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Hurricane Joaquin Upgraded to Category 3; Russia Unleashes Airstrikes in Syria; Palestinian Leader Refuses to be Bound by Oslo Accord; New Allegations Against Bill Cosby; Afghan Government Retakes Kunduz; Trump Talks ISIS, Syria, War Refugees; Trump Continues to Lead in Polls, Jeb Bush Falls; High School Student Develops Ebola Test; Apple Music Free Trial Ending; Twitter to Reappoint Jack Dorsey as CEO. Aired 1-2a ET
Aired October 01, 2015 - 01:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[01:00:09] JOHN VAUSE, CNN ANCHOR: This is CNN NEWSROOM, live from Los Angeles. American officials are skeptical of Russia's claims its air strikes in Syria are targeting is.
ISHA SESAY, CNN ANCHOR: Ahead this hour, a major storm is picking up strength as it heads towards the U.S. East Coast.
VAUSE: Why American officials are skeptical of Russia's claims its airstrikes in Syria are targeting ISIS.
SESAY: And more women have come forward with accusations against Bill Cosby. We have an interview with one of them.
VAUSE: Hello, everybody. Great to have you with us. We'd like to welcome our viewers in the United States and all around the world. I'm John Vause.
SESAY: And I'm Isha Sesay. NEWSROOM L.A. starts right now.
We begin with the breaking news. Hurricane Joaquin is picking up strength quickly. It's now upgraded to a category 3 hurricane as it sideswipes the Bahamas and heads possibly for the U.S. The storm could make landfall on the coast of North Carolina as early as Sunday.
VAUSE: The northeastern region of the United States already dealing with heavy rains and could expect even have more flooding. Virginia has issued a state of emergency in preparation for Joaquin.
Let's go to Pedram Javaheri at the CNN Weather Center right now for more details on this.
So, Pedram, we know Joaquin is strengthening a lot faster than most of the weather models actually predicted but does that impact the track, where it's heading right now?
PEDRAM JAVAHERI, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Yes, it does not impact the track. No, you know, we knew it was going to get stronger. We knew that was going to happen at least in the next couple of days and it's happening within just a few hours now. And the sea surface conditions here certainly conducive to what's happening. But want to show you what is going on with Hurricane Joaquin.
Category 4 major hurricane sitting directly north of the Turks and Caicos, and east in the Bahamas islands where we have watches and warnings in place. But take a look at this because this is the environment the storm is dealing with. The wind shear, essentially the bottom portion of your screen, showing you an area where you have winds going in different direction above the storm at different speeds. That will shred the storm system apart. It is pretty moderate across this region but the storm continues to intensify.
You look at the top of your screen water temperatures into the 80s Fahrenheit, upper 20s Celsius, certainly conducive to fuel the storm system. So it's trying to battle winds that are trying to rip it apart but the water temperatures are fueling it plenty to keep it getting stronger. So the models indicate this could get to a category 4 inside the next 24 or so hours.
Here's what's happened over portions of the northeastern United States and really why this could be a huge story when it comes to what has transpired. Four to six inches of rainfall widespread across this region. In fact, portions of the northeast were actually sitting in a drought. The state of Massachusetts had its driest September on record, and now we're talking about a quick surplus in the works here over the coming couple of days.
And with Joaquin working its way in this direction, models over the next several days bring in as high as 10-plus inches of rainfall across portions of the Carolinas. Work your way toward the northeast. Two to four inches. Significant flooding possibility just because of what has already occurred in this region of course and back to the south one more time as you take a look at incredible depiction on satellite imagery with the hurricane watches and warnings in place.
The complexity of the storm system really one to behold because you take a look at what we call a negatively tilted trough, essentially one that isn't pointed to the north and west, when you have these in place and a tropical feature parked just offshore it will typically want to draw the tropical feature toward the trough, in this case it'd be toward the eastern United States.
We also have an area of high pressure. Some of the models say the high pressure will want to pull this offshore. It will not impact the United States. The vast majority of the models are now becoming a better alignment here with the storm system heading in toward the northeastern U.S. portions of the Carolinas, certainly working its way around the New England states as well. But look at the North American model as well as the European model, which statistically is one of the most accurate models we've had.
Great history with tropical features. It's still holding ground that it will be pulled offshore. Almost everyone else is saying it's going back toward the northeastern U.S. so the National Hurricane Center right now splitting the difference, paralleling the U.S. coastline, potentially coming in as a category 2 Sunday afternoon. Somewhere around the northeast. So we'll watch this for very, very heavy rainfall potential in the forecast in this region, guys. VAUSE: Yes, it's interesting the European model has it taking one
track.
SESAY: Yes.
VAUSE: The Americans have it going another way. So I guess we'll just have to wait and see.
SESAY: Yes.
JAVAHERI: We have to wait and see.
VAUSE: In the meantime, everyone -- yes. In the northeast preparing for this basically right now.
SESAY: Yes. Battening down the hatches. And Pedram, I know you're going to stay on top of this story for us. So we appreciate it. We'll be checking in with you in the hours ahead. Thank you.
JAVAHERI: Thanks for having me. Yes.
SESAY: Now U.S. and Russian officials are preparing for military talks about airstrikes in Syria possibly as early as Thursday.
VAUSE: U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov spoke at the U.N. on Wednesday about the need to avoid unintended incidents between Russia's air force and the U.S.- led coalition.
SESAY: Meantime a senior U.S. official tells CNN Russia has hit some elements of the Free Syrian Army in its first day of airstrikes. Those are the forces fighting against Syrian President Bashar al- Assad, Russia's ally.
VAUSE: One human rights group says Russian airstrikes killed 28 people including women and children.
SESAY: And the Syrian National Coalition puts that number at 36 saying those are all civilians.
Pentagon correspondent Barbara Starr has more on the strikes and the unorthodox way the U.S. found out about them.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
[01:05:07] BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The first Russian combat camera video of their airstrikes in Syria. Russian warplanes struck near the city of Homs in western Syria, an area where anti-government forces are operating, not ISIS, the terrorist group Russia claimed it was going after.
Defense Secretary Ash Carter had been assembling a military team to talk to the Russians about how to keep U.S. and Russian pilots safe when they fly near each other. But earlier Wednesday, the U.S. embassy in Baghdad got a sudden visit from a Russian general. (On camera): So a Russian general shows up this morning at the
embassy in Baghdad and apparently reads you -- your people a note saying the airstrikes are going to begin in one hour. Is this not a little bizarre?
ASH CARTER, DEFENSE SECRETARY: This is not the kind of behavior that we should expect professionally from Russian military professionally, and that's one reason why I think it's a good thing to have an avenue of communication that is less unprofessional than a drop-in.
STARR (voice-over): The Russian general giving just one-hour notice, strikes were to begin and telling the Americans to keep their aircraft out of Syrian skies.
CEDRIC LEIGHTON, FORMER NSA DEPUTY DIRECTOR FOR TRAINING: The Russians are using this opportunity to basically do their best to shove the U.S. out of the Middle East and they are doing it literally and figuratively right in front of our noses.
STARR: One of the areas the Russians hit, north of Homs where several factions, including the al Qaeda affiliate al-Nusra and other anti- Assad groups are fighting the regime. The State Department trying to diffuse rising military tensions between the U.S. and Moscow but only going so far.
JOHN KERRY, SECRETARY OF STATE: The United States and the coalition will continue our ongoing air operations as we have from the very beginning.
STARR: Russian President Vladimir Putin says his military was invited into Syria by Bashar al-Assad, the Russian leader clearly ready to prop up Assad.
VLADIMIR PUTIN, RUSSIAN PRESIDENT (Through Translator): We will support the Syrian army only in its legitimate fights specifically against terrorist groups.
STARR: For now, little mention of ISIS, the U.S. priority.
SEN. JOHN MCCAIN (R), ARIZONA: Putin's ambitions are blindingly obvious, my friends. He wants to prop up Assad, play kingmaker, and any transition undermine U.S. policy and operations and ultimately expand Russian power in the Middle East.
STARR (on camera): Even with everything that has happened, the Defense secretary says he is still committed to having military talks with the Russians about how to make sure U.S. and Russian warplanes stay safe in the skies over Syria.
Barbara Starr, CNN, the Pentagon.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: CNN military analyst, Lieutenant Colonel Rick Francona joins us now via Skype from Oregon. Colonel, good to speak with you. The one headline today which seemed
to sum all of this up was welcome to the quagmire, Mr. Putin. I guess the idea being made there, the Russians just don't have the military capability here to control the situation in Syria. They do, however, have the potential to make things a lot worse.
LT. COL. RICK FRANCONA, CNN MILITARY ANALYST: Yes, they certainly do. And they started off doing just that. Showing up at the American embassy in Baghdad and just dropping this ham-handed demand that we leave Syrian skies, which is not going to happen, is not the way to set up a useful relationship.
I applaud the efforts to set up some sort of coordination with the Russians because when you've got these many air forces flying this much aircraft in the small Syrian air space there is the potential for one mistake that will end up in someone shooting somebody else down. We don't need that. We need to focus on what we're supposed to be doing there.
I worry about what the Russian goal is here because it doesn't appear that they're going after ISIS as they said. They're going after the regime, anti-regime rebels.
VAUSE: You mentioned the way the Russians informed the Americans that they're about to launch these airstrikes. What do you read into that? Because clearly the Russians know how the game is done. They know the proper protocol here. They know how this should be done, like clearly went about, what, just kind of an insult to the Americans? How do you read it?
FRANCONA: Well, I think it was in an in-your-face attempt to have the Americans back down. It was a great ploy if it had worked. Why not try it? Go in there and say, we want you out of Syrian air space. And they believe they've got legal grounds to do that. They say we were invited into Syria by the legitimate government of Syria. You were not. So we're taking over now, the Russians are here, you guys can back off now.
Fortunately, the United States is taking the position that we are conducting air operations in Iraq and Syria against ISIS, which we regard as a threat. So we're going to have to work this out with the Russians, though. We can't have this confrontation without some sort of coordination.
I believe that it's important that we talk to the Russians. But we shouldn't back down. We should assert our right to be there.
[01:10:02] VAUSE: The Russians say they hit ISIS targets. The U.S. says that's just not true. Is it possible the Russians may have hit non-ISIS targets by mistake? It's not unheard of. The Russians wouldn't be alone in getting it wrong.
FRANCONA: I don't think so. I mean, the Russians are talking to the Iraqis. They're talking to the Iranians. They're talking to the Syrians. They all have good intelligence about what's going on, on the ground in Syria. I would have thought the Russians would have at least played the game
and hit ISIS targets first and then moved on to the anti-regime rebels, which is what they really want to hit. This reminds me so much of what the Turks did. They hit ISIS the first few days, and then they concentrated on the PKK. So I think the Russians are just being the Russians. They're just being blunt and they're going to do what they want regardless of what the world thinks.
VAUSE: Colonel Francona, good to speak with you as always. Thank you.
FRANCONA: Good to be with you.
SESAY: Now a historic day for the Palestinian Authority at the United Nations. The group's flag is now flying outside the U.N.'s headquarters in New York. Traditionally only U.N. member flags are on display. The Palestinian Authority has non-member observer status.
VAUSE: Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas says as long as Israel does not honor the peace agreements known as the Oslo Accords then Palestinians will no longer be bound by them either. The accords date back to the early '90s and were meant to fulfill the Palestinian right to self-determination.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MAHMOUD ABBAS, PALESTINIAN AUTHORITY PRESIDENT (Through Translator): As long as Israel is not committed to the signed agreements and undermine all agreements, we for our part, are not committed to those agreements. And Israel must bear full responsibility for this development and this situation.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SESAY: Well, CNN's Oren Liebermann is following developments for us from Jerusalem and he joins us now live.
Oren, good to have you with us. It's one thing for Mahmoud Abbas to say the Palestinians will no longer be bound by the Oslo peace accords, but what does his announcement actually change on the ground?
OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: And that right now is the major question here, Isha. What exactly did Abbas mean? His statements there were a bit vague when he talked about threatening to cancel the Oslo accords and all of the other arrangements and how does that change what's happening here?
What's significant about this, threatening to cancel Oslo, is that Oslo is the basis, really the bedrock of cooperation and coordination between Israelis and Palestinians and it has been for the last 22 years. But critics of the agreement say it has really been a failure where it was supposed to work. It was supposed to set a timeline of five years which would have been right around 2000 for creating a final status agreement, for creating a two-state solution. Obviously, it didn't do that. And that's where you see the frustration of Palestinian President
Mahmoud Abbas. But he didn't come out blatantly and say I'm canceling Oslo, I'm canceling security coordination and all of the other agreements. He said if Israel doesn't abide by those agreements then we won't either. So what that changes here, that's something we're still waiting to see. Whether he's carrying out these threats and how soon he'll carry out these threats to cancel Oslo and the other arrangements if that's really what he meant. If he really cancels them, that's a big statement.
But there are skeptics here who say these are more statements from Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas that won't change what's happening here and won't change the relationship between Israelis and Palestinians -- Isha.
SESAY: We're also waiting to see what Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who will address the U.N. General Assembly on Thursday, what he will say. What are the expectations for that speech?
LIEBERMANN: Before Netanyahu boarded a plane in Tel Aviv to head to the United Nations General Assembly, he laid out what he wants to talk about. He is still talking about the Iran deal. He's always been one of the deal's most vocal critics. And at least he says he's going to bring it up again. At least even at this point if it doesn't seem like that will change anything.
He's almost certain to respond to what Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said in his speech, at least to some extent. And then it's very much expected that he'll talk about what's happening in Syria. Israel sees that as a security threat along its northern border. But there is coordination with Russia. We know -- we learned yesterday that Russia called Israel before conducting those airstrikes.
So we'll expect to hear at least somewhat more about how Israel views what's happening in Syria and as well as again, as I mentioned, the Iran nuclear deal, and we'll see how he responds to Mahmoud Abbas.
SESAY: We will all be watching very, very closely.
Oren Liebermann joining us there from Jerusalem. Thank you, Oren.
VAUSE: The governor of Oklahoma has delayed the execution of a man on death row. Richard Glossup's execution was postponed until November 6th. The state can now address questions about procedures and the chemicals to be used in the lethal injection. Glossup would have been the first person executed with a controversial sedative now approved by the U.S. Supreme Court. Glossup was sentenced to death for hiring another man to kill a motel owner in 1997. Glossup's accomplice is serving a life sentence.
SESAY: In a surprise move the Vatican is not denying Pope Francis met privately with the controversial clerk during his visit to the United States.
[01:15:05] VAUSE: Also ahead, more women have come forward with accusations of sexual inappropriate behavior against actor Bill Cosby, and one of those women talked to CNN. That interview is still to come.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VAUSE: U.S. officials say a number of major drug cartel kingpins are in the United States after being extradited by the Mexican government. This comes just months after Joaquin Guzman also known as El Chapo escaped from a maximum security prison in southern Mexico.
SESAY: U.S. officials tell CNN the suspects include a brutal leader named Edgar Valdez better known as La Barbie and Jean-Baptiste Kingery, an American who allegedly supplied weapons to cartels.
VAUSE: Three more women have come forward accusing actor Bill Cosby of sexually inappropriate behavior. They held a news conference with their lawyer Gloria Allred on Wednesday.
SESAY: One of the accusers, Lisa Christie, alleges Cosby tried to pressure her into sex in a hotel room in exchange for help with her career. More than 40 women have publicly accused Cosby of sexual misconduct over the past 40 years. He has steadfastly denied the allegations against them, and he has not been charged with any crime.
[01:20:05] Well, I sat down with Christie and Allred for an interview.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SESAY: You told part of the story in your book, in your first book, "America: The Windstorm," but you didn't name him. You didn't name Bill Cosby then. Many people again will ask the question, well, why now?
LISA CHRISTIE, COSBY ACCUSER: I didn't think I could come forward. I was so afraid that no one would believe me. This man was so powerful. Who would believe my story? I thought they wouldn't need me because there is enough people that came forward because I wasn't one of the ones that was molested in a sense, you know, was drugged and taken advantage of. But now that so many other women came forward and I can have a voice now and support those other victims, that's why I'm coming forward.
SESAY: How many women have publicly come forward to make these allegations against Bill Cosby, and how many have directly reached out to you?
GLORIA ALLRED, VICTIMS RIGHTS ATTORNEY: Only one in a lawsuit, but 26. However, more than that number have contacted me. Some do not wish to go public. And some said that they would be available to be subpoenaed if, as and when they would be subpoenaed to testify in the lawsuit that we have on behalf of Judy Hough.
If there is one, that is one too many. Two, three, way too many. And the numbers are now are so high that most people don't have an accurate count.
SESAY: And you mentioned Judy Hough. There will be a deposition of Bill Cosby in relation to the civil suit against him on October 9th. ALLRED: That's correct.
SESAY: You have said, you expect him to turn up.
ALLRED: We do expect him to turn up because it's a court order. That his deposition is going to take place on October 9th. And our client's deposition will take place on October 15th. And his attorney has represented that his client will be there.
SESAY: As you make the point so many women have come forward. Such is the number well over three dozen that it has some people out there in the public saying, are you all telling the truth? What do you say to those people?
CHRISTIE: I didn't hear all those stories in detail. But now on Thursday I started to watch a couple of the videos of the testimony, and I was like they're so similar. This was the man who was firm on education. I thought he was the father figure, the mentor to help me in the industry. And this man ended up, turning out to take power and position and try to use that against women, myself. So I can only take my situation. But someone needs to speak.
And that's what Gloria is doing. And that's why I wanted to help. I said I want to do whatever it takes, how long it takes to help support these victims because thank God that I didn't have anything else happen to me in those situations.
SESAY: If Bill Cosby was to walk into this room right now, giving you an opportunity to speak to him, what would you say?
CHRISTIE: I had told him that last time I had seen him that I would never talk to him again. I don't think that I need to at this point in my life. I forgive him. I'm just -- I don't need to have a lunch or a conversation with him. So I wouldn't say anything. I probably would just walk out of the room.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SESAY: Well, you heard me ask Christie there about her book where she wrote about an incident with a man she did not name who propositioned her. She wrote in that book a week later this man's son died but in the news conference she said it happened in the late 1980s. Cosby's son died in 1997.
VAUSE: Gloria Allred said the book made a mistake and she blames that on clumsy editing which will be corrected. We also reached out to the Cosby team to find a comment on these recent allegations but they declined to offer any response.
SESAY: She also said one of the key things that motivated her to speak out is her daughter. She wanted to set an example for her 10- year-old.
VAUSE: It is just amazing how many women have come forward that we really now have lost count.
SESAY: It is absolutely incredible. And this deposition on October 9th should be very, very interesting to see.
VAUSE: Yes. Because up until now there's been almost no word coming from the Cosby side.
SESAY: Yes.
VAUSE: Well, a U.S. county is suing Volkswagen for $100 million alleging the automaker is polluting its air.
SESAY: Harris County, Texas, is home to Houston, America's fourth largest city. The county says Volkswagen's vehicles evaded U.S. emissions standards and spewed, quote, "dangerous chemicals into the air around the city."
VAUSE: Volkswagen is under identify fire for tampering with millions of its diesel models allowing them to cheat on emissions tests. The automaker declined to comment on the lawsuit.
Well, it appears that the American county clerk who was jailed for refusing to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples did in fact meet privately with Pope Francis. Kim Davis's lawyer says that meeting happened last week while the Pope was in Washington. The Vatican says it's not denying the meeting took place.
[01:25:15] SESAY: An attorney for Davis would not say who initiated the meeting, which was quite frankly a surprise to many, but he did weigh in on what was discussed.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MAT STAVER, KIM DAVIS ATTORNEY: He did hug her as Kim Davis said. He did encourage her for standing. He said that his words were stay strong. And the meeting was conducted in English from beginning to end. Kim Davis was incredibly amazed that a man such as his stature was so humble and caring and kind. And it's a moment that she'll cherish for the rest of her life.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SESAY: Well, Mat Staver adds the meeting at the Vatican embassy lasted 10 minutes and was just between the Pope, Kim Davis and her husband. He said pictures were taken and will be released at some point.
VAUSE: Well, a lot of people quite surprised by that meeting.
SESAY: A lot of people want to see the pictures.
VAUSE: Well, yes. A lot of progressives had their hearts aflutter with the Pope here and now asking questions.
A short break here. When we come back, a bold Taliban assault followed by a fierce battle in northern Afghanistan. We'll have the latest developments in a live report.
SESAY: Plus Donald Trump takes a hands-off stand on Russian involvement in Syria. That story is just ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[01:30:00] VAUSE: Welcome back, everybody. Thanks for staying with us. You're watching CNN NEWSROOM, live from Los Angeles. I'm John Vause.
SESAY: And I'm Isha Sesay.
The headlines this hour, U.S. and Russian military officials could meet as soon as Thursday to talk about how to stay out of each other's way while carrying out air strikes in Syria. Russian fighter jets began bombing targets on Wednesday after giving the U.S. just one hour's notice. Russia says it's hitting ISIS targets. U.S. officials say Russia is actually hit Syrian opposition groups.
VAUSE: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will address the U.N. General Assembly on Thursday. He's slamming Palestinian leader, Mahmoud Abbas, for his U.N. speech. Mr. Abbas says his group will no longer be bound by the Oslo Peace Accords signed with Israel in 1993.
SESAY: Three more women have come forward accusing actor Bill Cosby of sexually inappropriate behavior. They held a news conference with their lawyer, Gloria Allred, on Wednesday. Cosby has denied the allegations against him, and he has not been charged with any crime.
VAUSE: After a humiliating defeat and days of fierce fighting, Afghan officials say government forces are back in control of Kunduz. The Taliban seized the key northern city on Monday.
SESAY: The U.S. conducted air strikes and NATO forces supported Afghan soldiers on the ground. The interior ministry said there were heavy Taliban casualties. And a local police spokesman says a senior Taliban commander was killed in an air strike, though the Taliban denied that.
Well, Sune Engel Rasmussen is a reporter with the U.K.'s "The Guardian" newspaper. He's in Kabul and he joins us now.
Sune, we're hearing Kunduz has been retaken by Afghan government forces but the key question is, can they hold on to it?
SUNE ENGEL RASMUSSEN, REPORTER, THE GUARDIAN: Yeah, that is the key question. Not only can they hold on to the city but can they also clear the suburbs of the city? Can they clear the districts around Kunduz? And can they maintain a presence and also support for the government forces among the local population? One of the big problems in Kunduz, and which also created fertile ground for the Taliban in the first place, is that there is immense public discontent with the government and with the local security forces in Kunduz. This has been going on for a long time. And it's not just Kunduz city that was taken. There was also a lot of districts that were under Taliban control as of last night. According to the police spokesman in Kunduz, only two districts now remain in Taliban control, but that doesn't mean that the Taliban are not there, influencing and not able to launch an attack at a later stage. So this is really up to the government now to make a thorough cleaning operation and a more long- term solution for stability in the area.
SESAY: Yes, indeed. And these nearby areas where the Taliban is also pressing forward, what are we hearing about fighting there?
RASMUSSEN: It seems like there hasn't been that much fighting to date, not that I'm aware of at least. It seems like the airport is a great district north of Kunduz which was taken last night, has fallen back into government control, but as I mentioned, this is a place where fighting can flare up pretty quickly and assault this week on Kunduz had been planned for a long time, for several years foreign fighters have streamed into Kunduz, and the Taliban have one their own sort of hearts and minds campaign in the area. So even though there's no fighting now, it can flare up again pretty rapidly.
SESAY: Many questions being asked, as you well know. How it's possible that the Taliban, who -- which numbered a couple of hundred, were able to take Kunduz when on the ground there were some thousands of Afghan forces, Afghan government forces. Are we getting a clear explanation as to how this all went down on Monday?
RASMUSSEN: Without getting an official explanation, but there's a lot of guesses as to how this can happen. One reason was when the Taliban advanced, thousands of security forces simply fled the city, leaving it open for Taliban to overrun it. Then reinforcements came in from Kabul, from neighboring provinces including Special Forces, including U.S. air strikes as well, which helped retake the province. But low fighting morale among the security forces is one reason but also because of when the Taliban advanced, a lot of civilians seemed to pick up weapons to fight alongside the insurgents. That doesn't mean that they outnumbered the security forces. Far from it. But there is a lack of coordination in security forces and a lack of fighting morale, which is also a challenge now for the security forces as they move forward.
SESAY: Many, many problems to contend with.
Sune Engel Rasmussen joining us from Kabul in Afghanistan. We appreciate it. Thank you.
VAUSE: We move on now to American politics. And Republican presidential contender, Donald Trump, says he has no problem with Russia's military involvement with Syria. Moscow claims it's targeting ISIS with its latest air strikes but U.S. officials warn the blasts will inflame Syria's civil war.
SESAY: Trump is also taking a hard-line stance against Syrian refugees seeking asylum here in the United States.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
[01:35:10] DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: This migration, this big migration, where now they're talking about bringing 200,000 people into the United States, and I will tell you, if I win, I'm going to say it right now, and I'll say it to you, those 200,000 people -- and they have to know this and the world will hear it -- are going back. We're not going to accept 200,000 people. That may be ISIS. You know, when you look at the migration, there's so many men, and there's so many men that look strong to me. I'm pretty good at analyzing things. I say, where are all the women? You see so few women. And they look strong. And they're young. Number one, why aren't they fighting for their country? Number two, what's going on? Why are we accepting all of these thousands -- now that I've heard a number today, 200,000. That's almost like, are they bringing -- are these people ISIS? We have no idea who they are. We have no idea where they come from.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: Well, a new poll shows Donald Trump continues to lead the Republican race for the White House. The Suffolk University/"USA Today" poll of almost 400 likely Republican primary voters shows Trump has 23 percent support nationally.
SESAY: Trump leads rivals Ben Carson and Carly Fiorina, who tied at 13 percent. Marco Rubio comes in at fourth at 9 percent. Jeb Bush, though, right down there on 8 percent, still doing better than a lot of others who are in the race. Jeb Bush's poll numbers, though, have taken quite a hit since he did start this run for the White House.
In an interview with CNN's Dana Bash, he says he will make voters make up their own minds by focusing on his political record.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DANA BASH, CNN CHIEF POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: You entered this race as a front-runner. And in just three months you've lost more than 50 percent of your support. You went from double digits to single digits. What do you think changed?
JEB BUSH (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Well, first of all, I never considered myself a front-runner --
(CROSSTALK)
BASH: You were ahead in the polls.
BUSH: I knew I had to overcome perceptions related to people that don't know me. So if you're in New Hampshire, if there's a television on, hopefully you'll see an ad that we put up and the Right to Rise PAC has put up ads as well, talking about my records. So as I get to talk about how I cut taxes, reduced the size of government, created the most ambitious school choice programs in the country, turned the whole system upside down as a disruptor. I can tell that story and lay out my plans for what I would do in Washington. And over time, I think that's what people are going to decide.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SESAY: Well, Jeb Bush also mentioned John McCain's comeback in the 2008 race when McCain won the Republican nomination.
VAUSE: Still to come here on CNN NEWSROOM, a new test for Ebola, faster and cheaper, and developed by a high school student. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[01:41:03] VAUSE: Welcome back, everybody. Prosecutors say they will not charge Caitlyn Jenner for her role in a deadly multicar accident because they can't prove negligence.
SESAY: Police say Jenner's SUV hit a Lexus from behind in February, sending it into oncoming traffic in Malibu, California. The driver of the Lexus died at the scene. In an investigation they found Jenner was driving below the speed limit and was braking when the crash happened. Jenner is a transgender advocate and a former Olympic champion once named Bruce.
VAUSE: It has been a year since the first Ebola patient was diagnosed in the United States. Thomas Duncan was infected in Liberia before arriving in Dallas. He fell ill and died eight days later. At the time, Ebola was sweeping West Africa. And when the disease arrived in the United States, it sparked an epidemic of fear.
One reason for that, it's really difficult to know if someone who has been exposed to Ebola is still infected. The early symptoms are similar to flu. And testing for Ebola is expensive, about $1,000, and results can take up to 12 hours, which is part of the reason why the disease has been especially deadly in Africa.
That might be about to change. A new test can detect Ebola in its earliest stages. It takes about 30 minutes. It's cheap, it's easy, and it was developed by a high school student.
That high school student is 16-year-old Olivia Helesy. She joins us from New York.
Olivia, this is incredible stuff. How did you actually come up with this?
OLIVIA HELESY, STUDENT: I'm in a science research class at school. Every student does an independent research project. And I didn't know what I wanted to focus on so my teacher advised me to look in the news and find something I was passionate about or felt outraged by or find something that could be done better. That's when I began to look at the Ebola outbreak and how it is growing to quickly and ways to limit that growth.
VAUSE: This testing kit took first prize at this year's Google science fair. Do you know if it might actually be used in the real world?
HELESY: That's definitely my goal with this test. Eventually, I want to see this project to fruition. That would be using this test at travel checkpoints or within communities and we will just a measure to test people before they are showing symptoms. Then if they are positive they can be isolated without spreading to other people. Because when someone is asymptomatic, they're not contagious.
VAUSE: The sooner you can diagnose it the sooner you can stop the spread of the disease. You can save thousands of lives. HELESY: That's really my goal with this project. I want to give
people hope because with the Ebola usually it's a death sentence. With this project, I hope if somebody is diagnoses when they're asymptomatic, they receive better care, and also they won't affect their family and people around them. That's definitely the goal with this project, is to save lives.
VAUSE: Very quickly can you explain how this test differs from every other test out there? Why is this one so good?
HELESY: This test is a rapid, portable, and visual test, but one of the main advantages is that it is also cheap, but the really big thing is that it's temperature independent. Current tests need an unbroken cold chain, which is refrigeration from point of manufacture to point of administration. So this test using a silk fibroid solution is temperature stabilized, so it no longer needs refrigeration, which is a huge problem in these rural areas where Ebola is most prevalent.
VAUSE: Olivia, you make us all underachievers and put us all to shame.
(LAUGHTER)
It was great to speak with you. Thank you.
HELESY: Thank you so much.
SESAY: It is just incredible. And as someone who is from Sierra Leone, one of the countries that was ravaged by this Ebola outbreak, I can't even put into words the gratitude I have and admiration for that young mind.
VAUSE: The test now costs about $1,000. That test, 25 bucks. It's amazing.
[01:45:03] SESAY: It's amazing.
Well, if you jumped on Apple Music when it launched, your free trial is up. What you need to know about the music service and how it stacks up to other streaming services.
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(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PEDRAM JAVAHERI, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Good Thursday morning to you. Pedram Javaheri, for CNN "Weather Watch."
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SESAY: Hello, everyone. It's a big day for Apple. The company will find out whether customers are sticking with its music service. It's been three months since Apple Music launched. And if you signed up when it first went online, your free trial expired Wednesday.
VAUSE: Time's up. It costs 10 bucks a month for people in the United States, close to $2 in India, $15 in the U.K., where everything is so much more expensive. Apple Music also just launched in China. After the three-month trial, it will be about a buck, 50 a month. Good deal there in China.
SESAY: Rumors are swelling that Twitter is naming Jack Dorsey its permanent CEO. That's according to the technology news site, re/code. Dorsey is Twitter's interim CEO and co-founder of the company.
VAUSE: Let's get more on all this and Apple Music as well. We're joined by Brian Stelter, who happens to be in San Francisco.
Brian --
SESAY: Hi, Brian.
VAUSE: -- West coast. Good to see you.
Let's start with Apple.
(CROSSTALK)
BRIAN STELTER, CNN SENIOR MEDIA CORRESPONDENT: Great to be with you.
[01:50:01] VAUSE: Absolutely. Apple reportedly has 15 million users right now under this free trial. "The New York Post" is reporting about half of them have not turned off the auto pay function. That gives them about seven million. That's not a bad start.
STELTER: Auto pay. Isn't that both the best and worst feature of the digital era?
VAUSE: I hate it.
STELTER: All of us are paying for so many things that renew automatically every month or every year, whether it's Netflix or Amazon Prime or all the variety of services online. Apple Music wants to be the most recent version of that. Other music services like Spotify already auto renew every month. They are gaining more and more subscribers. But Apple Music is really poised to disrupt and, in some ways, revolutionize the way we all listen to music. That is, if it can get enough paying subscribers.
Like you said, today's the day the blog End Gadget called this Judgment Day for Apple Music, the big decision day for whether people are going to go ahead and hand over their credit cards and keep paying for this service. That three-month free trial was a very big deal because it gave people a long time to get familiar with the service and to get dependent on the service. But really it is the weeks and months to come that will really judge how successful it's going to be.
VAUSE: Brian, is it a zero sum game for Apple to succeed? Do they need to take customers and listeners away from Pandora and Spotify? STELTER: At the moment, there are so many people that aren't paying
for any form of a music subscription service. There is Spotify, Amazon, a number of others you mentioned, but there are so many, many hundreds of millions of customers out there that are not paying for any form of music service. That's what Apple's really trying to target with Apple Music.
SESAY: And, Brian, turning our attention to Twitter now, we know that Twitter's currently facing a host of challenges, the biggest of which is stalled growth. We're hearing that Jack Dorsey's going to be reappointed. Why reappoint Jack Dorsey as CEO?
STELTER: This town aflutter with the rumors today. An announcement expected on Thursday, possibly as early as Thursday morning about this permanent CEO position. You know, Jack Dorsey's one of the co- founders of Twitter. He was briefly the CEO many years ago and then he took over on an interim basis when the CEO was removed several months ago. So why is he going to become the permanent CEO? He knows the company better than anybody else. He has credibility, and he's a talent magnet. You know, what Twitter needs right now is a sense that it can figure out how to gain hundreds of millions of more subscribers. You know, not subscribers, excuse me, but users, daily users. Then they can figure out ways to make more money from those users. Facebook is so much bicker, has so much more scale than Twitter and Twitter is seeking new ways to figure out how to reach more of those consumers. The people that use Twitter love Twitter. They're addicted to Twitter. Lots of journalists like us use Twitter all the time. But it has to figure out how to gain that next number of people. And the bet from the board is going to be on Jack Dorsey.
SESAY: I'm wondering, Brian, though, whether it -- how complicated a takeover this will be bearing in mind that Jack Dorsey's going to remain CEO of Square, the digital payment company. And we know that originally the board put out a statement saying they did not want anyone that was already leading another company.
STELTER: That's right. The conventional wisdom has shifted in recent weeks to this idea that, yes, he can run both and maybe that would be a good idea. Potentially one reason is because Twitter is moving more into e-commerce. They're looking at ways to let you buy products directly from a tweet. One of the big efforts we're going to see from Twitter in the coming weeks is something called Project Lightning. It's essentially an alternative version of Twitter, a second version for people that don't use the site now, that don't love the social networking site now. It's an entry-level product for people that aren't addicted to Twitter but will maybe get them in the door. It's a way to get the service closer to Facebook which has so many more users than Twitter today.
SESAY: Absolutely fascinating.
VAUSE: Brian, great to speak with you as always.
(CROSSTALK)
SESAY: Brian, come back. We'll see you soon. VAUSE: The biggest distinction between Twitter and Facebook, Twitter
is for journalists, Facebook is for people, for families.
SESAY: Good point. But you're not really avid.
VAUSE: I'm hopeless at both.
(LAUGHTER)
SESAY: Celebrities are used to having their fans fawning over them, but one Katy Perry fan took things a little far at a recent concert.
VAUSE: CNN's Jeanne Moos tells us more about this on-stage lovefest.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JEANNE MOOS, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Katy Perry sure knows how to pick them.
KATY PERRY, SINGER: The girl with the smiley face (EXPLETIVE DELETED). Come on stage right now.
MOOS: At a concert in Brazil, the fan with the smiley face bustier put a smile on our face.
(CHEERING)
MOOS: She wasn't just hugging Katy.
PERRY: She's kissing my neck.
What's your name?
UNIDENTIFIED FAN: Annye.
MOOS: She nestled in Katy's bosom, whispered how to pronounce her name in the singer's ear.
PERRY: Annye. Hi, Annye. Aye, aye, aye, aye.
(CHEERING)
MOOS: The super fan's hands traversed Katy's chest.
(SHOUTING)
PERRY: OK, hold on, Annye.
MOOS: Most folks seem to think Katy handled the handling well.
PERRY: Are you a Katy cat?
(LAUGHTER)
PERRY: I think she's rolling.
[01:55:15] MOOS: The fan told TMZ she wasn't high, she was just exhausted, adding she couldn't stop hugging and smelling Katy.
The star asked for some help speaking Portuguese.
PERRY: How do you say selfie?
UNIDENTIFIED FAN: Selfie!
(LAUGHTER)
MOOS: There was more neck nuzzlers. Commenters kept joking about Katy's old hit.
(SINGING)
MOOS: "She was kissed by a girl but she didn't seem to like it," commented someone.
"That's not being kissed by a girl. That's being assaulted by a person," replied another.
PERRY: Let's take a selfie!
(CHEERING)
MOOS: The entire encounter lasted three and a half minutes. Katy finally sent her off with a playful slap on the rump, and the fan returned the favor.
Looks like Katy could use a little selfie defense.
Jeanne Moos, CNN.
PERRY: OK, OK, OK.
MOOS: -- New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(LAUGHTER)
SESAY: No words for that. Yeah.
VAUSE: Yeah.
SESAY: Thanks for watching CNN NEWSROOM live from Los Angeles. I'm Isha Sesay.
VAUSE: I'm John Vause.
Please stay with us. Rosemary Church and Errol Barnett will be back after a very short break.
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