we're struggling here to find some sort of injury and Trayvon Martin is shot dead. If I could just add one more point about the interview with George Zimmerman's father, under any rule of evidence, that would not be admissible, what he told his father, some self-serving story he told his father. The only way George Zimmerman's statements will be admitted in the course of this if there's a trial would be statements he made to the police or statements that he made if he testifies at trial. So self-serving statements you made to a relative would never -- it's interesting for us trying to fill in our picture of what happened here, but it is certainly not admissible evidence.</s>KING: Important context from our senior legal analyst, Jeffrey Toobin. Jeff, thanks. That interview with the eyewitness coming up at 8:00 p.m. tonight on "ANDERSON COOPER 360." Also join CNN tomorrow night at 8:00 Eastern. Our Soledad O'Brien hosts a town hall about the rising racial tension across the country: "Beyond Trayvon: Race and Justice in America." That's tomorrow night. Now to tonight's breaking developments in the Republican race for president. Just moments ago, former President George H.W. Bush endorsed Mitt Romney. You see them right there along with the former first lady Barbara Bush at Mr. Bush's office in Houston, Texas.</s>GEORGE H.W. BUSH, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I think it's time for people to get behind this good man. Some of them have waged a very good fight. I would say that about some of his opponents. But we're so convinced and mainly because we have known Mitt for a long time that he's the man to do this job and get on and win the presidency.</s>MITT ROMNEY (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Having your support means a great deal to me on a personal basis, a family basis and also on a national basis. So I look forward to being successful in honoring that endorsement by winning.</s>KING: It's part of a rally around Romney movement across the GOP generations. Earlier today, the freshman Florida Senator Marco Rubio delivered his endorsement.</s>SEN. MARCO RUBIO (R), FLORIDA: The primary is over, I mean, by the admission of the candidates who have admitted they can't win the primary. they have said the only way they can win is at a floor fight in Tampa. And I think that a floor fight in Tampa would be the worst possible thing we can do in terms of winning in November. So I think Mitt Romney by the admission of his opponents has won the primary and it's time for us to get behind our nominee.</s>KING: Also three political sources tonight confirmed to me that Romney and rival Republican candidate Newt Gingrich had a secret meeting this past Saturday in Louisiana. Aides in both campaigns are remarkably tight-lipped about this session, though my sources describe it as pleasant and productive. Beyond that they're not talking. CNN's Jim Acosta and Peter Hamby here with me in Washington. Joining us on the phone is our CNN contributor Mary Matalin, the former campaign manager to President George H.W. Bush. Mary, I want to start. A lot of people will say endorsements don't matter. Does it matter that 41, as you would call, has now endorsed Governor Romney?</s>MARY MATALIN, CNN POLITICAL CONTRIBUTOR: It matters for the reason you alluded to, it's the juxtaposition of the across the spectrum of generations as you said, but also across the spectrum of factions with Rubio and poppy Bush together on the same day, irrefutably leading figures of both those factions. It's a validation that this race is about to accelerate in favor of Romney and close up pretty fast now.</s>KING: I know he is one of your heroes so forgive the question. But George H.W. is not very well regarded by a lot of conservatives. Is there any way this could hurt Romney?</s>MATALIN: I don't think so. We tend to think that we just created all this political knowledge. But you will recall my humiliation in 1988 when we were beat by a conservative faction, poppy Bush in Iowa. In '92, we were primaried. He is -- over the years, he has made many friends. And we understand that -- and everybody, conservatives and mainstream and whatever factions, names you want to give them at any given time, understand it's not an either/or. It's both. Each faction is necessary and insufficient to defeat the Democratic, the liberal incumbent. I don't think it will hurt. It's a validation of Romney's reach.</s>KING: Mary, stay with us. Jim, that sound we played with Marco Rubio moments ago, that was from an interview you conducted with him this morning. He's the other generation, he's the next generation, if you will, and conservatives love him.</s>JIM ACOSTA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Right.</s>KING: He says he endorsed Romney. But he didn't say, gee whiz, I love Mitt Romney. He essentially said, well, sort of it's over so why not.</s>ACOSTA: That's right. And you saw in that interview there he described Mitt Romney as the nominee. He's not officially the nominee just yet. I also asked him in that interview do you think Mitt Romney will govern as a conservative and he said, yes, I think he will as a conservative. But you're right. It has sort of been like pulling teeth when it comes to the Tea Party conservative wing of the Republican Party to get them to come along. But I think as Mary was saying, the weight, the collective weight of the endorsements over time is now having an effect.</s>KING: The collective weight. Peter, when you call around it's hard now to find a Republican who says Romney can be stopped. Not all of them say Santorum or Gingrich should get out. Why is it so hard to get information about this secret meeting with Newt down in Louisiana? We know Gingrich came to the hotel where Governor Romney was staying. I was told it was a decent meeting, productive meeting, polite meeting.</s>PETER HAMBY, CNN POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: I was at the hotel. I was with Mitt Romney that very morning.</s>KING: You still get your bonus.</s>HAMBY: No one saw it. Thank you. Appreciate that, John. As you said, it's remarkable people in the Romney world and the Newt world are not talking about this. They're saying that both campaigns and both candidates and Santorum talk all the time . Gingrich spokesman R.C. Hammond, who I talked to today said, yes, they're concerned about is this damaging the party, will this hurt them in the long run? But he was saying we view it that even if we go to a brokered convention, this won't be bad for the party. I talked to one person who is close to Newt today who said a brokered convention will be great for the party. This will reenergize conservatives. Look at the poll numbers. Conservatives still say Rick Santorum for example is the guy they identify with and not Mitt Romney.</s>KING: The speaker says he's going to stay in because he still thinks it's possible Romney comes up short. But I assume, Jim, from team Romney, even if they don't give us the details, this is the beginning, he's got a lot of healing to do in healing this relationship. He and Speaker Gingrich have been quit raw. It would be quite important.</s>ACOSTA: Absolutely. That was palpable throughout this campaign to see the tension that was really in place there between the Gingrich camp and the Romney camp. It was striking. When I was with the former speaker on Monday in Annapolis, he had the press conference -- or I think it was Tuesday -- excuse me -- he had that press conference in Annapolis and it was at that point when he said, I would be delighted to support Mitt Romney should he clinch the 1,144 delegates to win the nomination. It was the first time I had heart delighted and Mitt Romney in the same sentence.</s>ACOSTA: It's been a long road for Newt Gingrich, yes.</s>KING: But he's worried about his legacy and reputation as well. Our thanks to Mary Matalin, Jim Acosta, Peter Hamby. Thanks for coming in. We will stay on top of these developments. In a little bit we will ask a former oil company executive what, what, what can be done to bring down your gas prices. But next, a former CIA director looks at why there's such concern about North Korea's plans to join the space race.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Literally, John, this is rocket science. This is hard to do. And the North Koreans have not had a history of very successful high-end activity.