CNN "CNN Newsroom" - Transcript: Interview with State Representative Jay Costa

Interview

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HARLOW: Thank you both very much. We appreciate it.

Again just a few hours until they're both in court.

Joining now is Democratic state senator from Pennsylvania, Jay Costa. This is his district.

Thank you for being with us very much, and I'm so, so sorry because your ties run deep, right? I mean, you serve this community as the state senator for 20 years. You have lived in the community for 50 years. Your childhood friend's mother Rose was one of the victims killed.

SEN. JAY COSTA (D), PENNSYLVANIA: That's correct. And -- yes.

HARLOW: Yes. Go ahead.

COSTA: It is very tough. This community has been part of my life for a number of years, as I mentioned, and it's very sad. It's hard to believe that these type of offenses are taking place in our backyard. But I will tell you, Pittsburghers are strong as been mentioned throughout. This is a great community, and the city of Pittsburgh and our region will rally around folks here in Squirrel Hill and our Jewish community.

SCIUTTO: We had a member of the community on earlier who said she wants to make sure that Squirrel Hill is not forever now identified with this shooting -- in a list of shootings that she mentioned, whether it be Columbine or Sandy Hook. Tell us about the community and -- that's different from what we saw here, right, and how you maintain that going forward.

COSTA: It is a different community. It's a wonderful place to live and raise a family. As we have done here with my parents. I would tell you, it's a welcoming community, but I also recognize that it's one that will work together and join together to do what needs to be done to remember certainly the individuals who lost their lives here but more importantly how we go forward as a region. And not to want to be recognized as one of those horrible incidents we heard around the world and around the country.

We have a lot of work to do, we have a lot of healing to do, but together, knowing that the Pittsburgh region will join together, everyone in this region will join together to work to make sure that that doesn't happen.

HARLOW: We've heard mixed reaction, Senator, from leaders in the Jewish community about whether or not they would like the president to come visit. Of course, he condemned the attack in the minutes after it happened and he has done so subsequently. There -- he's also pointing a finger of blame at the division in this country this morning again to the media.

Politics aside, you're a Democrat, yes. Would you like the president to come?

COSTA: You know, I've got mixed feelings. I think I would like him to come only if he's going to come here and renounce -- and denounce the hatred that's taking place through social media and other types of ways.

[10:10:08] Denounce some of the anti-Semitism that's gone on in this country. That would have to be for me to want to be accepting of him to be here, to spend time in this community when it's hurting so badly is that he'd be here to help heal and help denounce some of the things that have taken place. And it really begins, in my view, at the top. Some of the rhetoric that comes from our administration, our president, concerns me, and I think needs to be toned down quite a bit.

And that's going to be the reasons why he's here, then I would be accepting of that. But for the most part, if it's a continuation of things that we've heard over the course of many, many months he's been in office, then I think it's probably better that he doesn't come here because I think it would only add hurt to folks who are trying so hard to heal and folks who are trying to come together here.

SCIUTTO: Let me ask you then what people there want to hear in terms of healing words, or want to see done as well. You heard the president suggest, well, there could have been an armed guard at the synagogue. Are your constituents coming to you asking for that kind of step? What are they asking for?

COSTA: They are asking for an opportunity to be able to worship without being in fear of somebody doing exactly what occurred here. In Pennsylvania here, we've taken great lengths to try to strengthen our safety with respect, for example, to our schools. And with legislation and money we put aside to hardening our schools and the like. Whether or not we get on this path to expand it to places of worship remains to be seen, but at the end of the day, I think what they want to be able to do is worship in peace.

And we can't even provide that to them right now. So they're concerned about going forward, and we will have that conversation going forward about whether or not we need to come together to figure out how we protect those who want to worship, whether it be here at the synagogues here in Squirrel Hill or any, for example, the Catholic churches here whatever the case might be.

HARLOW: Finally, before you go, if the president comes, if you have a chance to talk to him, what will you say?

COSTA: If he comes and I have a chance to talk to him, I would tell him to really step up his denouncing of the anti-Semitism that takes place and to speak up and stop being a part of the dialogue in this country that spews hate. That's what I would like to say to him. Change the tone, turning it into a more positive way to allow folks to come together and not spew the type of hate we hear oftentimes.

SCIUTTO: Senator Costa, thank you for taking the time. Please pass on, if you have a moment, our thoughts and prayers to the members of the community there. We support you, and we're going to do everything we can to draw attention to what happened there.

HARLOW: Thank you.

COSTA: Well, thank you both very much. Thank you.

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