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Rubio and Cruz Go After Frontrunner Trump; Democratic Candidates Hit the Campaign Trail Hard; Apples vs. the FBI; New Report on Past Sexual Abuse at the BBC; Syria Ceasefire to Take Effect this Weekend; Unprecedented U.N. Resolutions Considered Against North Korea; Iranians Vote in Crucial Election; Academy Awards on Sunday. Aired 1-2a ET
Aired February 26, 2016 - 01:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[01:00:06] JOHN VAUSE, CNN ANCHOR: This is CNN NEWSROOM live from Los Angeles.
ISHA SESAY, CNN ANCHOR: Ahead this hour, the gloves come off at the latest Republican presidential debate. Rivals Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz gave their best shots at frontrunner Donald Trump.
VAUSE: Apple argues the court order forcing it to unlock a terrorist's iPhone violates its free speech right.
SESAY: And a new report claims the BBC missed opportunities to stop Jimmy Savile's serial child abuse.
VAUSE: Hello, everybody. Great to have you with us. Thanks for joining us. I'm John Vause.
SESAY: And I'm Isha Sesay. NEWSROOM L.A. starts right now.
All five Republican presidential candidates were there, but make no mistake. This debate was Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz versus Donald Trump. Rubio wasted no time going after the frontrunner attacking his record on immigration, his approach to Middle East peace, and even some of his failed business ventures.
VAUSE: It was full-on. Ted Cruz also got in on the act, slamming Trump's plan for replacing Obamacare and calling on him to release his tax returns. So let's start with the exchange between Rubio and Trump over health care.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
(CROSSTALK)
DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Excuse me. Excuse me. That brings in competition. When you get rid of the lines, it brings in competition. So instead of having one insurance company taking care of New York or Texas, you'll have many. They'll compete and it will be a beautiful thing.
(CHEERS AND APPLAUSE) SEN. MARCO RUBIO (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: That's the only part of the plan? Just the lines? The interstate competition?
TRUMP: Well, no. The nice part about the -- you'll have many different plans. You'll have competition. You'll have so many different plans.
RUBIO: Well, now he's repeating himself.
TRUMP: No, I'm not -- no, no, no.
(CHEERS AND APPLAUSE)
TRUMP: I don't repeat myself. I don't repeat myself. Here's the guy who repeats himself.
RUBIO: He repeats himself every day.
TRUMP: I watched him repeat himself five times four weeks ago. I will tell you, it was a meltdown.
RUBIO: I saw you repeat yourself five times five seconds ago.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: Well, CNN senior political analyst and senior editor for the "Atlantic" Ron Brownstein is with us right here in Los Angeles.
SESAY: Welcome, Ron, as always. But let's start with CNN's politics reporter MJ Lee who joins us now live from Houston.
MJ, to start with you. What are we hearing from the candidates post- debate? This was a fiery one.
MJ LEE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, no doubt about it. This was a completely different Marco Rubio that we saw on the debate stage tonight. Remember, up until this point, Rubio really has hesitated, he has not wanted to directly challenge Donald Trump on the debate stage. And you can bet that after tonight his supporters are probably very happy to have seen this fiery side of Rubio, that they have been waiting to see for so many months now.
And all of this really goes to show that there is so much at stake on Super Tuesday when a number of states will hold their GOP primary contests and so many delegates are at stake. And with Trump having won three consecutive states in a row, a lot of people are getting nervous, a lot of GOP establishment, you know, Republicans, want to see Trump's momentum slowed down by either Rubio or Cruz.
And I think, you know, this side of Rubio that they saw tonight, a lot of people were waiting to see that happen, to see that side of him come out for a while. And they were certainly probably excited to see that he had that in him and didn't hesitate from going after Trump tonight.
SESAY: Yes. Indeed. As all the pundits are saying, it's taken 10 debates to get to this point. MJ, appreciate it. Thanks for the analysis. Thanks for the insight. Appreciate it.
VAUSE: OK, so, Ron Brownstein, you're here with us. OK. Let's pick up on that point there. Marco Rubio came loaded for bear, he went after Trump like nobody else. I mean, Ted Cruz tried but wasn't quite there. Rubio really tried to pin Trump down on details of his policies. Trump was incredibly vague. Does that vagueness hurt Donald Trump?
RON BROWNSTEIN, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: Given that it's Donald Trump, did you say came loaded for hair? OK.
VAUSE: Hair?
BROWNSTEIN: No. Hair, yes. So, look, you know, I think tonight, what you saw was Marco Rubio, in particular, and also Ted Cruz, realizing the strategy they've been employing simply had become obsolete. I mean, you know, both of them have been focusing more fire on each other than Donald Trump, although Cruz certainly has gone after Trump more than Rubio had. Essentially on the theory that what mattered was being the last man standing against Trump. That there was a Trump ceiling, that if you could just get to that one-on-one race, you would be fine.
But clearly, here we're on the brink of Super Tuesday, and that theory, I think, has gone out of the window where Trump is leading across the board. So yes, I thought they were pretty effective tonight in this kind of tag team where Cruz went after Trump on ideological basis, and Rubio raised a whole series of really personal critiques and kind of portraying him as someone who is essentially a fraud, who did not have -- you know, did not have really detailed policies, whose business success was built on money from his father, and who, you know, was a hypocrite in importing foreign labor at the same time he rails against it.
[01:05:11] So it was pretty effective. And obviously the big question is, is it too little too late with Donald Trump leading in most of the Super Tuesday states? Leads all of them.
SESAY: Yes. Exactly. And I think he leads in 10.
VAUSE: Ten out of the 11. Texas is the only one here.
SESAY: Ron, I want to play some of the sounds, some highlights from tonight. Rubio hit Trump with a series of jabs on his business ventures including a lawsuit over hiring illegal workers and the failed Trump University. Take a listen to how Trump responded.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: Here's a guy that buys a house for $179,000. He sells it to a lobbyist who is probably here for $380,000. And then legislation is passed. You tell me about this guy. This is what we're going to have as president?
(CROSSTALK) RUBIO: Here's a guy that inherited $200 million. If he hadn't inherited $200 million, you know where Donald Trump would be right now?
TRUMP: No, no, no. No, no, no.
RUBIO: Selling watches in Manhattan.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SESAY: Wow.
VAUSE: The thing which I found amazing on this is these guys were prepared.
SESAY: Yes.
VAUSE: Because during the debate he delivered that line, and up on Twitter came a link to this. It is from the Rubio campaign, and they're selling Trump watches available for sale. They're not actually Trump watches for sale but what you can actually do is donate $10 to the Rubio campaign which they say will then help stop Donald Trump, which is incredible. So obviously these guys came out, I thought Marco Rubio tonight was a smiling assassin.
BROWNSTEIN: Yes.
VAUSE: He had that smile on his face.
BROWNSTEIN: Right.
VAUSE: He looked like he was having fun.
BROWNSTEIN: He looks like -- first of all, it is striking that when Trump gets under pressure, his Trump card, as it were, is not so much the economic nationalism, which is the core of his stump speech, it's the, they're a politician and I'm not. I mean, that's what he always goes back to when he's really pressed. That essentially that these guys are part of a corrupt system and I'm someone outside of it.
Now that has worked -- when I was in South Carolina that -- you know, that really came up among voters, I mean, the sense that he was not part of the system. But yes, Rubio I thought was very effective tonight in trying to undermine Trump's credibility from so many different angles. You know, that he's not a serious policy person, that he's not really the business success that he says. And he's not really the stand-up defender of American workers that he claims. Probably the most important of all because that blue-collar support for Trump is reaching astronomical levels, over 50 percent in Nevada in this crowded field. 50 percent in the Florida Quinnipiac poll yesterday. Almost 50 percent in Virginia in the poll out there today.
No one is consolidating the white collar part of the party anywhere. The blue collar part of the party, as long as that's true, he's got the numbers.
SESAY: And let's talk about the comments from Mitt Romney.
BROWNSTEIN: Yes. Interesting.
SESAY: About this bombshell that's likely to emerge eventually regarding Donald Trump's tax returns.
(CROSSTALK)
VAUSE: Mitt Romney pulled a Harry Reid.
SESAY: Yes, exactly.
BROWNSTEIN: Yes.
SESAY: That issue was out front and center tonight. Rubio and Cruz both promising to release their tax returns in the next few days. That comes after the Romney comments. For everyone looking at Trump and putting it to him, what have you got to hide, when are you going to return --
BROWNSTEIN: Yes.
SESAY: When are you going to release yours? Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: For many years, I've been audited every year. 12 years or something like that. Every year they audit me, audit me, audit me. Nobody gets audited -- I have friends that are very wealthy people, they never get audited. I get audited every year. I will absolutely give my return but I'm being audited now for two or three years so I can't do it until the audit is finished obviously. And I think people would understand that.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SESAY: So he's being audited over and over again.
BROWNSTEIN: Yes .
SESAY: Does that sound credible? Does that make sense to you? Will it make sense to the electorate?
BROWNSTEIN: Parenthetically he sounded more -- I grew up in New York, he sounded more New York tonight than he has in any of the debates. No, look, I think in a Republican primary, it is probably less of a risk than it would be in the general election, this tax question. I mean, I think -- I think that answer, you know, there's going to be a debate in the next couple of days about how plausible that you can't release it simply because you're being audited.
SESAY: Yes.
BROWNSTEIN: And Mitt Romney tweeted that, no, we can. But I don't think that is going to be the core issue for him. I think this question, if there is -- if there is a way that kind of undermine Trump is this idea that he is essentially not who he says he is. He's not the business success, which is critical to one set of voters and he's not the defender of American workers, which is critical to another set of voters.
I think Rubio raising those issues, I think -- and then Cruz raising the idea that he's not the conservative that he says he is, so three different ways of kind of saying, this guy is not who you think he is. And again the question is, is it too little too late?
VAUSE: And this is an incredible debate, the fireworks, the yelling and the screaming and the insults.
BROWNSTEIN: Yes.
SESAY: The name calling.
VAUSE: And the nastiness. Wolf Blitzer couldn't even get a word in at one point.
BROWNSTEIN: Yes.
VAUSE: Look at this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: We're having a lot of fun up here tonight, I have to tell you. Thank you for that --
SEN. TED CRUZ (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Donald, Donald, relax.
TRUMP: Go ahead, I'm relaxed. You're the basket case. Go ahead. Go ahead. Don't get nervous. Go ahead.
(LAUGHTER)
RUBIO: My name -- my name is --
CRUZ: I promise you, Donald, there is nothing about you that makes anyone nervous.
(CROSSTALK)
TRUMP: You're losing so badly you don't know what's happening.
WOLF BLITZER, CNN DEBATE MODERATOR: Gentlemen, gentlemen.
CRUZ: Wolf, I'm going to ask that my time not be deducted.
GOV. JOHN KASICH (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: You've got to stop this. Come on, Wolf. Take control.
BLITZER: Gentlemen.
CRUZ: OK, now --
BLITZER: The latest debate -- gentlemen, please. CRUZ: Well, hold on. I'm going to give my answer. He doesn't get to
yell in the whole time.
BLITZER: I want to move -- I want to move on. These are the rules.
[01:10:01] CRUZ: Excuse me. He called me a liar then interrupted the whole time. Am I allowed --
BLITZER: You'll have a chance.
(CHEERS)
CRUZ: Do I not get a response?
BLITZER: Gentlemen, you'll have --
CRUZ: Do I not get a response without being interrupted?
TRUMP: Wolf, you should move on.
BLITZER: You'll get plenty of response so stand by.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: OK. So my question is --
SESAY: That was ugly.
VAUSE: It was ugly.
BROWNSTEIN: Yes.
VAUSE: It was like third graders up there, but, you know, it was fun to watch. Let's be honest.
BROWNSTEIN: Yes.
VAUSE: If Rubio knocks Trump down a couple of points, does Rubio pick up the supporters or do they go to Cruz?
BROWNSTEIN: I think it's a question, if Wolf can't get a word in, a word cannot be gotten. Look, I think Super Tuesday is so critical because it's offering Trump a two-front war, an opportunity to really undermine his -- both sets of rivals that he has. On the one hand you have Ted Cruz, who really faces I think a do-or-die situation across the south. You have Alabama, Arkansas, Tennessee and Oklahoma, states that are all -- 60 percent evangelical, heavily blue collar.
If he can't win those, even if he holds Texas, very hard for him, I think, to have a path forward. On the other hand, on the other side, you've got John Kasich and Marco Rubio facing Trump in Virginia and Massachusetts, Vermont, white collar states that are less evangelical. And right now Trump is winning in both of those. Mitt Romney, John McCain, they could not cross that geographic and demographic divide. If Trump is able to do that next Tuesday, it is very hard to see how he gets stopped. SESAY: Too little too late possibly.
VAUSE: Super Tuesday will be super indeed.
SESAY: It will indeed.
VAUSE: OK.
SESAY: Ron, appreciate it. Thank you.
VAUSE: Welcome bank.
BROWNSTEIN: Thank you. Good to be here.
SESAY: Yes. You're gone way too long.
VAUSE: Good to have you back.
BROWNSTEIN: Good to be here.
VAUSE: Thanks, Ron.
SESAY: Well, if you miss any part of the debate be sure to catch the encore. We'll air it again in just a few hours at 10:00 a.m. if you're in London.
VAUSE: Well, to the Democrats now and presidential candidate Hillary Clinton had her husband, the former president, on the campaign trail Thursday in South Carolina.
SESAY: But her main competitor Bernie Sanders is already looking toward next month's voting.
Senior Washington correspondent Jeff Zeleny reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JEFF ZELENY, CNN SENIOR WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Not one Clinton.
HILLARY CLINTON (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Thank you all very much.
ZELENY: But two.
BILL CLINTON, FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT: Hello, Rock Hill.
ZELENY: Fanning out across South Carolina today. Working for a big win in Saturday's primary. Hoping to wrap up the fight with Bernie Sanders. Firing up Democrats, Clinton called out Republicans for trying to repeal Obamacare.
H. CLINTON: Every one of those Republican presidential candidates, they have insurance, and it takes a lot of gall for them to say, well, we don't need that Affordable Care Act.
ZELENY: She also warned that Sanders' healthcare for all plan would threaten President Obama's signature achievement.
H. CLINTON: We can't go back and throw our country into a contentious debate which is what my esteemed opponent Senator Sanders has proposed.
ZELENY: Sanders couldn't hear the criticism. He was rallying supporters in Ohio.
SEN. BERNIE SANDERS (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Ohio, as you all know, is one of the important political states in this country. You're having a primary here on March 15th. With your help, we can win this primary.
ZELENY: He also visited Michigan, appearing in a committee forum in Flint for residents contending with the city's poisonous drinking water.
SANDERS: If we are looking at children being poisoned, and perhaps suffering irreversible brain damage, if that is not an emergency, I just don't know what an emergency is.
ZELENY: It's a sign Sanders is looking ahead to March, when a large share of the party's delegates will be awarded.
The Clintons are taking it one state at a time. The former president urged Democrats to look beyond any criticism the primary has stirred up about his wife.
B. CLINTON: And you can't pay any attention to all these terrible things they say about her now. They just don't want to run against her. They're scared.
ZELENY: She came face-to-face with controversy at a South Carolina fundraiser Wednesday night. Black Lives Matter activist Ashley Williams asked Clinton to apologize for the high incarceration rate for black Americans.
H. CLINTON: We've got somebody standing here. We have to bring them to heal --
ASHLEY WILLIAMS, BLACK LIVES MATTER ACTIVIST: We want you to apologize for mass incarceration --
H. CLINTON: OK. We'll talk about that.
WILLIAMS: I'm not a super predator, Hillary Clinton.
ZELENY: It was a reference to this speech Clinton gave as first lady.
H. CLINTON: They are not just gangs of kids anymore. They are often the kinds of kids that are called super predators. No conscience, no empathy. We can talk about why they ended up that way, but first we have to bring them to heal.
ZELENY: But two decades later, Clinton has disavowed much of the 1994 crime bill and talks about ending systematic racism in the era of mass incarceration.
H. CLINTON: We've got work to do to help more people to be able to knock down those barriers, and that includes taking on systemic racism which is still a problem in America. It includes reforming the criminal justice system. It includes providing alternatives to jail and prison.
ZELENY (on camera): Of course, Bernie Sanders voted for that 1994 crime bill as well. He was already in Congress at the time. Now neither Clinton nor Sanders have gone after one another about that crime bill. But this conversation is so changed over the last two decades. Now as they fight for the South Carolina primary on Saturday, they're counting on the support of African-American voters who make up more than half of the electorate here in South Carolina.
Jeff Zeleny, CNN, North Charleston, South Carolina.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SESAY: Next on NEWSROOM L.A., police say an employee opened fire at a Kansas workplace. The latest on the deadly shooting coming up.
[01:15:01] VAUSE: Also ahead, a new scathing report says the BBC did nothing to handle sexual abuse complaints from young girls against two of its biggest stars. Those details also ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(SPORTS)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VAUSE: Now to the United States where police say a gunman killed three people in a series of shootings in a small town all ending at Excel Industries in Hesston, Kansas.
SESAY: Officials say the suspect, an employee at the Lawn Care Company, wounded 14 other people and the victims appear to have been targeted randomly. One eyewitness describes the ordeal.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We heard a pop, pop, and we thought it was just metal falling on the ground. And then the doors opened. People started screaming, coming out, saying go to the front. Go to the front. They everybody turned out, you know, said, no, he's out front. So everybody started going to the back right over here.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: The gunman was shot and killed by police. Officials say the shooting was not terror related.
Apple says a court order from the FBI to hack into an iPhone is unconstitutional. The U.S. government wants Apple to write a special code which would help it unlock the phone of Syed Farook. He was one of the shooters in the San Bernardino terror attack.
SESAY: Apple laid out its former legal defense Thursday calling the code protected speech under the Constitution.
[01:20:06] In response, the U.S. Department of Justice said Apple has never had a problem cooperating with authorities before.
Well, joining me now from London is CNN Money business correspondent Samuel Berk.
Samuel, help us get our heads around this. This argument being put forward by Apple. How could code be considered speech?
SAMUEL BURKE, CNN MONEY BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Well, I think for a long time people have just thought all Apple has to go in and do is type in the four-digit password that so many of us use to get into our iPhones. But really what they're being asked to do is write special code that would then allow the government to get in, and what Apple is saying is, we can't be forced to write code. Our code is our speech. And therefore, we have freedom of speech.
Now this might sound a little convoluted to some people, but a lot of people who observed the Supreme Court say, this has been an argument that has been very effective for all types of things. Money and medical cases even. So conflating freedom of speech with things that aren't exactly speech has actually been very successful in the Supreme Court in the past couple of years.
SESAY: So let's be clear on the precedence that are being set here. There's been precedence -- legal precedence, any that have proved successful at this kind of level?
BURKE: Certainly not at the Supreme Court level. And this has all of the makings of going to the Supreme Court. In the past, some courts have said that indeed code is speech. And then other courts have said, well, it's not protected by freedom of speech, the First Amendment in the United States. So basically what we're being told by legal experts is that this is a murky area, and Apple really would be setting the precedent.
This has all the makings of going all the way down the line. And it looks like other big tech companies are going to come out not just with words to support but actually file motions of support, companies like Microsoft and possibly Facebook. So this would have major ramifications for all of the major tech companies which are all in America quite frankly. So this could really change things for the future for all these companies, and for how they have to react to the United States government.
SESAY: Yes. It's simply fascinating. Something we will watch very closely.
Samuel Burke, joining us there from London. Simon, appreciate it very, very. We know it's early where you are, so thank you.
VAUSE: Well, now to a scathing report about one of the world's biggest and best known media organizations, the British Broadcasting Corporation, and its handling of sexual abuse allegations nearly 50 years ago.
SESAY: As CNN's Diana Magnay reports, two of the BBC's biggest stars are at the heart of the findings.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DIANA MAGNAY, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Jimmy Savile, once one of the BBC's brightest stars revealed after his death as a serial sexual predator who raped and abused over decades. His monstrous legacy casting a long shadow over the corporation.
JANET SMITH, REPORT'S AUTHOR: Savile was a danger to young people, both girls and boys, opportunistic and shameless. I have identified 72 BBC victims of Savile, of whom 34 were under the age of 16. His youngest victim was aged 8. His abuse included eight cases of rape, the youngest victim being only 10 years old.
MAGNAY: It wasn't just Savile. Fellow presenters Stewart Hall was convicted and jailed in 2014 for the indecent assault of young girls.
How both men could have hidden in plain sight, and who at the BBC knew what, the subject of a three-year independent inquiry. With serious failings found in what the review chair Dame Janet Smith termed a deferential and macho management culture where star talent was treated with kid gloves.
SMITH: There was a culture of not complaining or of raising concerns. BBC staff felt and were sometimes told that it was not in their best interests to pursue a complaint. Loyalty to and pride in a program could hinder the sharing of concerns. There was a reluctance to rock the boat.
MAGNAY (on camera): What this report does, some of the details are shocking. One victim was told keep your mouth shut, he's a VIP. But even with plenty of material out in the public eye which casts doubt over Jimmy Savile's character, BBC bosses didn't think to remove him from his position of unfettered access to vulnerable young people.
The main finding, though, that senior management did not know that the BBC as a corporation was not aware.
(Voice-over): Liz Dux who represents 168 of Savile's victims says she doesn't believe it.
LIZ DUX, VICTIMS' LAWYER: You get the feeling from reading that report that you just had to scratch the surface, and Savile was there to be uncovered. And that shows a fairly high degree of knowledge to me.
[01:25:04] MAGNAY: BBC director general Tony Hall offered a heartfelt apology to the victims.
TONY HALL, BBC DIRECTOR GENERAL: It was a dark chapter in the history of the organization. But a much darker one for all of you. The BBC failed you when it should have protected you. I am deeply sorry for the hurt caused to each and every one of you.
MAGNAY: Two men lauded, when they should have been jailed. The BBC now trying to put this shameful episode behind it.
Diana Magnay, CNN, London.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: A short break here. When we come back, this weekend could be a game changer in Syria. Next here on NEWSROOM L.A. more details on the expected ceasefire. Why so many are so skeptical will work?
SESAY: Plus the U.S. is considering new sanctions to North Korea that profits in decades. We will go live to Seoul, South Korea for regional reaction. That's coming up. Do stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SESAY: You're watching CNN NEWSROOM, live from Los Angeles. I am Isha Sesay.
VAUSE: And I'm John Vause. The headlines this hour.
(HEADLINES)
[01:30:22] SESAY: Now, a ceasefire is scheduled to go into effect this weekend. The deal called for the Syrian rebels, Russia and opposition forces to stop fighting. ISIS and al Nusra Front can still be attacked.
VAUSE: The U.S. skeptical the deal will succeed. Barack Obama said even though it's a long shot, they will try to stop the atrocities in Syria.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: If implemented, and that's a significant if, the cessation could reduce the violence and get more food and aid to the Syrians suffering and desperately need. It could save lives.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: A quarter of a million Syrians have died so far since the civil war has begun.
SESAY: Gayle Tzemach Lemmon joins us, a fellow with the Council on Foreign Relations and a regular guest on the show.
Good to have you back with us.
GAYLE TZEMACH LEMMON, FELLOW, COUNCIL ON FOREIGN RELATIONS: Thank you.
SESAY: I made the point it's the cessation of hostilities. It's important to understand the nuances of what that means for on the ground. Give us a little bit of context, really, the basic question of what are the chances that this will lead to respite for Syrians.
TZEMACH LEMMON: That's the question. I talked to young Syrians, and there's a whole lot of skepticism. The carnage is continuing. The Russian bombing is continuing. Many people are starved out of towns, there's not been a great deal of relief. Some aid has been able to get through. The air lifts to the towns starved out hasn't actually reached. All of this talk of cessation of hostilities for those who are really suffering from this war feels very remote.
Now, for Russia, the idea is to make Russia great again, in terms of what this discussion is about, the cessation of hostility agreement with the United States. You hear a whole lot of "coulds" in the president's speech. Secretary of State Kerry said this is a whole lot of options.
VAUSE: The least battle.
(CROSSTALK)
VAUSE: If it does hold, there's some kind of structure in place, a command system if you like, to make further agreements possible?
TZEMACH LEMMON: So, for people who are optimistic about this holding, which is a pretty small number of folks I talked to, yes, it is a first step. And maybe a very wobbly step. But a step toward an actual agreement. The problem is, that as many will tell you on the U.S. Side, there's very little incentive for the Russians to follow it. There's no real sense that the Americans do want to get involved in this militarily any further than they already have.
VAUSE: The Russians, they make the assumption that the Russians are there in the long term. There is a school of thought saying they don't want to be bogged down for any extended period of time. So just maybe they want some kind of way out of this as well, which is why Putin agreed to this on the telephone with Obama. I'm trying to find reasons to be hopeful here.
TZEMACH LEMMON: And I agree with you in terms of, when I think actually, you know, it's interesting, I talked to an administration official today who said, look, Putin has managed to bring the European Union to its knees. If you want to look at who holds the leverage right now, former Ambassador Robert Ford, who you both have spoken with, said right now the Russians are driving the car and the Americans are sort of on the sidelines waving. I think there is a power issue.
SESAY: We're out of time, but it's not just Russia that's the wild card here, but also Turkey.
TZEMACH LEMMON: Absolutely. And all the neighboring players. Syria has been a proxy war for the regional powers that use it as their chessboard. Meanwhile, the carnage continues.
SESAY: Gayle, glad to have you in.
VAUSE: Thanks you. SESAY: But its always so bleak.
VAUSE: But for once, it's not as bleak.
SESAY: Yeah.
(CROSSTALK)
SESAY: Absolutely.
VAUSE: Thank you.
SESAY: North Korea could be facing the toughest sanctions it's seen in two decades. Restrictions even from Pyongyang's only ally is backing after the country's recent missile test. The U.S. worked with China to unveil what's being called an unprecedented U.N. resolution, with sanctions aimed at stopping North Korea's nuclear program in its tracks.
VAUSE: Mandatory inspections of cargo ships going in and out of the country, banning radiation and rocket fuel to North Korea.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SAMANTHA POWER, U.S. AMBASSADOR TO THE U.N.: These sanctions, if adopted, would send an unambiguous and unyielding message to the DPRK regime. The world will not accept your proliferation.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
[01:35:12] VAUSE: The U.N. Security Council made a resolution this weekend.
For the latest let's go to Paula Hancocks live this hour in Seoul, South Korea.
Paula, what are the impact of these sanctions? I guess looking at it, the ban on aviation and Rocket fuel is especially targeted.
PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right, John. Rocket fuel, you would expect for obvious reasons, you would actually be surprised that was still allowed to be sent into North Korea. But the resolution according to U.S. officials is targeting that nuclear and missile program, to make sure that they try and curb the activities. Also, exports from North Korea, exports of coal, titanium, iron, gold, minerals, will be banned as well. That could have a significant impact. One U.S. official saying he believes it will have an impact, it will be felt. Certainly in the past we've seen previous sanctions have had a limited effect.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
(SINGING)
HANCOCKS (voice-over): In downtown Seoul --
(SINGING)
HANCOCKS: -- a popular South Korean for a site, shows what could have been. The reality between the United States and North Korea is very different. Washington has called on Pyongyang give up its nuclear missile program for years. Four major resolutions have been passed by the United Nations Security Council since Pyongyang's first nuclear test a decade ago. 2006, the U.N. imposed a series of economic and commercial sanctions. 2009, the second nuclear test, also met with a U.N. resolution and expanded sanctions. A 2012 satellite launch, widely believed to be a long-range missile test. Further sanctions. 2013, its third nuclear test, another U.N. resolution.
Despite one of the most heavily sanctioned countries on earth, Pyongyang was still able to develop and test its nuclear capabilities.
One former presidential adviser in South Korea is not surprised.
UNIDENTIFIED FORMER SOUTH KOREAN PRESIDENTIAL ADVISOR: It was designed not to have an impact, because China watered down the resolution and made it almost ineffective.
HANCOCKS: Official talks on denuclearization are a distant memory. Six-party talks with the U.S., Japan, Russia, China and the two Koreas ended abruptly in 2009 when North Korea walked out.
Some experts feel stronger sanctions against North Korea, what would it mean for the people and the first tenuous signs of economic growth.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If you just sanction these guys, and this country, to death, if you just try and inflict pain on Kim Jong-Un, you're probably not going to hurt Kim Jong-Un, but you are going to hurt all of these ultimately positive forces for the future.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HANCOCKS: It's being billed as the strongest set of sanctions in two decades. The U.S. hoping that this set of sanctions will have an impact.
John, Isha, back to you.
VAUSE: Paula, thank you, live in Seoul, South Korea.
SESAY: Now, Iranians are voting in a historically crucial election. Why this vote could drastically change the direction of the country.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SESAY: Hello, everyone. Right now Iranians are voting in elections that could drastically shape the future of their country. Iran's influential supreme leader has cast his ballot.
VAUSE: Iranians will elect members of the assembly, which appointed him, and also lawmakers to parliament.
Our man in Tehran is Fred Pleitgen. (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
[01:40:00] FRED PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This is decision day in Iran. Indications are many voters still haven't decided whom they'll support. The moderates close to the President Rouhani, or the conservatives under the powerful clergy.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translation): I think it's possible the Rouhani supporters will win. Maybe. I'll try to be optimistic.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (through translation): I think we need to defeat the enemies of our country and always stay vigilant and stop infiltration from the West, this conservative woman said.
PLEITGEN: The political divide is deep. The electoral battle fierce in Iran. Moderate candidates have accused conservative forces of disrupting many of their campaign events. While hardliners say reformers are selling out to the West.
(SHOUTING)
PLEITGEN: On top of the usual anti-American rhetoric, they've also started a "no to England" campaign," blaming moderates are helping Britain gain influence over the Islamic republic.
The supreme leader has made similar allegations against the United States. But has also called on all Iranians to go and vote on Friday.
(on camera): Some have called this the most important nonpresidential election in this country since the Islamic resolution. Still, after fierce come pains, it's totally unclear who's going to come out on top.
(voice-over): Observers believe President Hassan Rouhani's camp could get a boost, thanks to sanctions relief after the nuclear agreement. As Western businesses flock to the country looking to invest.
So far, few Iranians have felt the benefits of the nuke deal. Some voters say they want results, fast.
"We hope this election will do something for the development of our country, and that our people will have a better life," this man says.
Many Iranians see their country in a pivotal time, and these elections as a referendum on the direction it will take in the future.
Fred Pleitgen, CNN, Tehran.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: In the coming hours, FIFA members will vote on the governing body. There are five candidates for president.
SESAY: The new leader will replace former president, Sepp Blatter, who was forced to step down. Blatter and his former right-hand man are currently under a six-year suspension from all football related activities.
VAUSE: We have elections in the United States, elections in Iran, we've got reforms of FIFA. Also the Academy Awards coming up. Lots of voting there. We're expecting interesting moments on Sunday night. And we'll have all the very latest, including an interview with one of the actors who has been nominated.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[01:45:40] VAUSE: Well, Hollywood's biggest day on Sunday, the 2016 Academy Awards.
SESAY: You're so excited, aren't you?
VAUSE: I can't wait.
SESAY: The best picture award will be close. And many are hoping --
(CROSSTALK)
VAUSE: Nothing like an award show.
(CROSSTALK)
SESAY: Many hoping that one of Hollywood's leading man snags his first Oscar.
(CROSSTALK)
SESAY: Stephanie Elam has more.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A mother and son trapped in captivity.
UNIDENTIFIED ACTRESS: Jack, listen to me.
ELAM: An Irish immigrant finding love and independence a frontiersman seeking revenge.
"Room," "Brooklyn" and "The Revenant" are three of the films nominated for best picture at the 88th Academy Award.
The Leonardo DiCaprio drama is at the top of the heap. Others include "The Big Short," "Bridge of Spies," "Mad Max Fury Road," "The Martian" and "Spotlight."
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There are legitimately three, maybe four potential best picture winners. So it's very rare that you come down to that last envelope and people don't know what's going to happen.
ELAM: The best actor category is full of A-list talent, like Bryan Cranston, and Matt Damon, and Michael Fastbender, and last year's winner.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This Oscar -- this Oscar --
(LAUGHTER)
ELAM: This time for "The Danish Girl.
The focus is on DiCaprio, and whether this role will give the six-time nominee an Oscar win.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is going to be the year he takes it.
ELAM: Previous winners are Kate Blanchette, and Jennifer Lawrence going up against first-nominees Charlotte Ramley and Bree Larson.
UNIDENTIFIED ACTRESS: It feels like I'm part of some tribe. It feels so good.
ELAM: Having already snagged a Golden Globe and SAG Award, she has the momentum heading into Hollywood's biggest night.
CHRIS ROCK, COMEDIAN: Let's do this!
ELAM: And returning for a second time is host of the Oscars, is Chris Rock. Known for his in-your-face comedy, many are wondering how the comedian will deal with the elephant in the room.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The one thing that everyone is expecting is how is he going to handle this all-white nominee issue, and is he going to be merciless with the Academy.
ELAM: A congratulatory ceremony filled with lots of controversy, it must be Hollywood.
Stephanie Elam, CNN.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SESAY: Hollywood's biggest night.
Segun Oduolowu is an entertainment journalist and contributor to "Access Hollywood Live," He joins now live.
I thought you were looking at me because I said your name just kind of way.
SEGUN ODUOLOWU, ENTERTAINMENT JOURNALIST & CONTRIBUTOR, ACCESS HOLLYWOOD LIVE: You did it good. Very sophisticated.
(LAUGHTER)
(CROSSTALK)
VAUSE: You mumbled it.
SESAY: I was trying to get through it. But I thought I would call attention to it myself. Let's talk to another man attracting a little bit of attention in the
best actor race. Obviously I'm talking about Leo. Everybody is saying this is his year. But the question is, should he really win for the remnant?
ODUOLOWU: I don't think so. On the drive over here I was arguing with the movie critic, Scott, by far the best predictor in the business. And he said, bet the house, bet your salary, bet your friend's salary, that Leo is going to win for the revenant. It isn't dancing with wolves.
VAUSE: Which was boring anyway.
(CROSSTALK)
SESAY: I thought it was masterpiece.
ODUOLOWU: What was real about it?
(CROSSTALK)
VAUSE: The bear.
ODUOLOWU: The bear? That danced with him?
(CROSSTALK)
VAUSE: Do we have a clip of the bear?
ODUOLOWU: Just show the bear.
SESAY: The depiction of one man's drive to avenge, you know, a loss.
(CROSSTALK)
ODUOLOWU: No, I think honestly what made it so poignant is people thought what Leo put his body physically through. Not just with the bear, but he actually ate a real liver, like a real raw liver.
VAUSE: The things these guys do, wow.
SESAY: They love the transformation.
ODUOLOWU: Hollywood doesn't love a struggle. Because there's no brothers --
(LAUGHTER)
(CROSSTALK)
[01:50:11] SESAY: They don't want that kind of struggle.
VAUSE: Hold your fire, OK?
SESAY: All right. Let's talk about the best picture.
VAUSE: Are we?
SESAY: You don't even care. Everyone saying it comes down to "The Revenant," "The Big Short," and "Spotlight." And before I get your take, I want us to play a clip. I sat down with the director of "Spotlight."
VAUSE: One of the best movies, to be honest.
SESAY: I agree. But let's run our interview and give people a taste of the movie and then get your view.
ODUOLOWU: All right.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SESAY: What does this nomination mean to you guys?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think when movies like this get made, it's a victory of sorts. The Oscars increase the platform of the movie, not only for wider audiences, but for the issues that the film deals with.
UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR: We've got to nail these scum bags! We've got to show people nobody can get away with this!
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It was a big story when it landed in the world. But a movie can take it into the culture in a different kind of way.
SESAY: The film really does, it feels like a love letter to journalists, to journalism. Talk to me about that, and how you don't skimp on the hard work that goes into being a journalist.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's only a love letter in the regard that it pays tribute to the hard work, to the craft of journalism. And I think we as much as possible in making this film tried to really commit to those details as authentically as possible, with a lot of help from the actual journalist depicted in the film. We couldn't have done it without them. That's what it's a celebration of. I think that's what audiences in some ways respect.
UNIDENTIFIED ACTRESS: We're going to tell the story. We're going to tell it right.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SESAY: Could it win it?
ODUOLOWU: It should win it.
VAUSE: It should have won the Golden Globe.
(CROSSTALK)
ODUOLOWU: I think it should win because it has the best members. The actual cast is phenomenal. I actually think that, you know, "Birdman" last year, that wasn't really Michael Keaton's best work. I think he's amazing I think they snubbed Michael Keaton in this. Although, I know "Revenant" is picking up a lot of steam. The bear is unbelievable. I mean, the bear --
(CROSSTALK)
(LAUGHTER)
ODUOLOWU: I would like to see his award speech.
VAUSE: Everyone's talking about this. From an Asian, Latino point of view, no Asian or Latino actress has won as Oscar in 50 years.
ODUOLOWU: This is the point. It came from black people and it sounds like it's black people.
VAUSE: They're whining and complaining.
ODUOLOWU: We're talking about diversity in the Academy. That's what the main focus is. And that fact right there should chill people, that no Latinos, no Asians, I mean, this is what we're screaming for.
VAUSE: 50 years.
ODUOLOWU: Oscar so white, you know, no black people. Where are the Asians, where are the Indians, the Native Americans, Pakistanis, where's everybody that make up movies that deserve to be not only accredited for their work, but get to stand with their peers. That's what hurts.
SESAY: Actor Hill Harper (ph) sat down with us a short time ago, and she had some thoughts on this whole diversity issue. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HILL HARPER (ph), ACTOR: There's something institutional that's going on with the decision makers in the studio system about what types of films that diverse audiences will pay to see. It's almost as if they consider the audience as not perhaps smart enough to want to -- to pay to see films that are of a higher caliber, unless they're specifically race-based films. If you look at the history of the types of films that have you had owes will pay to have on their campaigns, they tend to be race based, either slave based or civil rights based about race. And you start to say, does Hollywood believe that the only stories that deserve to be told in a quality way about African-Americans have to be about race only.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SESAY: Yeah. That's a question, it's like when you do get acknowledged, it always --
(CROSSTALK)
ODUOLOWU: "12 Years a Slave --
(CROSSTALK)
SESAY: It's for glory. ODUOLOWU: But he's not wrong. You know, like overseas, they changed
movie posters.
SESAY: Yeah, that's right.
VAUSE: China did the same thing.
Quickly, the Oscars go way too long. Why not cull some of the categories that nobody cares about, like hairstyles and makeup and --
(CROSSTALK)
ODUOLOWU: Well, not makeup. Makeup is big.
VAUSE: Like the Grammys do it.
SESAY: How long do you want it to be?
VAUSE: An hour would be great.
ODUOLOWU: The Grammys have figured out how to make it a show.
VAUSE: Entertaining.
ODUOLOWU: I thought Lamar's performance was great.
(CROSSTALK)
ODUOLOWU: Lady Gaga's tribute --
(CROSSTALK)
VAUSE: But Oscars, whoa.
ODUOLOWU: You can't do -- nobody wants to go up and see a monologue. Outside of Chris, you don't want to see an actor go up there and start acting. You can't intersplice it with a lot of different skits like you can in the Grammys. It is very long. They could, and should cut out technical awards. Because nobody really -- outside of special effects, like really good ones, nobody wants to hear about engineering or lighting or editing.
[01:55:39] SESAY: Acknowledgement from your peers, they play --
(CROSSTALK)
VAUSE: During a commercial break.
ODUOLOWU: It goes way too long. It always goes long. I still think it's going to be wildly watched. I think the ratings will be up from last year. Because everybody wants to see Chris Rock. After that opening monologue, I think you might get people tuning out. Nothing grabs you that you have to watch.
SESAY: Having said that, I think there's a lot to look out for in terms of presenters. And also, what they say in acceptance speeches. I think it is worth tuning in.
ODUOLOWU: If you have a pool going on, really quick, bet the farm on Sylvester Stallone for supporting actor. He's going to get it. A safe bet.
VAUSE: We're out of time.
Segun, thank you very much.
That is it for us. I'm John Vause.
SESAY: I'm Isha Sesay.
The news continues with Natalie Allen and George Howell right after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
