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Fiji Braces for a Monster Cylcone; After Days of Negotiations, David Cameron Finally Won Package of Reforms; Kurdish Militants Claim Responsibility for Deadly Bombing; Nevada Democratic Caucuses are Locked in a Tight Race That's Too Close to Call. Aired 2-2:30a ET

Aired February 20, 2016 - 02:00   ET

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

[02:00:13] NATALIE ALLEN, CNN ANCHOR: Fiji braces for a monster cyclone. We'll hear from the Red Cross of what's being done ahead of the storm now starting to hit the island.

Plus, David Cameron, the chores, the deal to keep Britain in the E.U. but now they'll have to sell it to his cabinet and the British people.

And the long road to the White House, goes through South Carolina and Nevada next, as Republicans vote in their next Primary and Democrat hold caucuses in Nevada.

The happening this week end, we've got it next here on CNN NEWSROOM. We're like live in Atlanta, thank you for joining us. I'm Natalie Allen.

Our top story, Fiji is preparing for what could be the most powerful storm to ever hit it shores. Tropical cyclone Winston is moving its way through the South Pacific right now on tract to make a direct hit on Fiji as we speak. Winds are expected to be particularly (ph) strong with gust higher than 300 kilometers an hour.

The country now is under a curfew that is in effect until further notice.

For more on preparations ahead of the storm, we're joined by Fiji's Red Cross Operation's Manager Eseroma Ledua.

Thank you so much for talking with us, Mr Ledua. We know you're so very busy. What I ask you first, what is Fiji done or what is the Red Cross doing to help keep people safe as the storm bears down.

ESEROMA LEDUA, FIJI'S RED CROSS OPERATION'S MANAGER: Fiji Red Cross is currently working with the government in telling to the areas that are affected now, who's I believe the whole of Fiji will be affected by very destructible cyclone.

Winston, due to it's current path, but (inaudible) that population that are evacuated to the nearest chapels that are open, and managed by the district offices to meet different districts, the Red Cross offices and volunteers supporting what they are currently bring in attending three districts that might need support in terms of blankets and also by clothes to keep them warm tonight.

But in terms of our preparedness (inaudible) to give them with our branches, currently on watch (inaudible) approach since the lunch time today. We are currently waiting for the weather to ease a little bit so that, at least, we can look at what are some areas that are affected and also people to be assisted.

ALLEN: And thank you very much that information. I want to also ask you. How many people might be impacted by the storm?

LEDUA: Right now, the National Emergency Operation Center, I have to the (inaudible) that will given to them this afternoon, which I'm not in a position to give definite figure in terms of the people that are evacuated, (inaudible) centers that are open now in Fiji.

ALLEN: We know that the last time Fiji was hit by a major storm, it was 2012 and there were no deaths. So Fiji is well-prepared and it's used to preparing for this cyclone is that correct?

LEDUA: Yes. Currently, from the update that we see from the government this evening, still there's no report of casualties or injuries. One the families and the population that evacuated to the Red Cross center, those who (inaudible) coming through media station, through the radio and also T.V. so people (inaudible).

ALLEN: We appreciate your time. They had a big Red Cross there working very hard to make sure they have preparations underway for the cyclone. Eseroma Ledua, thank you so much.

Let's get more now from our Meteorologist Derek Van Dam. And, Derek, you've been that in the pass 24 hours, the storms turned into a monster cyclone.

DEREK VAN DAM, CNN METEOROLOGIST: It really did and the ferocity of it actually changing path and deepen even strengthen is. What's really astounded meteorologist like myself and scientist who are just keeping close on this.

Mr. Ledua, who you are just speaking to, the head of the Red Cross in Fiji is located in the capital of Fiji on the island of Viti Levu. This is the largest island within the island nation, it also houses the most amount of people as well but they are just hours away.

[02:05:00] Well, I have to say, minutes away from a direct landfall from the eyewall of the storm. Remember the eyewall is where we have the highest concentration of strong, strong winds.

Let me show you these graphics. I'll try to break it down for you the best I can. There's Fiji. There's the largest island. This is the capital. What you're looking at here is the eye, and the dark shading of Red is in fact winds over 200 kilometers per hour and it's very likely that computer models are under estimate in exactly what's taking place here but the brunt of the storm really going to impact the extreme northeastern section of this island. Suva, the capital, batten down the hatches. It is going to be worst before it gets better. This particular storm is running parallel with the island nation at (inaudible) splitting the difference between the two largest islands within this area. But nonetheless, if you look at the satellite images imagery, the eyewall is just about ready to make landfall, again, across the most populated island, this particularly island nation.

Remember, there's roughly 900,000 people but there are several islands dotted across the Central Pacific region.

Here's the latest, 295 kilometer per hour sustained wind, that's right near the center of the storm, higher wind gust than that, perhaps even 350 kilometer per hour wind gust. This is a very strong storm and it deepen and strengthen very quickly. It will continue to move in a west (inaudible) tract.

The last time the storm impacted this region was Evan back in December of 2012. It also had this sporadic and erratic trail or path that took several days before impacted Fiji. That is very similar to what Winston is doing now. And by the way, I wanted to show you this as well. The other concern here is, the potential for flooding and mudslides as well over 300 millimeters of rain could fall out of the storm.

This is a very mountainous area as well, Natalie, so that rain will wash down into the lower elevations where the majority of the population live. So flooding, storm surge, wind damage, those are the three main concerns for the islands for the next 12 hours.

ALLEN: All right. Thank, Derek. We'll stay on top of it. Thank you.

We turn now to other news than what could be a pierce political battle to keep Britain in the European Union is about to get underway. In just about three hours, British Prime Minister David Cameron will present the deal just reach with E.U. leaders to his cabinet. Mr. Cameron has said, he will campaign heart and soul to keep the U.K. and the 28 member block, but it's not just his cabinet that will need convincing so will a large percentage of the British people.

If Mr. Cameron's cabinet approves the deal, it will go to a public referendum, the agreement would reach after two days of sometimes tense negotiations in Brussels.

CNNMoney Europe Editor Nina dos Santos has more now on what it includes.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NINA DOS SANTOS, CNNMONEY EUROPE EDITOR: After two days worth of very lengthy in times, well the tense negotiations, David Cameron finally won the package of reforms that he feels is enough to take back to the British people and to try to campaign and convince them to stay inside the European Union when eventually he gets punt for calling that referendum. Many people hoping it may well be during the month of June. Now, this is the 35-page document that has been released after these meetings that have taken place over that last two days of this summit in Brussels. And the city's safeguards for the city of London, also safeguards for Britain's sovereignty. And put into bed (ph), finding that question of whether Britain would keep the pound of decides to join the Eurozone. Currently, countries inside the European Union are in series supposed to sign up to the single currency, that that question is being put to bed too.

What unless contented issue that European leaders had to deal with was the issue of an emergency break applied to migrants who are seeking benefit inside the U.K., some Eastern European counties had been asking for a much shorted period of time for that emergency breaks. If you put on David Cameron and that's man is to come compromise of seven years.

And also what's crucial here in this package is that, it just applies to the U.K. It is not supposed to set a dangerous president for other countries inside the block to decide to open the treaties and negotiate on there own terms with similar concessions.

But the issue is, is that this doesn't entirely put to bed will stay inside the E.U. It now has to go to the British people, it has to go to David Cameron's own cabinet. There could be more hostile to somebody's packages.

And this is why Martin Schulz, the Head of the European Parliament said that he told this was just the start of the process on aisle soon earlier.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MARTIN SCHULZ, HEAD OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT: MY feeling is, no is the answer. It is now the end of a process David Cameron has launched. He said, "I want to new deal of the United Kingdom with the European Union."

[02:09:59] It means, with all the other members states building the European Union. He'd gotten now the new leader, and still have the British voters to vote if this is enough or not.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANTOS: So that's the president of the European Parliament. And other one of these key institutions that's part of the machinery that will be helping Mr. Cameron trying to come up with the report package that really he can campaign for.

Well, we keep hearing here from Brussels but nobody wants the U.K. to leave the European Union, it's the second biggest economy inside the European Union. 44 percent of the U.K.'s trade is with the E.U. There's a lot of state here.

But the key question here is, how the U.K. and part of the U.K.'s current government views. Documents like these are, these reforms that David Cameron has managed to secure in Brussels after all these hours of negotiation, going to be enough to convince his own government and then to convince his own people. It will take month from now to decide that.

Nina dos Santos, CNNMoney in Brussels.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ALLEN: Yeah, that referendum is expect to be put before the people in June.

Well, Kurdish militants have claim responsibility for the deadly bombing that killed at least 28 people in Turkey this week. The Kurdistan Freedom Hawk said their attack was revenge for Turkish military operations in the country southeast. They went on to warm, would be visitors threatening to attack popular tourist areas.

Meantime, the Turkish government claims the attack was jointly carried out by the YPG and PKK to other prominent Kurdish factions. Those groups both deny any involvement. The Turkish prime minister insists they were behind the bloodshed.

CNN's Arwa Damon explains the complex framework or Kurdish factions throughout the region.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ARWA DAMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The Kurds have had a tormented history in the region. They are minority population in Iran, Iraq, Syria and Turkey. Today, various Kurdish entities are at the center of the conflicts in both Syria and Turkey.

The PKK, the Kurdistan Worker's Party is a separatist group that has been at war with the Turco state for over three decades. Across the border insurance Syria, the PYD, the Democratic Union Party, a Syrian affiliate on the PKK. The PYD is a political entity that also followed the PKK's ideological leader Abdullah Ocalan, currently imprisoned in Turkey.

YPG, the People's Protection Units, is the military wing of the PYD. It is American's strongest ally on the ground in Syria, and has received significant U.S. support.

This is allowed it to make significant territorial gain against ISIS. But it has also been able to take back land from Arab rebel groups that Turkey supports.

Turkey categorizes the PKK, PYD and the YPG as terrorist organizations.

Europe and the United States do consider the PKK to be a terrorist organization, but not the PYD or the YPG. All of which that the Turkey at odds with the United States, and at times when ...

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ALLEN: CNN's Arwa Damon for us there. Coming up here, another Republican showdown, just hours away in the U.S. presidential race. Next, how Donald Trump 2002 words on an Iraq War could impact its campaign.

Plus, not long to go now into the Nevada caucuses of the Democratic candidate are locked in a tight race that's too close to call.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[02:15:51] ALLEN: We turn now to the U.S. presidential election, U.S. voters will be busy, Saturday, South Carolina Republicans are voting in there primary presidential election. Donald Trump is leading the state but polling shows his margin against Ted Cruz is narrowing.

Meantime, Democrats will be holding their caucuses in Nevada or the race between Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders is too close to call.

Let's take a look at some of the numbers on the Republican side as CNN's poll, a poll (ph) shows 34 percent of South Carolina voters survey support Donald Trump. Ted Cruz has 20 percent, this margin was wider a few days ago. Marco Rubio comes in third, followed by Jeb Bush, Ben Carson and John Kasich.

Nationally, the top three choices are still Trump Crux and Rubio, and their number are roughly the same as the South Carolina pool.

The bottom standings are a bit different though on the national level with Kasich ahead of Carson and Bush.

We'll ask with every election season candidate's words comeback to all of them. Right now, Trump is in the hot seat for his views from 2002 on the Iraq War. Tom Foreman has more on how this could affect his electabilities.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DONALD TRUMP, (R). PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Hello, everybody.

TOM FOREMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It's a common refrain for Donald Trump.

TRUMP: Going into Iraq may have been the worst decision anybody has made, any president has made in the history of this country. That's how bad it is, OK?

FOREMAN: Yet, it seems the GOP frontrunner wasn't always opposed to the war in Iraq. Trump in now locked to explain his 2002 comments to Howard Stern obtained by the website BuzzFeed.

(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)

HOWARD STERN, AMERICAN RADIO AND TELEVISION PERSONALITY, PRODUCER, AUTHOR, ACTOR, AND PHOTOGRAPHER: Are you for invading Iraq?

TRUMP: Yes, I guess. So, you know, I wish the first time it was done correctly. (END AUDIO CLIP)

FOREMAN: Trump was asked about his comments during Thursday night CNN Town Hall.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: Do you remember seeing that.

TRUMP: No. But I mean, I could have said that, nobody ask me. I wasn't a politician.

FOREMAN: And again ...

(BEGIN AUDI CLIP)

STERN: You said you were for the invasion.

TRUMP: And you could see. I was not exactly strongly in favor.

FOREMAN: Trump is explaining his evolution is South Carolina voters ...

TRUMP: ... and the first guy ever asked me about Iraq with how soon. I said, No, I don't know. Yes, I guess is out. Then I saw it, looking at it before the war started, I was against that war. I was against that war

FOREMAN: To prove his opposition, Trump open point to come and see madden 2004, to Esquire Magazine where he said, "Look at the war in Iraq and the mass that were in. I would never have handled it that way."

But that statement came more than a year after the war begun. The issue has been a regular topic in the GOP primary fight.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: Your brother and your brother's administration gave us Barack Obama because it was a such a disaster those last three months that Abraham Lincoln couldn't have been elected.

JEB BUSH, GOP PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: You know what? As it relates to my brother, there's one thing I know for sure. He keeps us safe.

FOREMAN: Trump using George W. Bush's legacy to constantly hit rival Jeb Bush.

TRUMP: I'll be honest, the last thing we need is another Bush that I could tell you.

FOREMAN: That man even getting into a war of words with the former president himself.

FMR. PRES. GEORGE W. BUSH, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: There seems to be a lot of name calling, going on but I want to remind you what our good dad told me one time. "Labels are soap cans." The presidency is a serious job that requires sound judgment.

DONALD: If Bush is insulted, I don't care if he's insulted, what difference? It was a horrible, we should have never been this.

FOREMAN: So far, each time Donald Trump has seemingly tip on his own words, his supporters have stuck buying him, but remains to be seen. As well, they keep doing that here in Nevada and in South Carolina. The Super Tuesday state and all those other states with voters waiting down the campaign trail.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ALLEN: Tom Foreman of us there.

Democratic contenders, Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders, are in a near bed heat, ahead of Nevada's caucuses. And new CNN/ORC poll shows Clinton with the 48 percent lead among likely caucus-goers in the Silver State, 47 percent support Sanders they say.

Clinton is also leading nationally but senders has narrowed the gap to 6 percent of this point. Clinton is out 48 to the Vermont center, 42 percent.

[02:20:03] Vote did not wait anytime Friday, Sanders and Clinton both launch last efforts to win over Nevada voters. And Clinton's score, the big endorsement ahead of South Carolina's primary in few days.

Senior Washington Correspondent Jeff Zeleny had that.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEFF ZELENY, SENIOR WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT: It's shaping up as the biggest price fight of politics. One the eve of the Nevada caucuses, Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders in a deadlock Democratic race.

They're drawing cheers and cheers, like when Clinton suggested Sanders is a Democrat come lately.

HILLARY CLINTON, (D) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Maybe it's that Senator Sanders whether really a Democrat until he decided to run for president, he doesn't even know, you know, the last two Democratic presidents did. And I'm -- well, it's true. You know it's true.

ZELENY: Flying across Nevada today, Senator says, he's counting on one win at a time.

BERNIE SANDER, (D) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I hope we have a very lodge, very, very lodge vote that turnout tomorrow. The candidates are trying to break through the distractions of Last Vegas.

CLINTON: Now, you get there, you gonna get there 11:00 a.m. You can't sleep in. Sleep in, you know, the next day.

ZELENY: Working to get after vote for Saturday's caucuses, particularly targeting Latino voters.

(FOREIGN LANGUAGE)

ZELENY: In South Carolina today, Clinton picked pick up the endorsement of Congressman James Clyburn. And influential seal of approval for next week's primary there.

REP. JAMES CLYBURN, (D) SOUTH CAROLINA: The future of the Democratic Party and the United States of America will be best served with the experience and know-how of Hillary Clinton as our party next president.

ZELENY: Eight years ago, Clyburn decline to endorse, a decision that enraged bill Clinton. Clyburn recounted the anger in his 24th memoir. He said, the former president called him in the middle of the night saying, "If you bastards want to fight, you damn will, we'll get one." The endorsement could complicate Senator's attempt to win over black voters.

In a new interview with BET, he suggested that Hillary Clinton was embracing Obama for one reason.

SANDERS: Everything that president does is wonderful. She loves the president. He loves through all that stuff and we know what that's about. That's trying to win support from the African-American community with the president is enormously popular.

But you know what? I have enormous respect for the president. He's a friend, we have worked together. I think he was done a great job in many respects. But you what? Like any other human being, he is wrong on certain issues.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ALLEN: So let's look at what is the difference between a caucus and a primary since we're seeing vote this weekend. A presidential caucus is a political meeting where participant indicate their preferred candidate for president and begun their state's process of selecting delegates to their party's national convention.

A primary, on the other hand, like we'll see in South Carolina is an election in which voters choose from candidates competing for a party's nomination.

Well, speaking of elections, there were protest in Uganda, Friday, where the opposition says, Thursday's election was rigged in favor of President Yoweri Museveni. His leading rival is being detained in what police call preventative arrest.

Results are due Saturday but the election commission says, Museveni has a solid lead. U.S. state department is urging him to reign in security forces. He's been in power for some three decades. We'll have a live report on the situation next hour from Africa.

And here, it was the bark heard around the world, how the internet is reacting to Hillary Clinton's life hearted (ph) campaign moments.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) [02:25:20] ALLEN: An off the cuff moment by U.S. presidential candidate Hillary Clinton has gone viral after she was heard barking at a campaign event. But Donald Trump says, he refuses to bark back.

Here's CNN's Jeanne Moos with that.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEANNE MOOS, CNN'S CORRESPONDENT: The bite is proving worse the bark, as the internet nips at Hillary for her doggy imitation. Juxtaposing music videos and movie clips ...

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Bark like a dog.

MOOS: All because Hillary told a story about an old political ad featured a dog train to bark at lies, wouldn't that come in handy for following around her Republican rivals she said.

CLINTON: Every time they say these things like, "Oh, you know, the Great Recession was cause by too much regulation." Arf, arf.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Her inner terrier ...

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She's funny. I don't know if this was tribute to the 25 Westminster dog show.

MOOS: One that Donald Trump refused to emulate. If I have to did that, I would be really killed all over the place. I won't do it. I'm not going to imitate her, so there'll be no barking.

MOOS: And if Hillary didn't ridicules, an actual dog barking interruption.

The Trump rally last month, was one of the many mocking means making them out.

TRUMP: I always ask, is that a dog?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hillary.

TRUMP: Oh, it's Hillary.

MOOS: It's enough to make triumph the insult dog.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Senator, is it true, you try to shutdown the government so you could go to a Nickelback concert?

MOOS: You're overshadowed on the campaign trail. But Hillary is in a puppy lead, compared to a guy dubbed psycho dog man for his K9 impersonation.

An Australian retiree went viral back in 2010 after imitating some scaring neighborhood dogs.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They came banding ...

MOOS: His imitation was remixed that even scared real dogs.

Those psycho dog man suffered some of the exact same mockery. His dogs would make mince meat of Hillary.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Who let the dogs out?

CLINTON: Arf, arf.

MOOS: Jeanne Moss, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ALLEN: And that is CNN NEWSROOM, your top stories are right after this.