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Nevada GOP Caucuses Tonight; Cease Fire Expected to Take Effect Midnight Friday; Hollywood's Lack of Diversity Slammed; Cruz Communications Director Fired; Uber Driver Accused in Michigan Shootings Appears in Court. Aired 3-4a ET
Aired February 23, 2016 - 03:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[03:00:00] ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN NEWSROOM SHOW HOST: Nevada showdown. The republican race for the White House gets even uglier, just hours before the next nominating contest.
World powers agree to enforce a partial ceasefire in Syria. But they say it will not be easy.
And a straight, white boys club. A new report slams Hollywood for its lack of diversity on the eve of the Oscars.
Hello. And welcome to our viewers all around the world. I'm Rosemary Church. This is CNN newsroom.
It's decision day for republicans in the U.S. State of Nevada, with the caucuses there hours away. Frontrunner Donald Trump held a massive rally in Las Vegas. Ted Cruz held one as well in Reno. It came after a stunning shake up in his campaign.
Cruz fired his communications director for posting a blatantly misleading video about rival Marco Rubio.
Jim Acosta has the latest.
JIM ACOSTA, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Riding high into Nevada, Donald Trump has the best hand in the battle for the GOP nomination. Re-starters his two main rivals, Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz, are busy attacking each other.
TED Cruz, (R) U.S. PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Every day something comes out of the Cruz campaign that's deceptive and untrue.
ACOSTA: Rubio began today demanding that Cruz fired somebody over a video distributed by the Texas Senator's campaign that falsely accused the Florida republican of dismissing the bible. The video misquotes Rubio saying about the bible, "Got a good book there. Not many answers in it." But actually, Rubio says, all of the answers are in it." A blatant fabrication.
Top Cruz spokesman, Rick Tyler, who circulated the video apologized to Rubio on Facebook for, quote, "posting an inaccurate story about him." But Rubio snapped, that's not good enough. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MARCO Rubio, (R) U.S. PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: At some point that has to be some level of accountability, otherwise you're running an operation where you're sending the message to the people that work for you, go out and do anything you want and if you got caught will just apologize but will keep doing it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ACOSTA: Hours later, Cruz stunned the campaign world, announcing he has asked Tyler to step down.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
Cruz: And this morning, I asked for Rick Tyler's resignation. I had made clear in this campaign that we will conduct this campaign with the very highest standards of integrity.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ACOSTA: The bogus attack on Rubio was the latest incident rising questions about how Cruz has conducted his campaign. Trump seized on the flap tweeting "more dirty tricks." Trump is also getting help in the form of an unforced error from John Kasich, whose awkward remark about the women backing his first aid Senate campaign in the late 1970's annoyed one supporter.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOHN KASICH, (R) U.S. PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: We have an army of people, and many women who left their kitchens to go out and go to door-to-door and to put yard signs for me.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I want to say, your comment earlier about the women came out of the kitchen to support you, I'll come to support you. But I won't be coming out of the kitchen.
KASICH: I got you. I got you.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ACOSTA: Kasich later explained it was just an off-the-cuff remark.
KASICH: I'm real. And sometimes I might say something that isn't artfully said as well as it should be.
ACOSTA: Trump who also commanding lead in the delegate count and is poised in the polls to rack up another big victory in Nevada is boasting his support comes in all shapes and sizes.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, (R) U.S. PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: So, we won with everything. We won with highly educated, pretty well educated and poorly educated, but we won with everything, tall people, short people, fat people, skinny people. Just won.
(CROWD CHEERING)
ACOSTA: But Rubio, who spent part of his childhood in Nevada, and his supporters are getting aggressive. A pro-Rubio super PAC started airing this new attack ad, pounding Trump and Cruz.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Trump, erratic, unreliable. Cruz, underhanded.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ACOSTA: And Rubio is attracting more establishment support, picking up new GOP endorsements.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TIM PAWLENTY, FORMER MINNESOTA GOVERNOR: This is a three-way race at the moment. As a practical matter it's between Rubio, Cruz, and Trump. There are some others in the race. But I don't think they are going to be in the race that much longer.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ACOSTA: Some in the party want Kasich to drop out to funnel his support to Rubio. Kasich laughed off that idea.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KASICH: I think it's funny. I think it's funny. I think it's ridiculous.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ACOSTA: Rubio is touting a slew of new endorsements from Bob Dole to Orrin Hatch to Jeff Flake. As for the Trump campaign advisers are confident about their chances in Nevada, but this is a caucus state. And they remember what happened last time there was a caucus in Iowa.
Jim Acosta, CNN, Las Vegas.
CHURCH: And for more on all of this, we are joined by Hugh Hewitt, the host of the conservative radio program, the Hugh Hewitt Show. And he joins us from Irvine, California.
Thank you, sir for being with us.
(CROSSTALK)
HUGH HEWITT, RADIO HUGH HEWITT SHOW HOST: Good to be here, Rosemary.
CHURCH: I do want to ask you, how surprised were you when you heard that Ted Cruz had fired one of his top staffers? And what impact will this likely have on Cruz's campaign going forward? [03:05:10] HEWITT: Well, I was very surprised because I know Rick
Tyler and I know that Ted Cruz, Senator Cruz holds him in high esteem as he said his firing today. But he made a critical error by providing ammunition to the other side, in circulating a story that wasn't true, which fed into the narrative that the Trump and Rubio campaign have developed about Ted Cruz that he has been lying.
And so when your senior comes, director add fuel to a fire that's already raging, you have to put it out by a dramatic means. And I know that that hurt Senator Cruz because he trusts Rick. And Rick is very good at what he does. But he made a mistake at a critical juncture. And Ted Cruz moved to staunch the bleeding.
And he came on my radio show today as to Donald Trump interestingly enough Ted Cruz is hanging a lantern on his problem, and that's an old political adage, that's what you're supposed to do. And Donald Trump is following an even older political adage. One that a famous republican consultant the Atwater coin, which is, "When your opponent is on the ground with a broken arm, step on it."
And so, Donald Trump is stepping on that broken arm again and again and again hammering Ted Cruz. So, it's a pretty significant day. Almost certainly, Trump will win tomorrow in Nevada. And almost certainly, Cruz is battling for his campaign life on Super Tuesday, on March 1st.
And we have a debate, which I'm a participant on Thursday night, at which it's going to be sparky because Cruz has to battle against basically a two-sided offense with John Kasich and Ben Carson not really participating but treacherous from Rubio and Trump.
CHURCH: Yes, it's an interesting set. And as you say, in the midst of all this, Donald Trump stepping up his attacks on Ted Cruz, calling him a world-class liar and tweeting this, I'll just read it out. "Ted Cruz has been playing an ad about me that is so ridiculously false, no basis in fact. Take it down, Ted. Biggest liar in politics."
So, Trump making it clear, he is the big winner here. How inevitable is it that he will be the republican nominee. Is he unstoppable?
HEWITT: No, no. I believe it's going to be an open convention. I've said that for a long time. I'm in a minority of observers who believe that it's very much a contest but someone will win it before the convention in Cleveland in July. I don't think so.
But I do believe that Donald Trump is clearly the frontrunner. And the odds makers give him about a 50 percent chance of winning and Rubio a 40 percent chance of winning. And Ted Cruz and John Kasich a 10 percent divided among themselves. And that's pretty much where I think it is right now.
The establishment, the Washington, D.C., the some parts of the Tea Party and the foreign policy hawks are coalescing on Marco Rubio. Big time. But the disaffected with Washington, angry voter, who is just upset with the way everything has gone, with the slow -- it's not really a recovery in the United States, and most people don't feel that way. Health care premiums are skyrocketing under Obamacare. A Supreme Court vacancy makes people nervous. They are gravitating to Trump.
CHURCH: And of course you mention there Marco Rubio, he has picked up a whole lot of endorsements as he tries to edge out Ted Cruz. Will Rubio soon become that mainstream alternative to Trump?
HEWITT: I don't think anything happens soon in this race. Because Governor Kasich of Ohio is not leaving the race. And he is going to do well in Michigan, and he is going to win Ohio, which holds its primary on March 15th.
Marco Rubio has to win Florida on March 15th, and I think he will. Ted Cruz is probably going to win Texas on March 1st. And so, although right now Donald Trump has an alleged commanded lead in delegates, he got 68 delegates which is nice. He does have a big lead.
But it takes 1,237 delegates to get the nomination. So, it's so long and the media wants to compress a long process into a short one to fit a news cycle. And that's just not the Republican Party this year. I've never seen anything like this. And I've been doing -- my first presidential campaign was 1976 when I volunteered for Jerry Ford. So, I've been around a lot of these things. And there's never been anything like this one.
CHURCH: Yes, it is extraordinary for sure. Hugh Hewitt, thank you so so much for joining us. We do appreciate it.
HEWITT: Thank you, Rosemary.
CHURCH: The five remaining republicans will face off in a debate in Houston, Texas. CNN's Wolf Blitzer will moderate. It will be their last appearance together before Super Tuesday. And you can see it all here Friday morning at 1.30 a.m. in London, if you're up.
And shortly before Saturday's democratic primary in South Carolina, Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders come face-to-face with voters right here on CNN. Chris Cuomo hosts a town hall live from Columbia, South Carolina. And you can see that Wednesday morning at 1 a.m. in London.
Well, the Uber driver accused of killing six people in the U.S. State of Michigan appeared in court Monday. Detectives testified that Jason Dalton admitted to taking people's lives.
[03:10:05] And police say they found 11 rifles in Dalton's home. Well, it's more, CNN has learned that he purchased a heavy-duty tactical jacket made to conceal a handgun.
Nick Valencia has the latest from Kalamazoo.
NICK VALENCIA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Wearing an orange jump suit and glasses, his hands shackled, Jason Dalton made his first court appearance after being accused of murdering six people and critically injuring two others during a seven-hour killing spree in Kalamazoo, Michigan. Appearing via video conference, the 45-year-old Uber driver sat
motionless. As the judge read the 16 charges against him. Dalton blank stare only briefly interrupted as he appear to sigh at the mention of being charged with attempted murder of a minor.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Is there anything you wish to inject the court at this time concerning your connections with the community?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VALENCIA: Earlier, during a probable cause hearing, detectives told the judge that Dalton, quote, "admitted to taking people's lives." Prosecutors say he chose his victims at random in three different locations. So-called blooded they say that he continued to work and pick up Uber passengers in between shootings.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And I said, you're not the shooter, are you?
VALENCIA: One of the passengers spoke to CNN affiliate WWMT. He asked not to be identified.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He said, no. And I said are you sure? And he kind of just said, no. I'm just tired. I've been driving for seven hours.
VALENCIA: Mariana Cruz sent CNN an image of her receipt from a drive with Dalton that morning. She didn't want to go on camera but told CNN he made her feel uncomfortable. Thinking she was being paranoid, she gave him five stars on the ride anyway. That night, she says she saw Dalton's car on the news and made the connection.
RICH FINDELL, JASON DALTON'S NEIGHBOR: He seemed like a good guy.
VALENCIA: Rich Findell is Dalton's neighbor. He lives three doors down.
FINDELL: We both have interest in cars. He has a dog that we hear him chasing. But seems like a normal person.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VALENCIA: Uber says Dalton passed a background check. So, why would a married father of two with no criminal record allegedly go on a killing spree. Police say they still don't have a motive.
Nick Valencia, CNN, Kalamazoo, Michigan.
CHURCH: And Dalton allegedly continued to collect fares for Uber between killings. One of his passengers spoke to CNN about what he saw when riding with Dalton.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) MATT MELLEN, JASON DALTON'S PASSENGER: He receives a telephone call. It was over the Bluetooth. Once he hung up with that phone call is when he started driving really erratically. He was running red lights at that point, squealing the tires. We ran a stop sign. And sideswiped another vehicle.
And that's when I obviously was panicking. I was pleading for him to stop the vehicle so I could see and let me out. He was surprisingly calm the whole time. He was just stating, like, don't you want a ride to your friend's house. Don't you need a ride? And I was, like, yes, please, pull over and let me out. At that point, he refused to stop. And just kept driving really erratically.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: Well, Uber underlined that Dalton passed a thorough vetting process and had no prior criminal record.
A so-called cessation of hostilities agreement is set to go in effect in Syria at midnight Friday. But there are series doubts about whehere the fighting will actually stop. The partial truce is the result of negotiations between the U.S. and Russia.
It allows attacks including air strikes to continue against ISIS, the al-Nusra front and other militants. There are skepticism over how those groups will be differentiated from moderates Syrian rebels. The White House acknowledged there are challenges.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOSH EARNEST, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: There's going to be some obstacles that we are going to have to work through. There will likely be setbacks. But this is a moment of opportunity and we're hopeful that all of the parties will capitalize on it. After all, the stakes here are high. There are millions of innocent lives in Syria that have been negatively affected by the ongoing chaos inside of Syria.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: The partial truce comes after an especially violent weekend in Syria. ISIS has claimed responsibility for a series of bombings that killed nearly 200 people near Damascus in Homs.
And for more on this agreement, CNN's Jomana Karadsheh joins us now from Amman, Jordan.
So, Jomana, this cessation of hostilities agreement. It is progress of course, that this has been reached. But the worry is, that there are some key groups that are not involved in this. So, what impact will that likely have on the success of this partial truce?
[03:15:08] JOMANA KARADSHEH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, that is something that is yet to be seen, of course, Rosemary. As you mentioned, some seeing this as a step in the right direction. But obviously, there are too many questions right now, more questions than answer. A lot of ambiguity about this cessation of hostilities. How it will go into effect, how it's going to be monitored.
And of course in this multidimensional conflict with so many different regional and international players involved, there are lots of questions about whether this is actually going to work. There are really no guarantees here. And the key has been in the statements that we have seen coming out in overnight basically since this announcement has been made.
No one is really celebrating it. More cautious wording when it comes to welcoming this agreement of sorts. Of course, there's a lot of skepticism, for example, when it comes to, if you talk to the opposition side. They're very cautious when it comes to the regime and the Russians saying that they are agreeing to the cessation of hostilities.
As you mentioned, there are key groups that are not part of this agreement. ISIS and the Al Qaeda affiliate, Jabhat al-Nusra, the Syrians and the Russians, as well, and the United States are still able to go after these groups.
So, the opposition would say that we have seen in the past few weeks of what they have accused the Russians and the Syrians of targeting them under the pretext of going after ISIS and Jabhat al-Nusra. And they would say why is this going to stop now?
So, there is concern about that. Of course, there is also another issue, as we've seen the escalating conflict in the northern part of the country along the Turkish border. The conflict there between the Syrian Arab moderate rebels and the Kurds there. The Kurds and Turkey.
And other part of this conflict is the cessation of hostilities going to hold in that part of the country. So, a lot of questions here. Of course, an agreement like this, Rosemary, would require a great deal of trust. Something that is clearly lacking in this conflict.
Of course, now, we have until Friday. We will wait to hear both parties here, the United States and Russia are supposed to get responses back from groups on the ground, on whether they're taking part in this cessation of hostilities.
So, all remains to be seen by Friday, Rosemary. So much uncertainty. But one thing is for certain. This pause in violence is desperately needed, especially by the civilians who have been caught in the middle of this deadly conflict for years now.
CHURCH: Most definitely. And of course, implementation and policing of this agreement is going to be a major challenge, as well.
Jomana Karadsheh reporting there from Amman, Jordan. We appreciate that.
A short break here, but still to come, Apple stands by its refusal to help U.S. Federal investigators to unlock a terrorist phone. And the fight is filling into the streets. We will hear from lawyers on both sides of the encryption debate. We're back in a moment.
[03:20:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
DON RIDDELL, CNN WORLD SPORT REPORTER: I'm Don Riddell with your CNN World Sport headlines.
Let's start with the embattled Manchester United manager, Louis van Gaal. Of course, he has been under immense pressure all season. And the club's play he has rather been less than inspiring. But United could still be in the season with a trophy.
On Monday night, the Red Devils were on the road against the league one side Shrewsbury town in the fifth round of the FA Cup. Chris Mullin settled United nerves later in the first half before Juan Mata to doubled their league in the strait of half time. It was a comfortable win in the end, 3-0. So, the United move on to play West Ham in the quarterfinals.
This week is being billed as the most important in FIFA's 112-year history. On Friday, the most senior executives in the world game will elect a new president. Five candidates will vie to be the man to succeed the disgrace and exiled Sepp Blatter who is appealing his 8- year ban. And the winner will face the task of restoring credibility to a battered organization. The book has favored Sheikh Salman Al Khalifa of Bahrain.
Formula One is marketed as an aspirational sport. Its sleek and dynamic cars are the fastest in the world. Magnificently designed racing machines. So, it's a bit of a problem when the 85-year-old man who runs the sport, Bernie Ecclestone, trashes it.
Ecclestone has told The Daily Mail, a newspaper in England that Formula One is the worst that it has ever been. And added that he wouldn't spend money to take his family to watch a race. No way, he said.
That is a look at your sports headlines. I'm Don Riddell.
CHURCH: The fight to unlock a terrorist phone is intensifying. U.S. Federal investigators are trying to get Apple to change its encryption software so they can get data from the iPhone used by one of the attackers in the San Bernardino shootings.
And victims of the attack are planning to file a legal motion in support of unlocking that phone. That's according to Reuters News Agency.
Meanwhile, privacy advocates are planning rallies outside Apple's stores around the world on Tuesday. In support of the tech company, Facebook and Twitter have also backed Apple in its opposition.
Now, earlier, CNN's Don Lemon engaged the encryption debate with an attorney for the San Bernardino attack victims and a lawyer for a civil liberties public interest group.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)The time
STEPHEN LARSON, SAN BERNARDINO VICTIM'S ATTORNEY: By the time has come for Apple to comply with the court order, to provide access to the cell phone.
ALAN BUTLER, EPIC SENIOR COUNSEL: This case isn't just about this case. Apple is looking forward to, you know, future cases where other members of this government, other governments potentially could be ask them to do the exact same thing. And Apple realizes the significance of a precedent that would say that any government agency can order them to basically rewrite their software and make their devices less secure for everyone.
LARSON: You can't hide criminal evidence. You can't put it in your house. You can't put it in your bank. You can't put it in your phone. And if you do -- do that, if there is a probable cause for the government to obtain that information, they can go to a court and they can ask the court to issue an order.
And that is what happened here. I think there's some scare tactics being used here. It's not fair to the government; it's not fair to law enforcement. And most importantly, it's not fair to the victims.
BUTLER: It's not just iPhones that are contained in prosecutors' offices. This concerns iPhones that are stolen or lost or misplaced. I mean, this is a technique that could be used not only by law enforcement. They could be used by other people who want to hack these phones, as well.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: And Apple CEO reiterated the company stands Tuesday arguing that changing the encryption software would set a dangerous precedent and put the security of millions of people's data at risk.
To another story now we are following. The Afghan government has pulled troops out of two districts in Helmand province leaving the Taliban in control. Official say the decision was tactical and allows them to increase security forces elsewhere.
But a provisional leader tells CNN that this choice now leaves neighboring districts vulnerable to militant fighters.
Jessica Donati is a journalist for the Wall Street Journal, she joins me now via Skype with the latest from Kabul. So, Jessica, let's talk about the impact of the departure of these Afghan troops from the two Helmand province district that they left. What do you understand is the situation they left behind?
JESSICA DONATI, WALL STREET JOURNAL JOURNALIST: Well, I think they planned this move a while back. Because the troops weren't in a position to be doing any offensive fighting. They were sitting in their compound and suffering attacks.
[03:25:02] So, this way, they've pulled back more troops to districts that are closer to their provincial capital. In that way they hope to be able to defend it more effectively. So, I think we have to wait and see whether this has to change things in the districts that are close to Lashkar Gah or not.
CHURCH: But the provincial leaders there say they are particularly vulnerable. Is there a sense of that?
DONATI: I mean, it's hard to say. It depends also, I mean, whether there is the possibility of the attacking the Taliban in these districts with air strikes, or whether they are able to use the districts to plan bigger attacks. So, I think it's just a case of seeing how the strategy plays out on both sides.
CHURCH: So, since the troops had to be moved elsewhere, is there -- is there also a sense that there aren't enough troops to protect the areas that need the security?
DONATI: I think the problem in Helmand is not that there aren't enough troops. It's that they have an issue with attrition with troops that are supposed to be there and not actually showing up. They have a really high rate of casualties.
And there's a suspicion among Afghan and U.S. officials that some commanders at a lower level, are agreeing to not to fight. So, the problem is perhaps more within the army force rather than with the actual numbers on the ground.
CHURCH: And how do they solve that problem?
DONATI: Well, they've introduced some leadership changes. So, they have brought in a new commander and they are trying to move troops back to sort of positions where they can plan attacks, which is I think why they made these tactical moves.
Because it's quite demoralizing for troops to be sitting on an outpost on their own for weeks or months, or even longer without receiving any supplies, or without hearing from their commanders. So, they're trying to improve morale, I think is also one of the reasons that they've done this.
CHURCH: All right. Jessica Donati, joining us there from Kabul with The Wall Street Journal. Many thanks to you.
We'll take a short break here. But still to come, Bernie Sanders goes on the offensive in the race for the White House. We will see how much ground he has to cover to catch up to Hillary Clinton. The South Carolina primary just days away.
Plus, millions of people in India's capital are facing an unprecedented water crisis, stemming from protests over the country's caste system. We will have the latest in the live report from New Delhi.
[03:30:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHURCH: And a warm welcome back to our viewers here in the United States and all around the world. I'm Rosemary Church.
I want to update you on the main stories we're following this hour.
U.S. republican candidate Ted Cruz has fired a top aide from his campaign staff. Communications director Rick Tyler admitted to posting a falsified video on Facebook that purports to show rival candidate Marco Rubio saying the bible is not an important book instead of what he actually said.
The cessation of hostilities agreement is said to take effect in Syria at midnight Friday. Russian President Vladimir Putin announced the partial truce which is the result of talks with the United States.
Syria's main opposition group gave preliminary approval, but of course, ISIS and the al-Nusra front are not part of the talks or of the agreement.
Rescue workers in Fiji say they are still trying to reach the outer islands to assess the damage from tropical cyclone Winston. The storm is the most powerful ever in the southern hemisphere; at least 28 people were killed when the cyclone hit Fiji Saturday night.
U.S. Republican presidential candidate, Donald Trump has come under criticism in the past for suggesting a protester at one of his rallies should be roughed up. And although the campaign now urges supporters not to hurt protestors, Trump himself had some harsh words for a man at his Las Vegas rally Monday night.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: Here's a guy, throwing punches, nasty as hell, screaming at everything else, when we're talking. And at walking out and we're not allowed -- you know, the guards are gentle with him. He's walking out like a big high-fives smiling and laughing. I'd like to punch him in the face.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: Reporters say the man did not appear to be fighting with the officers who escorted him from the rally.
Well, the democratic candidates for the White House will face off Saturday in the South Carolina primary. The latest CNN poll shows Hillary Clinton well ahead of Bernie Sanders, 57 percent to 32 percent.
Many attribute that to her popularity among African-American voters in South Carolina.
As Brianna Keilar reports, Sanders is fighting back.
BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Bernie Sanders is trying to regain his momentum fresh off a lost to Hillary Clinton in the Nevada caucuses.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BERNIE SANDERS, (D) U.S. PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I am delighted that Secretary Clinton month after month seems to be adopting more and more of the positions that we have advocated. That's good. And in fact, is beginning to use a lot of the language and the phraseology that we have used. In fact, I saw a TV ad and I thought it was me. (END VIDEO CLIP)
KEILAR: Sanders is going on the offensive today, tweeting about the lack of transcripts for Clinton's paid speeches saying, it's been 17 days, 16 hours and 32 minutes since Hillary Clinton said she would look into her releasing her paid speeches to Wall Street.
Hillary Clinton is riding high after her rebound win in Nevada and hoping for another victory in Saturday South Carolina primary. Hillary has an 18-point lead over Sanders in the Palmetto State, buoyed by her 37-point lead among black voters. And she is getting a little star power in her bid for support with a new television ad voiced by actor Morgan Freeman.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MORGAN FREEMAN, ACTOR: She says their names.
HILLARY CLINTON, (D) U.S. PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Trayvon Martin, shot to death. Dontre Hamilton, unarmed. Sandra Bland did nothing wrong.
FREEMAN: And makes their mothers' fight for justice her own. She speaks for a city poisoned by indifference.
CLINTON: We need action now.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KEILAR: Even as Clinton rebounds from her New Hampshire loss, questions linger about perceptions from some voters that she's not honest and trustworthy. An area she acknowledges she needed to improve upon during an appearance on State of the Union this weekend.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
[03:35:05] CLINTON: Because I think there's an underlying question that maybe is really in the back of people's minds. And that is, you know, is she in it for us? Or is she in it for herself? I think that's, you know, a question that people are trying to sort through.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KEILAR: Sanders and Clinton also have their eyes on Super Tuesday next week, when 11 states will hold democratic nominating contests.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SANDERS: Please, do not come to me state-by-state and say, is this the end of the world? We are in this campaign until the end. We have gone much faster, much further, than any -- or many people would have believed possible. And with organizations like the ones behind me, we are going to do just great in this campaign.
(APPLAUSE)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KEILAR: Bernie Sanders spending the day in Massachusetts, which will holds its contest on Super Tuesday, a few days after South Carolina. An indication perhaps of his campaign's realistic attitude towards his slim chances in South Carolina.
Brianna Keilar, CNN, Washington.
CHURCH: And Hillary Clinton is questioning the accuracy of an entrance poll in Nevada. It shows Bernie Sanders winning the young Latino vote by 8 percentage points, at odds with what the Clinton campaign expected.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CLINTON: You know, that's just not what our analysis shows, number one. Yes, we don't believe that the so-called entry polls were particularly accurate. If you look at the precincts, you look at where we dominated, there is a lot of evidence we did very, very well with every group of voter.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: And republican candidates are actively competing for the Latino vote in Nevada, as well. And despite his pledge to build a wall between the U.S. and Mexico, Donald Trump is winning over some Latino supporters.
Tom Foreman has more.
TOM FOREMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: In the sprawling suburbs of Vegas, mortgage broker, Michael Diaz wants two things. A stronger housing market and Donald Trump for president.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAEL DIAZ, LAS VEGAS MORTGAGE BROKER: It's an economic reason but also from a foreign standpoint, you know, I am worried about ISIS and people coming from across the border, and you know...
(CROSSTALK)
FOREMAN: Do you think he can handle that?
DIAZ: I think that he's smart enough to get the right people to handle it.
TRUMP: We will build a wall. Going to build a wall. You have to have a wall. Absolutely.
FOREMAN: Latinos support may seem odd, considering how Trump rose to political fame with a fierce stand against illegal immigration. Especially immigrants he says are sent by the Mexican government.
TRUMP: They're bringing drugs, they're bringing crime. They're rapists. FOREMAN: So, why are some Latinos tilting to Trump? Significant
numbers in this heavily service-based economy, have been U.S. citizens for a long time. And have their own concerns about new arrivals looking for job. On top of which, Nevada suffered more than most states in the recession.
And here, Trump's name is associated with success. At the University of Nevada Las Vegas, Stephen Miller is an economist.
STEPHEN MILLER, UNIVERSITY OF NEVADA ECONOMICS PROFESSOR: We have been recovering now for six years. But if you ask the average person on the street there were still in recession.
FOREMAN: Why is that?
MILLER: Well, we are still below where we were back before the great crash in Nevada.
(FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
FOREMAN: Once it was thought all of that might turn these voters towards Marco Rubio or Ted Cruz. And some appear hesitant to open the support Trump with other Latinos in the race. But Diaz says.
DIAZ: When you come down for everybody you got to be able to take care of your family. I mean, first and foremost is your family.
FOREMAN: Do you think he'll overcome some of the hesitation on the part of Latinos?
DIAZ: I do.
FOREMAN: how many agree with him, we will soon know.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm Hispanic and I vote for Mr. Trump. We vote for Mr. Trump. Yes.
(CROWD CHEERING)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FOREMAN: Look, candidates are competing for a small slice from a very small slice. In the last presidential election, only 5 percent of the GOP voters were Latino. But if Donald Trump can prove that he can get them, he can once again prove that he's beaten the odds.
Tom Foreman, CNN, Las Vegas.
CHURCH: To the United Kingdom now and a heated debate in the House of Commons, as Prime Minister David Cameron made his case on why he believes Britain should stay in the European Union. He told lawmakers that U.K. would be stronger and safer, if it voted to remain in the bloc.
A deal with European leaders would give the U.K. special status within the E.U. But even that hasn't convinced some dissenters in his own party who are pushing for a better deal and to leave the E.U. That group includes London Mayor Boris Johnson, who confronted Cameron on Monday.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
[03:39:56] BORIS JOHNSON, LONDON MAYOR: I have the right to own a vote, friend, the prime minister to explain to the House and to the country, exactly what way this deal returns sovereignty over any field of lawmaking to these houses of parliament?
DAVID CAMERON, BRITISH PRIME MINISTER: This deal brings back some welfare powers. It brings back some immigration powers. It brings back some bay light powers. But more than that, because it carves us forever out of ever close the union. It means that the ratchet of the European court taking power away from this country, cannot happen in future.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: The referendum on the so-called Brixet will take place on June 23rd.
Officials in India say it could take a while for the water supply to return to normal in the capital. We'll have the latest on the tensions that spark the water crisis. That's next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHURCH: India has deployed more than 750 tankers across the capital to provide water for about 10 million people up to protests in the neighboring state cut off the supply at a major canal. Schools in New Delhi have also now reopened.
Now, this after protesters who are demanding the same access to jobs as lower caste workers reached a deal with the government, following violent and deadly clashes over the weekend.
Let's get the latest on the water shortage and the ongoing tensions. CNN's Sumnina Udas joins us now live from New Delhi. So, Sumnina, bring us up to date on the situation on the ground right now. And of course, let us know when the water supply might return to normal.
SUMNIMA UDAS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The Delhi government says they will take at least another two weeks for the water supply to be fully restored. And that's because one of the main boundary walls of that canal, of the Munak canal that was attacked by protesters a few days ago, that is still severely damaged.
[03:45:05] Some restoration work is happening right now. So, some water is coming out but not fully. And to give you a sense of what's happening, what happened and still happening in Haryana is impacting people in Delhi.
We're standing on top of a very large underground reservoir. This is where the water from the canal would normally come if the canal was fully operational. It's about 100 to 200 meters. Very large. And the water would be pumped into that yellow building over there. And from there, that's where the water would be pumped into the entire neighborhood in the northwestern part of New Delhi.
But because there's not enough water underneath this reservoir, what they are having to do is use these pipes to pump out what was reserved for emergency situations. They're putting in that water into these water tanks.
We've been standing here for quite some time here. And every five to seven minutes these tanks have been arriving, filling up. And then these tanks have been headed to the neighborhoods, neighborhood-to- neighborhood.
The government says there's 10,000 people who have been affected by this water crisis. And when they say affected they mean that they are not receiving piped water through the taps. So, they are relying on these water tanks. You've been seeing residents coming here to file complaints. To say that they don't have any water. There's been many, many people here who have received no water for the past two, three days. Rosemary.
CHURCH: Yes. It's incredible, isn't it? And let's look behind the scenes here, what actually caused this. We reported there's 16 people died during that week-long protest. And there was a deal made between the government and the protesters. Talk to us about that how it's going to work.
UDAS: So, the leaders of the protesters say they've reached some of deal with the state government and the central government. So, they've informed all their co-demonstrators to, you know, stop protesting, to lift the blockage. A lot of these major highways connecting New Delhi to Haryana were blocked.
They've parked on their trucks along the highway. They've put up tents and they've been camping out for at least the past five or six days. And Haryana is one of the most prosperous states. That's the neighboring state of course. And there's a lot of business that happens between Delhi and Haryana. And all of that has stopped because of this blockage.
So, they lasted their agitators, their co-agitators to lift that blockade. But when we spoke to them they said, look, until they get something in writing they don't believe any of this. What they want again is reservations in India's caste-based quota system.
What that means is reserved placements in the governments, education and jobs sector. Obviously, jobs is becoming more and more difficult, to get jobs. What they say is this quota system that was put into place, designed to uplift the lives of millions of people who have been disadvantaged.
The lower caste, they say this is actually just reverse discriminations working against them. They are having a very difficult time getting into colleges that they want and also finding jobs. Rosemary?
CHURCH: All right. Sumnima Udas bringing us up to date there from New Delhi in India. Many thanks to you.
Well, a new study that came out Monday finds the world's oceans are rising at a rate more alarming than previously expected.
Meteorologist Pedram Javaheri joins us now from the International Weather Center with the details on this. So, Pedram, how alarming is this? How concerned should we be? And what sort of time line are we looking at?
PEDRAM JAVAHERI, CNN METEOROLOGIST: It's quite concerning. And you know, inside the next few decades, is that the dramatic increase is being observed and expected and to be continuing. And this study is actually published by the proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
So, Rosemary, it came out on Monday. And they use Paleoclimatological data. Meaning, tree ring samples, they use ice cores, they use ocean and lakes sediments to see the variability and oceanic conditions going back several centuries, as much as almost 30 centuries.
And we plotted the last 20 centuries. And of course, if you take look at the variability that exist with sea level conditions. You see them increase a couple of inches, drop a couple of inches. On the 10th century drop and increase. And then you see what happened in this most recent century, with an increase that was somewhere around on the order of five inches on a global scale for sea levels.
Of course, this is devastating news when you consider how many people live on the immediate coastal communities. And of course, the area that are most at risk. The five countries, the highest risk on global scale would be much of them being across parts of Asia.
And you take a look the population density on the immediate coast. Places like China over 20 million people. India, upwards of 37 million people exposed on the coastal cities. And Bangladesh also with the Philippines and Indonesia on this list, as well.
And the concerning aspect of all of this is because the data has suggested over many, many years, that when you look at everything that's occurred, in just the year 2000 to right now and then upwards of the next 84 or so years, up to the year 2100.
If something were done to just curb what's already in place here. The sea levels would still raise. They would rise somewhere on the order of about say 0.4 meters. If nothing is done over the next, say, 84 years, up to the year 2100, these levels could rise as much as 1 meter, up to three feet.
[03:50:05] Some of the coastal cities with hundreds of millions of people are impacted would be literally inundated, making some of the cities uninhabitable of course in the long-term.
And the study suggest that if this were to occur, of course many of these major cities would be abandoned in the long term as well. It's just because there would be nowhere to be on those immediately coast line. In fact, look at places like say, Manhattan, New York City, the stock
exchange. They say the bull is well known in Manhattan in the perspective. It look at such with a two-degree increase, that would occur over the next century, over the next two to three centuries, a four-degree increase would submerge parts of Manhattan.
It would something like this that you take an iconic landscape, like the River Thames in London, Rosemary. Current perspective looks like this, a two-degree increase by the end of the century.
So, again, just about 80 years away, would bring the water levels to the banks of the bridge there. And then eventually, by 2200, we can have the waters take over much of the bridge and much of the city, as well.
So, this is what's alarming about just the rate of the increase that was just a couple of inches over 28 centuries. And then the last century, it was six inches. So, it is an incredible increase.
CHURCH: Yes. That is a real concern. All right. Thanks so much, Pedram. I appreciate you pointing all of that out for us.
JAVAHERI: Thank you.
CHURCH: All right. Let's take a very short break. But still to come, a stinging indictment for Hollywood when it comes to diversity. Researchers offer up evidence they say proves Hollywood is still a, quote, "straight, white boys club." Back in a moment.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
JAVAHERI: Thanks for staying with CNN. Meteorologist Pedram Javaheri with you.
Starting off on a mild day across parts of the southern U.S. Unfortunatey, it is going to spark up some severe weather into the afternoon hours. Atlanta, just shy of 20 degrees or so, with scattered thunderstorms there.
New York City looking at rain showers and temps around 5. And the warm spell continues and the dry spell really, too, for parts of the southwestern U.S. Here goes the first bout of wet weather across the southern U.S. It is the piece of energy that really tries to develop in the final frame is right there that were concern about.
In fact, the storm prediction center think some of the storms they have all the ingredients in place here to spark off some severe weather. And in fact, on a scale of one to five, the severity and the intensity on some of these storms could be upward of four.
So, again, a serious situation in place for parts of say Mobile and southern Alabama, certainly southern portions of Mississippi, as well, would be in the highest threat zone there for severe weather and tornadoes certainly in that zone as well.
But notice some snowy showers across the intermountain west. It is going to begin to really weaken and fall apart as it moves to the south. We get a massive ridge of high pressure that develops yet again, in this incredible season that we've had across the Western U.S.
And you notice we do get some bouts of cold air across the eastern south of the U.S. But it really just moderates out, as we head in towards early next week. OK. Now the south we go. How about Guatemala City, looking at upper 20s. San Juan, how about mostly sunny skies around 30 degrees.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHURCH: Hollywood is a straight, white boys club according to a new study on film and television diversity. After evaluating more than 11,000 speaking characters, the University of Southern California found just 28 percent of characters were non-white.
Audiences see one female for every two males on screen. And gay, lesbian, and transgender characters make up 2 percent of characters with speaking roles.
Now this study comes just days before the Academy Awards, which is already under fire for a lack of diversity for a second year running.
CNN's Stephanie Elam has that.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
[03:55:00] STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The focus is supposed to be on the best in film.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And the Oscar goes to...
ELAM: But much of the conversation leading up to the Oscars is being dominated by what the acting categories lack, diversity.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The best actor is -- oh, my God. I knew it. It's a five-way tie. All of the white guys.
ELAM: For the second year in a row, the Academy Award acting nominees are all white. The immediate backlash dominating social media and led by Jada Pinkett-Smith.
JADA PINKETT-SMITH, ACTRESS: With all of the grace and love. And let's do us differently.
ELAM: And filmmaker, Spike Lee.
SPIKE LEE, FILMMAKER: My wife and I, Tonya, in all good consciousness, we cannot attend the Academy Awards.
ELAM: So, in response to the controversy, the academy's leadership moved swiftly to institute more changes to increase diversity among Oscar voters. The goal, to double the number of women and people of color by 2020. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The academy is overwhelmingly white and
overwhelmingly male. A lot of the Academy members believe the new rules are ageist. They believe they are reverse racism.
DON CHEADLE, ACTOR & FILMMAKER: I don't think there's a cabal of white people going, let's make sure we don't give anybody -- anybody who is black or Latino. I don't think that's what happening. So, it's about a multiplicity of the people that this country represents. Not having access at a very early point in this process.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You all have a snapshot how Americans really feel.
ELAM: Indeed Academy voters can't cast their ballots for movies that represent a wider range of the human condition, if those films are never made in the first place.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The ultimate change here needs to come from the top echelon of Hollywood executive suites. It's getting those kinds of minority-driven movies into the Oscar conversation. That is the difficult part.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I would like to see more people step up because we're going to be on the right side of history.
ELAM: Stephanie Elam, CNN, Hollywood.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: And CNN is the place to turn to before and after the Academy Awards ceremony. For all the glamour from the red carpet, tune in to Hollywood's biggest night, Sunday night, at 11 p.m. in London.
And once the Oscars wrap up, join Isha Sesay and Don Lemon for the -- and the winner is. During the ceremony you can take part by voting in our Oscar poll at cnn.com/awardsvote.
And thanks for your company. I'm Rosemary Church. Max Foster is up next with another edition of CNN Newsroom. Have a great day.
[04:00:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
