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Who Were the San Bernardino Shooters?; California Remembers 14 Loved Ones; Searching for the Eighth Attacker; South India Inundated with Floods; SWAT Doc First among First Responders; Gun Lobby Loses Power amid Grassroots Efforts; San Bernardino Victims' Survivors Remember Loved Ones; Battle of the Strongman Presidents; Mixed Reactions to Sad Christmas Ad. Aired 4-5a ET

Aired December 05, 2015 - 04:00   ET

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


[04:00:00]

LYNDA KINKADE, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): Mass murder in the name of faith. Investigators say the woman behind a deadly attack in California was inspired by ISIS. But American Muslims warn against aligning terror with Islam.

Also ahead, historic flooding swamps Southern India and there's much more rain on the way.

Plus, if you're looking for a bit of Christmas cheer, you might want to steer clear of this German commercial. We'll hear from the man behind the world's most depressing holiday ad campaign.

Hello and welcome to our viewers in the U.S. and around the world. I'm Lynda Kinkade. And this is CNN NEWSROOM.

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KINKADE: U.S. investigators say they're treating Wednesday's mass shooting in California as an act of terrorism. The FBI says it's uncovered evidence from the home of Syed Farook and his wife, Tashfeen Malik, that showed extreme planning. Authorities also say Malik posted a pledge of allegiance to ISIS during the massacre.

But no one has said the terror group ordered the attack. The FBI says this is looking more like self-radicalization.

Some members of Farook's mosque suspect his wife is the one who radicalized him. Friends say they didn't know much about Tashfeen Malik but they believed the man they worshipped with was a good guy. Kyung Lah has more from Riverside, California.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KYUNG LAH, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Investigators are homing on Tashfeen Malik, the wife and second shooter in the San Bernardino attack that claimed the lives of 14 people. Three U.S. officials familiar with the investigation say as the massacre was happening, Malik posted on Facebook a pledge of allegiance to ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. She is a woman few members of the Islamic Center in Riverside

remember. That's the mosque Syed Rizwan Farook attended and celebrated his marriage to his wife last year.

LAH: The service was in this room?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.

LAH: And so the women then were up there?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, up there. Yes. Right, right, up there.

LAH (voice-over): Women are separated from the men in this mosque. So even Mustafa Kukul (ph), the director of the Islamic Center, never met Malik. She is a mystery to many here, including those who knew her best. According to attorneys for the Farook family, Syed's brothers never saw her face.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Men did not interact with her and the brothers did not actually ever see her face. They've never seen her face because she did wear a burqa.

LAH (voice-over): The couple first met like many today, on the Web. Farook had joined dating websites. He came across Malik, a Pakistani citizen. He turned to Kukul (ph) for marital advice.

MUSTAFA KUKUL (PH), DIRECTOR, ISLAMIC CENTER: He said, I feel comfortable with this person. And I believe she is a good woman. She's a decent woman. She's a religious woman.

LAH (voice-over): Kukul (ph) says Farook flew to Saudi Arabia to meet Malik for the first time in October 2013 during the hajj pilgrimage. DHS sources tell CNN Malik's father lived in Saudi Arabia. So she often visited over the years from Pakistan. He went again to Saudi Arabia in June 2014.

Documents show she entered the U.S. a month later. Their marriage certificate filed in Riverside County says they were legally married in August of that year. Members of the mosque first met Malik at their wedding ceremony, held here. Abdul Aziz Ahmed (ph), Farook's friend, was among the 300 who attended the wedding.

ABDUL AZIZ AHMED (PH), FAROOK'S FRIEND: When she come here, also she -- he looks good. He was looking good.

LAH: And then he disappeared?

AHMED (PH): He disappeared, yes.

LAH (voice-over): After coming to this mosque every day for two years, Farook stopped.

AHMED (PH): How can this happen?

A guy who was very good, no -- he doesn't have any problem with anybody. You don't hear him talking about those madmen, like those crazy terrorists. He never talk about those kind of people.

LAH: Did the marriage change him?

AHMED (PH): I suspect. I suspect there is something wrong.

LAH (voice-over): Farook's co-worker, Christian Wadiki (ph), tells CBS News he's certain the marriage changed Farook.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Do you believe that he was radicalized?

CHRISTIAN WADIKI (PH), FAROOK'S CO-WORKER: Yes, by the wife. I think he married a terrorist.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He married a terrorist?

WADIKI (PH): Yes.

LAH (voice-over): Most puzzling, say friends, Farook would be a good father and would have wanted to live a life with a family.

AHMED (PH): I don't understand.

How can a woman just leave her baby like this and go do some crap like this?

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KINKADE: That was Kyung Lah reporting from Riverside, California.

Back at the couple's home in Redlands, California, the media got a first-hand look at how they lived. Their landlord let the media in after the FBI released the crime scene. Stephanie Elam has that part of our story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Unfinished food on the counter, broken glass on the living room floor. This is the townhouse that was shared by San Bernardino mass shooters Syed Rizwan Farook and his wife, Tashfeen Malik. Signs of a former crime scene mixed with baby toys for their 6-month-old daughter.

In a room upstairs, the baby's crib is to one side. A small desk with a computer is in another corner. The back bedroom holding more clues about the family.

I was the first person to walk into this room and saw how it was before everyone started touching it. And you can see that police did go through and look at many things. I don't want to show you these IDs over here just because I don't want to show you those addresses that are on there. But I do believe that they belong to the mother of Farook, based on the ages that are. But you can see that there are some prayer books. There are also some pictures.

When I first walked in, this group of prayer beads was sitting right here on the edge of the bed when I walked in as well. Several prayer books that were all around the side of the bed here. Some business cards and plenty of the normal trappings that you would expect to see in a bedroom.

You have this -- you know, I see receipts for stores, normal store purchases. I see lotions and creams and dressers and that sort of thing.

But one of the things, and I want -- there's so much media in here, but I want to show you, one of the things that you can see here is this. And this is what I was telling you about before, is this right here.

If you look up here, you can see where they smashed up into the ceiling to take a look to see what was up there. It does appear, based on how much debris is on the ground, that there -- there was an -- that there was an effort to get up there and make sure that they checked every crevice of this back bedroom.

And it does seems like it may have been the main bedroom that was here.

But plenty of IDs. I've seen passports. I've seen driver's licenses, Social Security cards, plenty of things that are around here, as well as plenty of signs of faith. A lot of signs of faith here.

You see a lot of signs of these being people who believed in their faith and also referencing it.

There's stickers and so forth all throughout the room. But a lot of paperwork and also a lot of luggage up here as well, too. But it just looks like it's been stashed over in the corner. But definitely signs that this has been a room that has been ransacked by -- not -- before the media got here, but by the police as well.

Doyle Miller, the landlord of the property, invited the media inside. A surprising move, because the investigation is still in the early stages.

DOYLE MILLER, LANDLORD: I need to assess the damage. It's a lot worse than what I thought.

ELAM (voice-over): But the FBI under fire for allowing the landlord and media to enter the home, explained they were no longer responsible for the apartment since they released it last night.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We executed a search warrant on that apartment and last night we turned that over, back to the residents. Once the residents have the apartment and we're not in it anymore, we don't control it.

ELAM: There was a lot of speculation about the garage to this house. We understand there are reports that the couple may have been building pipe bombs inside of the garage. Well, I walked around it. There was no way to get in it and there was no signs of that activity within the household -- Stephanie Elam, CNN, Redlands, California.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KINKADE: And so being reporting several pieces of evidence pushed authorities to launch a terror probe in the San Bernardino shooting, Olivier Guitta joins us now from London to talk more about this development.

He's the managing director of GLOBALSTRAT and a security a consultancy firm and he's written extensively on geopolitical and security issues.

Thanks so much for joining us.

OLIVIER GUITTA, MANAGING DIRECTOR, GLOBALSTRAT: My pleasure, Lydia (sic).

KINKADE: First of all, Olivier, as we've just seen in that report, the media were allowed to enter the home of the attackers just two days after the massacre. One former FBI agent who spoke to CNN said it looked like the place hadn't been dusted down for fingerprints.

Is it possible that investigators seized everything they could possibly need or is that crime scene now contaminated?

GUITTA: Look. As much as I can tell, I would trust the FBI to -- when they tell us that they've release a crime scene and they're confident that they got everything they wanted.

So, obviously, they're a very professional -- they're one of the best law enforcement agencies in the world. And I wouldn't suspect them to be so amateurish.

KINKADE: Looking at the company, the attackers, this was a married couple. And I certainly can't recall a shooting like this anywhere in the world, where a couple carried out a massacre like this. This couple, of course, had a 6-month-old baby at home.

What do you make of it?

GUITTA: It's very worrisome. But that's what Islamic State is very good at doing, is brainwashing people. And the fact that they were following, quote-unquote, "the orders of Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi" and a couple spokesmen of the Islamic State that basically called in November, twice, for followers to attack the U.S., is very troubling at this point.

KINKADE: What makes that --

[04:10:00]

KINKADE: -- ISIS propaganda so effective?

GUITTA: Look. Compared to Al Qaeda, which was really about micromanaging and organizing terror attacks within their own cells, Islamic State has been very good from the get-go to be, if you will, a dual kind of terrorist organization.

As we've seen in Paris, they have the wherewithal of pulling off attacks that are ordered from the center in Syria. But as well they're very good at -- with social media, at pushing people to attack their homeland. And that's exactly what they're doing to basically have different threats against all countries.

KINKADE: And now, the FBI, as you mentioned, believe that the wife posted an allegiance to ISIS on Facebook. But oddly, it happened during the massacre, not before. And she used a different name. It seems quite bizarre.

GUITTA: Look, as much as I can tell, because I'm not privy to confidential information, I would tend to believe the FBI following the tracks of what she was doing. I don't know if it happened, you know, while they were on their way there and she could have done it over a phone. But I have no reason not to believe the FBI at this point.

KINKADE: And this obviously seemed like a premeditated act, given that all the guns that were seized and the detonators from the home that were found, what do you make of the fact that this was a planned -- a seemingly planned attack?

GUITTA: It fits in the whole threat game that Islamic State is putting together, basically having people organized on their own, attacks against the homeland being completely under the radar.

And that's one of the only times in recent years, all over the world, that you had people that were not monitored by security services. And that just turned out to be radicals and pulling off terror attacks.

KINKADE: Olivier Guitta, we'll have to leave it there for now but we appreciate your perspective on all of this. Thanks very much.

GUITTA: Thank you very much.

KINKADE: We've been hearing the words "learning to be strong" and learning to go on more and more. Those grieving in San Bernardino are using those words to try to cope with Wednesday's massacre. Jake Tapper has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JAKE TAPPER, CNN CHIEF WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): They were cherished family members, best friends, parents, 14 people between the ages of 26 and 60 who spent their final day celebrating together, kissing their loved ones goodbye in the morning, never believing they wouldn't come home.

RYAN REYES, BOYFRIEND KILLED IN SHOOTING: The thought running through my mind was just, no, no, no. This isn't true.

TAPPER (voice-over): Ryan Reyes drove his boyfriend, Daniel Kaufman, to the regional center Wednesday, as he did most mornings. Kaufman ran a coffee shop there where he trained disabled employees. Kaufman was taking a break on a bench outside when he was killed.

REYES: He meant the world to me. He meant the absolute world to me. Yes. Sorry.

TAPPER (voice-over): Many of the victims were parents, leaving behind at least 18 children whose worlds are now changed forever.

JOLENE, VICTIM'S DAUGHTER: Overall, she was like an amazing person. Like, she was so nice. Like, she always supported me in everything I did.

TAPPER (voice-over): Bennetta Betbadal had three children. Her family and friends say she came to America from Iran at age 18 to escape religious extremism.

KEN PAULSON, FAMILY FRIEND: We find it is sadly ironic and horrible that a woman that came to the country under these circumstances would find herself gunned down by religious extremists.

TAPPER (voice-over): Michael Wetzel leaves behind six children and his wife, Renee. A friend speaking for the family told CNN how Renee learned of his murder.

CELIA BEHAR, FAMILY FRIEND: The large group of survivors came out and he wasn't in it. They told her that if he wasn't in there, then he was gone.

TAPPER (voice-over): Robert Adams had always wanted to be a dad. He and his wife welcomed a little girl just 20 months ago.

On the fundraising page set up for his family, a friend posted, quote, "He was 100 percent in daddy land."

His family says he cherished every moment with his daughter.

Twenty-seven-year-old Sierra Clayborn and Yvette Velasco were cherished daughters as well. Yvette was an intelligent, motivated and beautiful young woman, her family said in a statement.

On Facebook, Sierra sister wrote, quote, "My heart is broken. I'm completely devastated."

The family of the youngest victim is, too. Aurora Godoy was just 26.

[04:15:00]

TAPPER (voice-over): She leaves behind a husband and a 2-year-old son.

This community and the families of all the victims will need tremendous strength to move forward, a trait many learned from their loved ones.

JOLENE: I'm doing OK because what else can I do?

I have to stay strong.

TAPPER (voice-over): Jake Tapper, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KINKADE: Now for the latest on the Paris terror attacks. Officials in Belgium are looking for two more suspects. Authorities say two men may have had connections to the suspect known as the eighth attacker. CNN's Alexandra Field reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ALEXANDRA FIELD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Saleh Abdeslam remains the man most wanted by police in connection to the Paris terror attacks but authorities are now looking for two men who were traveling with him in Hungary just two months before the attacks.

All three men were stopped at the Austrian-Hungarian border; officials say that, at the time, two men presented false Belgian identity cards with the names Soufiane Kayal and Samir Bouzid.

Police later raided a house that was rented out using the identity card with Kayal's name on it. They now say that the identity card with Bouzid's name on it was used just four days after the Paris attacks to wire money to Hasna Ait Boulahcen. She was one of the women who was killed in the police raids following the attacks. She is the cousin of Abdelhamid Abaaoud, who is widely regarded as the ringleader of those attacks.

As for Abdeslam himself, authorities have said that he managed to leave France on the night of the attacks just hours later, crossing the border into Belgium before police realized who exactly they were looking for.

A friend of Abdeslam has said that he dropped him off in the Brussels neighborhood of Schaerbeek but officials haven't been able to determine where Abdeslam went from there. In Paris, Alexandra Field, CNN.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

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KINKADE (voice-over): Still to come, one of the first responders in the California mass shooting carried bandages and an assault rifle. Up next, meet the so-called SWAT Doc, who was trained to protect himself while saving lives.

Also a look at the toll that devastating floods are taking -- having in Southeast India. (INAUDIBLE). We'll have a live report, just ahead.

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PAULA NEWTON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Paula Newton and these are the top business headlines. (HEADLINES)

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KINKADE: Welcome back. Indian prime minister Narendra Modi said he's pained at the devastation caused by flooding in the south of the country. More 270 people have been killed so far and 120,000 have been rescued.

These unusually heavy rains lashed the state of Tamil Nadu and it could get worse. More heavy rain is forecast around the city of Chennai. Robyn Curnow has the details.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ROBYN CURNOW, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Much of this city of 9 million people is under water after weeks of heavy rain, the worst flooding here in a century. Some Chennai residents are waist deep in it, some ankle deep, after a few breaks in the rain have let some of the waters have recede.

These are the scenes from the streets of India's fifth largest city, South India's industrial and commercial center.

Many people are being forced to upper floors of buildings. Whether outdoors or indoors, the water is making life miserable.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): We are facing lots of problems due to this flooding. There's also a power shortage. The flooding makes it very difficult to survive. We can even see snakes in the water.

CURNOW (voice-over): Emergency workers, including Indian armed forces, rescued more than 120,000 people on Wednesday and Thursday. And operations are ongoing.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Now we've got all the boats on which our personnel, along with very (INAUDIBLE) meals and water. Supplies will be deployed in the flood-affected areas.

CURNOW (voice-over): This is what Chennai's airport looked like earlier this week. Many flights have been cancelled and some airlines are now flying in and out of an airport about 100 kilometers west of Chennai. On Thursday, India's prime minister, Narendra Modi, flew over the flood-hit region and pledged $290 million for relief funds.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (INAUDIBLE) by the people of Tamil Nadu in the hour of need.

CURNOW (voice-over): Even if the rains ease up and the waters recede, many people are still going to need help -- Robyn Curnow, CNN.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KINKADE: Meteorologist Derek Van Dam is standing by at the International Weather Center.

Derek, just put this in perspective for us.

How unusual is this rainfall?

DEREK VAN DAM, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Well, that footage we were watching just a moment ago from Chennai, we can put this into perspective by talking about another city like London, which is typically a very rainy spot in the world.

Well, Chennai actually received more rainfall than a six-month period in London, just since the beginning of December. That's five days they received that much rainfall. Take a look at some of the more footage coming out of this area, just to show you what people had to do, they were stranded on rooftops, Lynda, some of the worst flooding in over a century. There have been up to 120,000 people rescued from all of this flooding, virtually turning roadways into rivers. You can see people having to navigate some of the flooded streets there.

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[04:25:00]

VAN DAM: I'm going to leave you with this, an incredible sight coming out of Europe's most active and largest volcano, creating what is called volcanic lightning. This comes about when volcanic ash is shot or spewed up into the upper levels of the atmosphere, creating a separation of charges.

And this is basically just Mother Nature's way of balancing charges. It creates that little lightning bolt between the positive and the negative electrons.

And we'll show you one last video coming out of Europe. This is in Sicily. This is Mr. Etna actually erupting at nighttime. You can see the beautiful lava. Fortunately, no one injured or hurt in this. Quite a sight to see, though.

KINKADE: So people, I guess, had to be evacuated nearby areas?

VAN DAM: That's right. Obviously seeing something like that out your front window, I would take those evacuation orders quite seriously.

(LAUGHTER)

(CROSSTALK)

KINKADE: Incredible pictures.

VAN DAM: Yes. Nice to report on, too.

KINKADE: Good to see you, Derek. Thank you.

VAN DAM: Thanks, Lynda.

KINKADE: Well, still to come, the discord between Russia and Turkey continues. The two countries trade accusations after Turkey shot down a Russian jet. Coming up, a look at the two clashing egos still under that dispute.

Plus a look back at the lives and legacy of one of the victims from the San Bernardino shooting. Stay with us for this touching tribute.

[04:30:00]

LYNDA KINKADE, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): Welcome back to CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Lynda Kinkade. Here's an update on the top stories we're following this hour.

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KINKADE: If you were watching our coverage of the California mass shooting, you probably saw SWAT teams running in. What you may not have known is that one of those highly trained police officers is also a doctor. He carries a tactical gun, along with life-saving supplies. CNN's medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta explains.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Before any other member of his SWAT team arrived on the scene of Wednesday's bloody massacre, Dr. Michael Neeki was already there, just minutes after the shooting began.

DR. MICHAEL NEEKI, SWAT DOC: From airway to quickly stapling of the wound in the field to Israeli bandage, which is a compression dressing.

GUPTA (voice-over): He's a new kind of first responder, a hybrid of healer and soldier, a doctor and a member of the SWAT team, ready to defend as well as save lives.

NEEKI: A good guy should be able to defend himself and also help everybody else.

GUPTA (voice-over): In order to do that, not only does he need to carry his medical equipment but he has to carry a gun as well, a gun much like the one used by the shooters.

NEEKI: Well, you know, I don't want to get hurt. If somebody really have intention like that yesterday, where he was coming in, indiscriminately shooting everybody, I'm the first one that gets there as active shooter response, I want to be able to defend myself and those civilians down there.

GUPTA (voice-over): That's Dr. Neeki on the right.

Today, just one day after the shooting, we followed Dr. Neeki to this training facility.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Shooters ready?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Ready, sir. GUPTA: And this is another part of being a brand-new sort of doctor, going through training like this with other members of the SWAT team to try and make sure that he can defend himself in situations where he's taking care of other patients.

NEEKI: We're now going to this assault rifle injury-type pattern, which rips and shreds apart organs in your body, tissues in the body, vessels as they're going through. Even our tactics are changing right now for law enforcement. We're going sideways, now we're go to the front to expose less organ injuries rather than, you know --

(CROSSTALK)

GUPTA: So instead of going like this --

NEEKI: So you go through sideway and a bullet comes through the axilla, it goes through both lung and the heart possibly and comes through the other side.

Whereas, if you go from the front, now you have a plate that protects your heart and hits one of the lungs or the other, you're going to still be functional.

GUPTA: That's fascinating, because you always see people approaching the lower profile --

GUPTA (voice-over): Dr. Neeki grew up in Iran and served in the military there. So guns in combat aren't new to him. But he never thought he'd have to use those skills in America.

Did you ever think that your experiences in Middle East were going to be useful here in -- ?

NEEKI: I never in a million years. But now that I'm here, this is one of my duties. It's a privilege to work here. And it's a privilege to be part of this team, to serve the community out there. It's the least I could do.

GUPTA (voice-over): Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN, San Bernardino County, California.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KINKADE: So how does the United States compare with other countries in homicides by firearm? Well, according to the Small Arms Survey, the U.S. has an average annual rate of 31 homicides by gun to every 1 million people. Now compare that to Germany, France and Australia with just 2 for every 1 million people.

The U.S. does fall below several developing countries, including Brazil and South Africa but it has a higher rate than Russia.

The couple involved in the San Bernardino shooting used rifles and semi-automatic handguns that were legally obtained. But despite that, the massacre has reignited the gun reform debate in the U.S.

[04:35:00]

KINKADE: Earlier, CNN spoke with Professor Robert Spitzer, a distinguished scholar and author of five books on U.S. gun policy, including "Guns across America." He tells our Natalie Allen the political environment makes it nearly impossible to change gun laws in the U.S. But he believes a strong grassroots movement could help bring about change.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ROBERT SPITZER, AUTHOR: It's not just the presence of guns, it's the abundance of a wide range of weaponry that goes to the easy availability of too many types of guns and too much firepower in the hands of average citizens.

NATALIE ALLEN, CNN ANCHOR: Right. We're seeing the guns on the screen. We've seen the bullets, up to 7,000 rounds.

So what is the answer? A lot of people are pointing to Australia, that a conservative government passed legislation and they've seen no mass shootings since then.

SPITZER: Yes. In 1996, after the Port Arthur massacre, the Australian government, as you know, enacted a vigorous campaign to bring in all -- bring in assault-type weapons. It was a successful campaign and they've had no mass shootings since that time.

That kind of effort would be very difficult in the United States but that doesn't mean there isn't anything you could do. There are many steps that could be taken in the United States, policy steps that overwhelming majorities of Americans support, that most gun owners support.

But in the current political environment where, at the national level, Congress is firmly in control, is controlled by the Republican Party, which is closely aligned with the National Rifle Association, the chief gun rights group, and President Obama, the Democrat, it's abundantly clear that the current Congress is not interested really in any proposals from Obama on almost any policy matter, but certainly not on the gun issue.

And so the prospect for anything at the national level right now is zero because of the deep partisan divide and polarization that's gripping the national political climate.

ALLEN: So where does that leave us?

SPITZER: Well, it leaves us actually with a number of things.

For one thing, many states, some of the states have moved ahead with stricter laws.

California, where the San Bernardino shooting took place, will be holding a referendum later this year on new measures to tighten gun laws in that state. And this will surely give into this, to that law. If you look down the road, we see that pro-gun control groups in the

United States, for the first time in history, have actually matched and even exceeded the political spending of the NRA. And that has never happened before.

If those groups can maintain their effort and if more average citizens can take a deeper interest in the gun issue, that could change the calculus. But that's a long-term strategy that spans -- and would span a number of years.

But if these new pro-gun control groups -- like one is called Every Town for Gun Safety, if they continue to work, as they have been, it's possible that this balance may begin to shift.

One other thing, fewer and fewer Americans own guns; less than a third of Americans have guns as it is now. And the proportion of Americans for whom gun ownership is a really important thing has been gradually declining. And that demographic turned also works against the gun rights political movement.

ALLEN: Robert Spitzer, we always appreciate your expertise. Thank you for joining us.

SPITZER: You bet.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KINKADE: And here's some context for our international viewers: despite President Obama's pleas for tougher gun laws there's very little he can do on his own. And this is why. The Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution protects Americans' rights to keep and bear arms, a right staunchly defended by gun advocates.

In addition to federal gun law, there are also many state and local gun laws that vary widely across the country. And any change would likely need approval from U.S. lawmakers, who are reluctant to take on the powerful gun lobby led by the National Rifle Association.

Now we want to pause to remember the victims from the San Bernardino massacre. Nine men and five women were killed, most of them colleagues at the county's Department of Public Health. They all had families and they were all loved. Here's a story now about one of those victims, Shannon Johnson.

CNN's Dan Simon spoke to his girlfriend about the legacy he leaves behind and his untimely death.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MANDY PIFER, SHANNON JOHNSON'S GIRLFRIEND: I'm going to miss him terribly, everybody will.

DAN SIMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It's a broad question, but tell us a little bit about Shannon.

Well, Shannon Hilliard Johnson was covered in tattoos. He had a big bushy beard but he was a kitty cat. He was the kindest person anyone has ever met, made friends very easily. He was always great at sports. He loves people and animals, it's just everybody.

[04:40:00]

PIFER: He just loved people, he loved telling stories.

SIMON: Do you remember what he said about Syed?

PIFER: He likes Syed. He liked Syed. Syed's religion was very important to him. Everybody's religion that is very important with them. And Shannon just wanted everybody to know that every religion is important.

I knew he was there, that was his group. And you know what, this kind of thing happens often enough but he and I had discussions about what we would do in an event like this.

And I was sorry because I am ducking and covering and he said, "No, screw that. I would charge. I would go after that gun."

He was not afraid to die. And so, I knew if there was a gunman, Shannon went after, he wasn't hiding anywhere. And his brother knew it. Everybody had that feeling. He had an incredible soul.

Yes, it's a loss for humanity. He gave out good vibes. So I hope through all of this and talking to you and other people that we can keep those good vibes going and then just reverberate on.

Sometimes it became uncomfortable how much love he was showing me, I wasn't totally used to it. But I got used to it and he let me know that he loved me very much and I let him know how much I loved him in the last few months together.

And that's the first thing that went through my mind, how lucky I am to have that time with him. He said he wanted to spend the rest of his life with me and he did, he was a man of his word.

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KINKADE: Welcome back.

Iraq is demanding that --

[04:45:00]

KINKADE: -- Turkey remove its forces currently stationed near the city of Mosul. Turkey says they're there to provide training for Iraqi soldiers in the Nineveh Province, an area which has been overrun by ISIS since July 2014.

But the Iraqi government said Turkish troops moved in without request. Iraq's prime minister tweeted this on Saturday, "The unauthorized presence of Turkey's troops in Mosul province is a serious breach of Iraqi sovereignty."

Well, they were once seen as allies; now Russian president Vladimir Putin and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan continue to trade barbs over Russia's downing of a Russian fighter jet last month. Putin warns that Turkey will regret its actions while Erdogan accuses Russia of slander. And as Matthew Chance reports, the similarities between these two leaders is only fueling the crisis between their countries.

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MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It was a bromance destined never to last. The czar and the sultan, two leaders accused of being autocrats, with strong nationalist tendencies, both unwilling to back down or lose face.

Russia and Turkey had long been at loggerheads over Syria. But this was the moment now defining that relationship. The shoot-down of a Russian plane by Turkish interceptors, setting Putin and Erdogan on a collision course.

A furious Russian president called it "a stab in the back, delivered by the accomplices of terrorists." He demanded an immediate apology, which never came.

Instead, bristling at the Kremlin insults, the Turkish leader called for Russia to say sorry. It was, after all, Turkish airspace, he told CNN, that was violated. That apology was never going to happen, either.

CHANCE: Analysts say the similarities between these two leaders, their refusal to be pushed around, no matter how high the stakes, is fueling the crisis between the two countries.

The Kremlin has imposed economic sanctions on Turkey, banning food imports and charter flights as well as freezing a multibillion-dollar gas pipeline deal. But the Russian revenge has become extremely personal, too, with President Erdogan firmly in President Putin's sights.

CHANCE (voice-over): It's the Turkish leader, says Moscow, that is benefitting from this, the illegal trade in oil from areas controlled by ISIS in Syria and Iraq.

In a rare briefing to the international media, Russia's defense ministry showed what it said was evidence of Turkey's complicity: images of hundreds of oil tankers crossing into Turkish territory in what defense officials called Erdogan's amazing family business.

It's an allegation President Erdogan has strenuously denied, vowing to resign if proved true. But Kremlin analysts say it's really the crime of disloyalty that Putin will never forgive.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So once you've shown disloyalty, you are written off as a partner.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And Erdogan was disloyal.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And Erdogan was disloyal to Putin and Russia. The two are inseparable in this situation. And he had to be punished.

CHANCE (voice-over): And that punishment may have only just begun, as these two leaders, the czar and the sultan, once seen as close, even similar, lock egos and test each other's resolve -- Matthew Chance, CNN, Moscow.

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KINKADE: Have a look at this video out of California. A small plane had to make an emergency belly landing in Palm Springs after the pilot had some landing gear problems. The plane carrying just the pilot and one other passenger landed safely Friday afternoon.

Fire trucks were on hand to hose down the aircraft, when some sparks flew. Luckily, no one was injured and just a couple of flights were delayed.

Quite an incredible landing.

Well, when you think of the heartwarming holiday spirit, deceased relatives probably are not the first thing that comes to mind. Well, one German supermarket chain is getting a lot of attention for trying just that in its holiday ad campaign. Jeanne Moos takes a look at what some people are calling the saddest Christmas commercial ever.

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JEANNE MOOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It's not exactly bringing joy to the world.

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MOOS (voice-over): It left at least one host --

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The worst commercial ever.

MOOS (voice-over): -- prostrate on her anchor desk.

A German supermarket commercial shows an older man left alone at Christmas by his a busy family.

And family members get the news that he has died.

In their grief, the family gathers at his home.

Surprise!

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (Speaking German).

MOOS (voice-over): To some, it was a cruelly manipulative twist ending because there's nothing that says great holiday dinner like faking your own death.

But thousands of commenters were tremendously moved. Georgina Riley even changed her flight to spend more time with her family over Christmas.

GEORGINA RILEY, COMMERCIAL VIEWER: I watched it. And I was just in the (INAUDIBLE) and my husband was like, what is going on? What are you watching?

It makes me cry every time. I've probably watched it four times now. And every single time it gets me.

MOOS (voice-over): The creator director of the ad agency that made this spot said they set out to make an emotional message about holiday priorities.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I had to watch this maybe 800 or 900 times and I cried so many times, I can't tell you.

MOOS: But it's your idea.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So what?

MOOS (voice-over): The commercial reminded some viewers of -- get this -- an episode of "Little House on the Prairie," where a neglected mother fakes her demise --

[04:55:00]

MOOS (voice-over): -- and shows up in a veil at her own wake, eavesdropping on her adult children.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What a pity it is took something like this to bring us together again.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Amen to that.

MOOS (voice-over): Her offspring end up doing a circle jig around their revived mom.

When Georgina told her parents she'd be staying an extra week...

RILEY: (INAUDIBLE) see everybody.

MOOS: Did you tell them it was because of German supermarket commercial?

MOOS (voice-over): Alternative plot twist: Papa gives his daughter an actual heart attack with his resurrection -- Jeanne Moos, CNN, New York.

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KINKADE: Finally this hour, you might be familiar with the adventures of Paddington Bear. A little orphan bear from Darkest Peru, was taken in by the kindly Brown family in London.

Well, this little Peruvian orphan didn't make it as far as London but he did enjoy the help of a Peruvian farmer after being discovered wet and shivering in the middle of a highway earlier this week. He's a spectacled bear, the same species that inspired Paddington Bear. And he's believed to be about 3 or 4 months old.

We're happy to report he's being fed and he's well on his way to plenty more adventures, hopefully with equally happy ending.

A very good outcome there.

Thanks so much for joining us for this edition of CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Lynda Kinkade. I'll be back with another hour of news from right across the world after a short break. Stay with us.