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Early Start with John Berman and Zoraida Sambolin

Cyberattack Investigation; Obama Flexes Executive Muscles; Suspected Marathon Bomber in Court; Stephen Colbert Says Goodbye; Stocks Have Best Day in Three Years; ISIS Leaders Killed in U.S. Airstrikes; Boko Haram Kidnap 185 Women & Children; MVP Kevin Durant Injures Ankle

Aired December 19, 2014 - 05:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

DEBORAH FEYERICK, CNN ANCHOR: Cyberattack. U.S. officials say they believe they know how hackers got access to Sony computer systems as North Korea defector warns of a dangerous cyberwar office.

And President Obama now saying he will go it alone, flexing his executive muscle to ease restrictions against Cuba if Congress fails to act. What the new relationship means for the people of Cuba and those in the United States.

U.S. government says three is leaders taken out in airstrikes as President Obama signs deployment orders for 1,300 troops to head to Iraq. What is expected of these boots on the ground and are we any closer to defeating the terror group?

Good morning, everyone, and welcome to EARLY START. I'm Deborah Feyerick. It is Friday, December 19th. And it is 5:00 a.m. in the East.

Well, we have new information this morning about the huge cyber attack on Sony Pictures that resulted in the withdrawal of the movie "The Interview", pulled out of theaters. Investigators believe that they know just how hackers penetrated Sony's computer systems.

U.S. officials who were briefed on the investigation tell CNN that there's evidence that the hackers used a tried and true method, they simply stole the password of a system administrator, a person who has total access to the company's network. There is also word the U.S. officials are very close to naming North Korea as the suspected perpetrator of the cyberattack.

Senior White House correspondent Jim Acosta has the latest on the investigation.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JIM ACOSTA, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: The White House is describing the cyberattack on Sony as a serious national security matter, and in the words of a top administration officials, a response is coming. White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest declined to specify whether a

foreign government like North Korea is behind the hacking, but in the toughest rhetoric to date on the date on the situation, Earnest described the attack and threats on movie theaters, as what he called "destructive activity with malicious intent", and that this activity, he said, would merit an appropriate response from the United States.

Earnest would not say whether that means sanctions or some sort of cyber response from the U.S., but a senior administration official wanted to make one thing very clear, saying the White House absolutely did not put pressure on Sony to pull "The Interview", that movie, from theaters, knowing what Earnest told reporters at the briefing at the White House.

Here's what he had to say.

JOSH EARNEST, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: The United States stands squarely on the side of artists and companies that want to express themselves. And we believe that kind of artistic expression is worthy of protection, and it is not something subjected to intimidation because you happen to disagree with the views.

ACOSTA: Now, to hammer that point home, Earnest said officials would not be opposed to a presidential screening of "The Interview" at the White House, like other films that are shown here for the president and special guests. That's an indication that the White House views Sony decision to pull "The Interview" as something of a problem.

We should point out, there have been consultations between the FBI and Sony. And the senior administration said those conversations were relayed to the president's national security team. For now, the White House says it's waiting on investigators from the FBI and national security team at the Justice Department to wrap up the investigation. And that appears to be happening very soon -- Deb.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FEYERICK: Jim Acosta for us.

Well, if it turns out to be true that North Korea is the culprit behind hack on Sony, that raises the big question -- how can the world's poorest countries that bars most of its people from any contact with the Internet to begin with, pull off a cyberattack of such apparent sophistication.

CNN's Kyung Lah joins us from Seoul.

Kyung, look, an enemy, never under estimate them. Many are now calling this an act of terrorism. They took out an American company. How did they do it?

KYUNG LAH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: They did it because they were very targeted and this is just an expansion of what we have seen in the cyber war between South Korea and North Korea. Last year, South Korea banks were frozen. ATMs did not work for a period of time because of malware that was sent from North Korea, according to the South Korean government.

This is simply a step off the peninsula. It is a globalization of a war waged here on the peninsula. By training these foot soldiers, as they are referred, the South Korean government saying that this Bureau 121 is the heart of the cyber war. They train these soldiers and they hand-select them, they send them, they take their orders from Pyongyang, and they the hackers with one goal. To try to attack western interests and infiltrate as they did with Sony.

This one, Deb, the most spectacular to date if it does indeed prove to be coming from North Korea -- Deb.

FEYERICK: There's no question about that. And you talk about the malware. And, obviously, malware infiltrates a system by someone clicking on a link or leaving a computer on, that somebody can access to hack into. So, clearly, a very serious situation. A lot of countries paying attention to see what the United States does.

Kyung Lah, thank you.

And Hollywood is reacting with fear to the cyber attack on Sony Pictures. Some are showing disappointment at Sony's decision to withdraw the movie from theaters. Actor Rob Lowe, who has a cameo in the movie tweeted, "Wow, everyone caved. The hackers won, an utter and complete victory for them." Ben Stiller wrote, "Really hard to believe this is the response to the threat to freedom of expression here in America."

Comedian Chris rock giving voice to the anxiety, the uncertainty, and the vulnerability that's now hitting Hollywood.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHRIS ROCK, COMEDIAN: This whole thing is scary, man. It's like, you know, your e-mails and it's your private stuff. I mean, the whole town is scared. Everybody's got to be scared.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FEYERICK: And the only way to prevent it is by getting off the Internet. Sony says it has no plans to distribute the $40 million film in theaters or home video.

And President Obama squeezes in his annual end of the year conference today before he heads off to Christmas vacation. Insiders say that he will field a variety of topics. And they include, of course, his executive action on immigration. Also, his recent and historic move to restore diplomatic relations with Cuba, and also the CIA torture report. The hack attack against Sony will also be one of the issues he covers.

And the White House is leaving the door is leaving the door open this morning for a possible future visit to the U.S. by Cuban President Raul Castro. Reporters pressed for details from the administration following Wednesday's historic announcement, plans to reestablish diplomatic relations between the two countries. White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest compared a possible visit by Raul Castro to earlier visits by leaders from other countries that have what he called checkered human rights records.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

EARNEST: The president has had the leaders of both Burma and China to the United States. And for that reason, I would not rule out a visit from President Castro.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FEYERICK: Well, John Kerry hopes to return the favor, becoming the first secretary of state in 60 years to visit Cuba. Meanwhile, "The New York Times" reporting that President Obama plans to act on his own to lift many of the elements of the trade embargo that's hitting Cuba. In a move that is sure to provoke a furious fight with the new Republican Congress. The White House is saying the president plans to use broad executive powers to lift restrictions on travel, commerce, as well as financial activity.

And no one is more eager to see the 60-year-old trade sanctions against Cuba lifted than the people who live there. But whether Cuba with its wrecked economy and ancient cars is ready for such a massive influx of goods and tourists -- well, that's another question.

CNN's Patrick Oppmann has more from Havana.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PATRICK OPPMANN, CNN HAVANA CORRESPONDENT: There are actually two Cubas, and this is the one that most visitors don't see. It's a grim place. You can see buildings are collapsing all around me. People are just hanging on.

Part of that is due to the long time U.S. economic sanctions, part of that is, frankly, due to the Cuban government's inability to manage their own economy. So, you talk to people here and hear about how they only make about $20 a month. It's not nearly enough to get by, but it's what they have.

They have, of course, old cars passed down for generations. They keep running. They look like they could fall apart anytime. And some of them do.

So, when you talk about people in impoverished neighborhoods like this one, when you talk about the improved U.S. and Cuba relations mean for them, they talk about how they don't just want to improve the economic relations, they need it to.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): You try to make things better so you have more. We have enough, but more would be better.

OPPMANN: And this is the other Cuba, the one that is for international visitors who come to Cuba with hard currency to spend. You can see the streets are fixed, the walls are painted and buildings are not falling down. Is Cuba ready for all these changes? It doesn't appear so, but they

are welcoming them all the same.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FEYERICK: You better believe there will be a huge influx of money when that time coes.

Well, tensions are running high both inside and outside the courthouse where suspected Boston marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev made his first public appearance since his arraignment 17 months where he pleaded not guilty to all charges against him. Well, a friend of the 21-year-old shouted out her support saying, "We know you're innocent." Meantime, outside, a victim, you see there, he lost his leg in the bombing confronted the supporter, while shaking his prosthetic leg at her saying, "Here is your proof." Tsarnaev's trial is set to begin January 5th.

And Stephen Colbert filed his last report Thursday night. The faux Republican comedian put on quite a show. In his the word segment, which we all know, he thanked his nation for supporting him and all his crazy pursuits, because of course, you remember, he saved the Olympics and he also run for president.

He even broke out into the hit song, "We'll Meet Again" with a great cast of characters there to honor him. Jon Stewart, Willie Nelson, Cyndi Lauper, Big Bird, Katie Couric, even CNN's Christiane Amanpour got in on the fun.

And in true Colbert fashion, he bid his fans a final farewell from eternity.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

STEPHEN COLBERT, COMEDIAN: I just got too many people to thank. Well, first and foremost, everyone who worked hard to make something special, all of our friends and family for putting up with our long hours, the network for giving us the chance to begin with, and, of course, all of the guests who came on, thousands of them, there are just too many to thank. So, I'll just thank Mavis Staples.

Mavis, if you could just call everybody tomorrow, that would be great. Thanks.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FEYERICK: A good Christmas there from Mavis Staples.

Well, thunderstorms are expected to continue in Texas this morning. Let's get to meteorologist Derek Van Dam for an early look at your weather.

DEREK VAN DAM, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Good morning, Deborah.

Waking up to a beautiful start to the weekend across the New England coast. Sunshine for New York City. Mountain snow expected to cross the Pacific Northwest. The law pressure system will bring some rainfall to places like Dallas, Texas, as well as New Orleans.

Temperatures today in the Windy City, 33 degrees. The Big Apple, 38. The nation's capital at 45.

Here's the low pressure system bringing some rain to Mississippi, Louisiana, and southeast Texas, the bulk of the precipitation still waiting towards the end of the weekend to impact Georgia and Florida panhandle.

There's been a lot of chatter on social media about the possibility of a Christmas Eve storm. Computer models indicated that this will be a mainly rainmaker across the New England coast. Some snow on the back side of the storm and lots of wind setting up across the Great Lakes.

Good news for the drought conditions across central and northern California, improving statistics for the central and northern parts. Here's a much-needed rainfall. Locally, 4 to 6 inches for that region. Wet weather across the Pacific Northwest, with snow for the Cascades and the Rockies.

Back to you, Deborah.

FEYERICK: All right. Thank you.

And let's get an early start on your money with Cristina Alesci.

Cristina, stocks -- stocks is where it's at right now.

CRISTINA ALESCI, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Yes, the Santa rally is here. U.S. futures are up right now. So, I'm thinking it's going to be a strong end to the week. Yesterday, the Dow had its best day in more than three years. It climbed 421 points or 2.4 percent. In the past two days, the Dow has added 709 points total. That's the best two-day gain since November 2008.

It is a big reversal from the past two weeks when stocks were sliding and everyone was talking about a pullback. It never came.

So, what is sending stocks higher? It is all about the Federal Reserve. The market is so addicted to easy money and since Fed Chair Janet Yellen indicated no rush to raise interest rates, stocks are getting a big boost. Very powerful woman, everybody was hanging on her words this week, trying to look for any kind of indication of when the timing for higher interest rates will come.

FEYERICK: So, what could go wrong?

ALESCI: Ah, what could go wrong? Well, look, December has been an historically strong month for stocks. I don't think that's going to change this year.

But I think in January, everybody is going to get back to their desks and reassess and really look at the way the U.S. is missing its growth target from the Fed standpoint. They're really going to dig in to manufacturing data. They're going to look at business activity. Is it picking up? Is oil prices helping the U.S. consumer so much it

will offset any pain that some of the domestic producers are taking and that's going to pull back investments in that area? Remember, the oil industry has been the biggest source of jobs in this country. Job growth.

FEYERICK: Right, and then there's job loss.

ALESCI: In the country for the past couple of years. So, that may cause people to reassess as well.

FEYERICK: All right. Cristina, thank you so much. We appreciate that.

And the U.S. now confirming the death of three ISIS leaders. The operations that took them out, how the U.S. plans to confront the terrorists group head on.

And Boko Haram storming a remote village capturing nearly 1,200 villagers. We have the details of the frightening situation, straight ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

FEYERICK: Three ISIS leaders have been killed in U.S. airstrikes. A senior military official tells CNN two top leaders and one mid-level leader were wiped out. They were killed in multiple strikes last month. This comes as the president signed deployment orders Thursday for 1,300 troops to head to Iraq. The troops are now going farther afield being deployed outside Baghdad and Erbil.

But children were found stabbed to death inside a home in Australia. Police were called to the house in Cairns after getting calls about a woman with serious injuries. When they arrived, they found the victims who were young, between 18 months and 15 years old, all of them dead. Their mom is receiving treatment and speaking with police. At this point, no word on the motive or a suspect.

And details are emerging this morning about a new attack by Nigerian Boko Haram militants. Local officials claim that the Islamist insurgents kidnapped at least 185 women and children in the village of Gumsuri, killing some 32 people in the process. The officials say that the militants also burned most of the village using gasoline bombs.

Well, Nima Elbagir has more for us now live from London.

Good morning, Nima.

NIMA ELBAGIR, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Deborah.

Well, as Nigerians prepare to celebrate Christmas, this is yet another reminder of how helpless they remain in the face of Boko Haram's continuing attacks. We understand, this was part of a series of attacks that begun in Chibok, the time when nearly 300 girls were conducted nearly eight months ago. For there, they moved in to Gumsuri, and that's where they started by attacking the local vigilante groups and more recently, Nigerians feeling they were not getting the support from their military, have been taking up arms and forming civilian defense forces.

And that seems to behind a lot of these attacks. Boko Haram retaliating for anyone would dares to take up arms to protect their own communities, their own families, their homes. The message from Boko Haram seems to be, this is what's going to happen to you if you do, and 32 dead, 53 dead in Chibok, and 185 girls and women abducted. For now, authorities say they have absolutely no evidence that could lead them to potentially where the girls and women are being held, Deborah.

FEYERICK: Wow, targeted for simply defending your family.

All right. Nima, thank you so much. Appreciate that.

And in the wake of fence jumping incidents at White House, an independent review has found that the Secret Service is stretched beyond its limits and could use a crucial funding bump. It found a need for more training and more staff and concluded the services too insular and needed direction from outside its ranks. The review also recommended the White House fence be raised, saying it needs to be at least four or five feet taller than it currently is, and also curve outward.

Well, inmates at New Mexico's prisons are singing their own version of the "12 Days of Christmas" this holiday season. It's called the "12 prisons of Christmas". Take a listen.

(VIDEO CLIP PLAYS)

BERMAN: Well, it's community give back. It highlights 11 service projects the convicts are doing for their community. But the song isn't just about being festive.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It was pleasantly surprising to see normally macho inmates, now willing to sing the community a Christmas song.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FEYERICK: Well, the hope is that serving the community, along with singing for them, this Christmas song will help convicts stay out of trouble once they do get back out into the population.

And Mark Cuban never wanted to shy away from the deal. He pulled off a whopper last night. Rajon Rondo is heading for Dallas. Will it help put the Mavs over the top in the Western Conference? Andy Scholes has our "Bleacher Report" coming up, straight ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

FEYERICK: Kevin Durant was dominating the Warriors last night, but then the reigning MVP went down with another injury. Andy Scholes has more in this morning's "Bleacher Report" -- Andy.

ANDY SCHOLES, BLEACHER REPORT: Yes, good morning, Deborah.

Yes, Thunder fans are holding their breath last night because Durant has already missed 17 games this season, and this injury was really unfortunate because Durant was on his way to a record setting night. He had already scored 30 points in the game when he rolled his ankle before halftime. Durant is the first player since 1976 to score 30 points in less than 20 minutes of action.

The injuries happened when Durant stepped on a defenders foot while driving to the basket. Now, without Durant, the Warriors went on to win this game, 114-109. Good news for the Thunder, x-rays on his ankle were negative and Durant is considered safe today.

A huge trade in the NBA last night. The Boston Celtics finally unload Rajon Rondo, sending the all star point guard to the Dallas Mavericks. In return, the Celtics receive forward Brandon Wright, Jae Crowder, Jameer Nelson and some draft pick. Rondo's arrival in Dallas will give them arguably the best starting five in the NBA. He will make his debut for the Mavs Saturday when they take on the Spurs.

Penguins star Sidney Crosby back on the ice after missing three games due to the mumps. The virus has been sweeping across the league, with 15 players on five different teams being officially diagnosed. Penguins forward Beau Bennett remains out after testing positive for the mumps earlier this week. The club is recommending that all employees need to receive booster shots to stop the spread of the virus.

All right. Last night's NFL game was statistically the worst Thursday night game ever. You had the 2-12 Titans taking on this 2-12 Jaguar. Now, you think the players are going through the motions. Well, not Jag's lineman Sen'Derrick Marks. He was one sack away from activating a $600,000 bonus clause on this contract.

And on the very last play of the game, you saw it, he brought down the quarterback for the sack. He popped up the money sign. Check out, he was congratulated. They knew when that bonus was coming. The Jags went to win the game, 21-13. Now, Marks doesn't have to go on to the final game of the season, worrying about his $600,000 bonus, he can just go out there and play.

FEYERICK: Exactly, and they all know who is buying the first round. So, that's --

SCHOLES: Right. He said he was taking all of his teammate who wanted to go, go out after the game. So, they probably had a real guy time.

FEYERICK: All right. Andy, thanks so much.

SCHOLES: All right.

FEYERICK: We turn to Hollywood because Hollywood is heated. Big name celebs coming out against Sony for pulling the plug on its film "The Interview." What does it say for the future of American movies?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)