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North Korea Fires Missile; Trump As Presidential As Before; Obama's Final Presidential Visit to England; Prince Fans And Neighbors Gather; Search For Shooter, Answers In Murder of Rhoden Family; 165,000 Pennsylvania Democrats Flip To Republican Party; Bebe Winans Reflects On Prince's Faith; Victim's Friends: She Didn't Deserve This. Aired 11a-12p ET

Aired April 23, 2016 - 11:00   ET

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

[11:00:00] FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN HOST: Good morning everyone. We start this hour with breaking news, I'm Fredricka Whitfield.

A quote, a very serious move out of North Korea, according to US officials. The North reportedly firing what is believed to be, a submarine-launched ballistic missile off its east coast.

Officials in South Korea say the missile flew about 19 miles before dropping into the sea. The South Korean military is on high alert now. CNN's Paula Hancocks is in Seoul, South Korea.

So this missile went less than 20 miles, can that be judged a success or failure, by the standards of those launching it?

PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well Fredricka that's a really interesting question because when we spoke to the joint chiefs of staff here, in South Korea, and got this information, they were very careful not to use the word, "failure." They did tell us that it flew less than 20 miles. They said for a sattelite -- sorry, submarine- launched, ballistic missile to be considered a success, it'd have to fly about 300 kilometers. So that's about 180 miles.

But they didn't connect the dots; they wouldn't say it was a failure. And the reason for that is because it's not clear exactly what North Korea was trying to do. What was the range they were going for, what was the target that they were going for?

Now of course there are many in South Korea media saying that it was a botched attempt. But of course there are many experts that are saying that they are learning from every one of these attempts. So to call it a failure really belittles it, because they will have learned something from this attempt.

It is concerning many people. South Korean military is now on high alert, in fact it has been for some time, given what we've seen this past year -- with Kim Jong-un launching a nuclear test, a satellite launch believed to be a long-range missile test -- it really is continuing.

And of course the US reaction we're hearing as well. One US official saying, "North Korea's sub-launch capability has gone from a joke to something very serious." The US is watching this very closely. And that really sums it up, just how concerning it would be if they have this capability of the submarine launch.

But of course at this point we don't know whether or not it was successful. Fredricka?

WHITFIELD: All right, Paula Hancocks, thanks so much. Keep us posted there, from South Korea, appreciate it.

All right back here on US soil, Donald Trump is calling for Ted Cruz, and John Kasich to drop out of the race to the White House. Nevertheless, all candidates are campaigning across the Northeast today ahead of primary races in several states. Five states on Tuesday, Cruz is in Pennsylvania, Kasich is in Rhode Island, and Trump is in Connecticut, talking right now.

This week Trump's new delegate guru told RNC leaders that Trump is playing a part at his rallies, and to expect him to shift toward a more presidential image. Paul Manafort spoke to CNN just last hour.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PAUL MANAFORT, DONALD TRUMP'S SENIOR CAMPAIGN ADVISOR: Mister Trump, next week, will be still speaking about how he's going to build the wall. He's talking about how he's still going to end illegal immigration. How he's still going to -- and the unfair trade deals.

Nowhere was I talking about there being a different Donald Trump. What I was talking about was there being a different environment where different parts of the message would be presented in a way that was different from a campaign rally.

So it's -- there would be no reason to change what -- who has been -- the man has been probably the most effective modern communicator in Politics, certainly since Ronald Reagan.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: All right, let's go to CNN Politics Reporter, MJ Lee. She's in Waterbury, Connecticut, where Trump is still talking to the audience there, can hear him in the background.

So, MJ, is Trump sounding more presidential, as Mister Manafort projects?

MJ LEE, CNN POLITICS REPORTER: Well Fred, there's been so much speculation over the last few days as to whether we would begin to see a new Donald Trump. Perhaps a softer and more subdued Donald Trump. Well, Donald Trump just showed us that he is not ready to tone down his rhetoric.

He really went after Ted Cruz, his rival, very hard in his speech in Waterbury. He's continuing to talk, as you can see behind me, calling him, "Lyin' Ted," giving him the nickname "Raphael, straight out of the hills of Canada." And he also did respond to what Paul Manafort said this week about his

public persona being a little bit different from his private persona. Take a listen to what he had to say:

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I sort of don't like toning it down, you know? We keep -- I'm gonna talk about that in a second, because it's interesting. Isn't it nice that I'm not one of these teleprompter guys? Where you come in -- well first of all, if I was, I'd have an audience of about three people here in the front, instead of -- this is the biggest crowd in the history of this school.

When I'm in a room talking, you're one way. When I'm out here talking to you people, I gotta be different, all right? I mean you've got to -- I can say basically the same thing. So Paul said, "no, he's different when he's in a room. And then he goes out and speaks, it's different. And then if he gives policy, that's different."

You know we all have like -- we're smart people, you act differently.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEE: Just a few moments ago, Fred, Trump also discussed being more presidential. He said that a lot of people have given him the advice to act more presidential on the campaign trail. But interestingly, he said that, if he had been more presidential throughout this campaign, he probably would not be the GOP frontrunner right now.

He says that his supporters like the fact that he just likes to speak off-the-cuff, that he doesn't use the teleprompter. So signaling that he probably will not be changing his style in any drastic way anytime soon.

Now earlier when I spoke to some of Trump's supporters at this rally, one Trump supporter actually told me she would be very disappointed if Trump took a different tone on the campaign trail. So maybe Trump understands that this is a part of his appeal. Fred?

WHITFIELD: And, MJ, but it is very confusing because it was Trump, himself, who said around the New York primary time, that, "I'm going to be more presidential, you're not going to believe how presidential I can be." His own -- Paul Manafort saying, "he's going to be presidential." And now, Donald Trump saying, "I shouldn't change. If I were to change then I'd be something else."

So, all so confusing. But I know we're going to talk about it some more, MJ. We're going to talk about it some more with some of our political analysts, coming up, as well.

All right, meantime overseas, our President, Obama wrapping up his final visit to England as President, by playing golf. And for taking a moment to talk about a very critical issue back home. Earlier at a town hall with about 500 young, British professionals and students, he said, "change is possible, but it takes time."

He admitted he still has unfinished business to pass on to his successor. And one of them is race relations in the US. Here is what the President said:

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Well there's still discrimination in aspects of American life. Even with a black president. And in fact, one of the dangers has been that by electing a black president, people have then said, "well there must be no problems at all." And obviously, you see Ferguson, and some of the issues we've seen in the criminal justice system, indicating the degree to which that was always false.

So, does that mean that all the work that was done along the way was worthless? No, of course not. But it does mean that if any of you begin to work on an issue that you care deeply about, don't be disappointed if a year out, things haven't been completely solved.

Don't give up and succumb to cynicism if after five years, poverty has not been eradicated, and prejudice is still out there somewhere, and we haven't resolved all of the steps we need to take to reverse climate change. It's OK.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: All right, Athena Jones is following the President. Some pretty powerful word choices there, Athena, when talking about both, progress and unfinished business.

ATHENA JONES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely. What's so great about these town halls, it's a chance, not only for the President to interact with young people in the various countries that he visits, he tries to do these kinds of events often in countries he visits, saying that the young people inspire him, he clearly hopes to inspire them.

But what's so great about some of these events is that it's a chance to hear the President talk about issues that aren't overtly political, as you might find at a press conference like yesterday's after his meeting with UK Prime Minister, David Cameron.

And so many issues came up. That sound that you just played, that sound byte that you just played was at the end of a pretty long response to a question about his legacy. And so it's an acknowledgment that part of his legacy is being the first black President of the United States.

He also talked about being proud of having passed the Affordable Care Act, perhaps his biggest domestic achievement. He talked about having saved the global economy from a depression back in 2009, when he took office during a global economic crisis.

And he also talked about the Iran nuclear deal, taking off the table, the danger of a country like Iran the danger of having -- developing a nuclear weapon. So he addressed a lot of issues. And it's interesting to hear him talk about race. It's also interesting to hear him talk about his legacy. And one more

thing, Fred, I should tell you that at the beginning of that question about, "what do you want your legacy to be?" He said, "well, you know, day-to-day, I don't have a lot of time to spend thinking about my legacy, and what comes down the road. Maybe later on I'll have time to reflect."

But he gave that lengthy answer, touched on many of his accomplishments that he's proud of, showing that he clearly is spending some time thinking about his legacy as his presidency wraps up. Fred?

WHITFIELD: All right, Athena Jones, thank you so much. Traveling with the President there, in England.

All right, back here at home, still so many tears in purple, being shed. Remembering the life of Prince, and the latest on the investigation into his death. Victor Blackwell is outside Paisley Park.

And Victor, what a powerful scene it has been there, for days now with all of those purple balloons. I'm wearing purple because I, too, am crying those purple tears for Prince. Tell us what's ahead there, from where you are.

VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well there are now hundreds of people -- about 200 people who have come here to pay their respects, to talk to other fans, to leave notes, balloons, flowers. They started coming before dawn today, sharing their stories.

And some of them just taking a quiet moment here, outside of the place where Prince worked, and performed, and lived. And on Thursday, tragically died.

We'll bring you more on the investigation, and a tribute to Prince, when we come back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[]

WHITFIELD: Fans are continuing to come to the home of Prince today, leaving messages of love for the iconic music genius.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

(MUSIC PLAYING)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Prince died Thursday morning, and it could be days, or perhaps even weeks before we learn the autopsy results. As the memorial grows outside Paisley Park, so does the tremendous outpouring of emotion from fans, celebrities, even the President of the United States. CNN's Victor Blackwell, and Stephanie Elam are at Paisley Park. And

Victor, this memorial is astounding, behind you. And Stephanie, as well, where you are, people continue to come out, talk about their stories, talk about how they're so compelled to be there.

I think so many of us who grew up with him feel a certain closeness, Victor, with him. And ...

BLACKWELL: Yeah.

WHITFIELD: ... this really is a personal loss, it really is.

BLACKWELL: And it goes beyond having a favorite song. I mean, there were messages here that were inspirational for so many people, and for so long. So when we see people here who are crying, it's not because they simply lost an icon of music -- and that he was. It was because they lost someone, potentially because he helped them. Because that message was so helpful.

And many of them have the question, Stephanie, why? How did this happen? And that's what the investigation's trying to get answers to.

STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Right, and unfortunately for fans around the world, the answers aren't going to come soon enough. Simply because, as we know, the autopsy was done yesterday, four hours long, they were there. They said they're not going to leave any stone unturned. They also are looking at evidence at the scene because of the fact that they do believe he was by himself when he passed away.

They are looking at everything here, but the time it takes to do this autopsy is one thing. But the time it takes to process all of the information that they gather from an autopsy takes about a couple of weeks, no matter who it is ...

BLACKWELL: Yeah.

ELAM: ... to get that information. But what we do know is that officials do not believe that there was any foul play. They do not believe that it was a suicide. They said they saw no trauma to Prince's body. So at least some peace there, maybe, for people. But it's not quick enough, probably, to get the results they want.

And that's part of the reason why, I think, because it was such a surprising loss, you see people coming out here today.

BLACKWELL: And then there's the video that CNN has showing Prince riding his bike around this community just days before he was found dead here. We know that there was that emergency landing, but he told people at a performance, here at Paisley Park, "don't waste your prayers on me."

So all of these elements coming together, and still no clarity. But that will come in time. And a lot of the people here, as you've spoken to some of them, are just here to, I guess remember Prince. To discuss with other fans their favorite songs. But also just to say thank you. ELAM: Just to have a moment close to someone that you revered, right? ...

BLACKWELL: Yeah.

ELAM: ... I talked to one woman who drove overnight. And she left at 11:00 last night to get here, just to be here for a minute before she drove back to her son's Senior Prom. She had to be back in time.

So you know, she drove from Illinois. You have people who feel the need to connect somehow. And I just want to play a little bit of sound for the people listening to us right now ...

BLACKWELL: M-hm.

ELAM: ... because there's one person talking about the fact that it sounds like Prince died alone. And it -- hopefully he knows what's here for him. Take a listen:

(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN: And it's sad to me also that -- it feels good that everybody is outpouring their love for him, but it's sad because it seems like, from what I understand, that he died alone. That really bums me out, it's sad. But I'm happy that he has all this. I just hope that he knew about it; everyone's love.

(END AUDIO CLIP)

ELAM: And it's really interesting when you look at this memorial. I've been here, I got here Thursday night. You look at this memorial, it continues to grow. The balloons are adding, everything in purple, people showing up in purple, bringing their children. I heard one toddler saying, "when are we going to see the Prince?" Asking their mom -- asking his mom about it.

So people feeling the need to come here in multigenerational groups. You see all walks of life here. Creeds, colors, Prince's music really did speak to people in ways that just transformed space. You know what I mean? ...

BLACKWELL: Yeah, yeah.

ELAM: ... It just wasn't in the same way that so many other things are --

BLACKWELL: It cannot be confined through genre ...

ELAM: Yes.

BLACKWELL: ... It cannot be combined to just the medium of music, because people fell -- felt it in many other ways. And not just fans, but other celebrities, other performers, are talking about what Prince meant to them, and to music at large. But listen to what Stevie Wonder told CNN.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

STEVIE WONDER, MUSICIAN: He was a great musician. He loved music, he loved playing his instrument. And the times that we did jam together were amazing. With all the various people he would bring together. And most of all, he brought all the various cultures together.

He could play classical music if he wanted to, he could play jazz if he wanted to, he could play country if he wanted to. He played rock, he played blues, he played pop, he played everything.

He was just a great musician. And very cognizant of what his responsibility was as a musician and a human being. He was incredible and I'm just glad that I was able to say to him, "I love you," the last time I saw him.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: And of course we're seeing here all the love, the outpouring of love from fans. And remember, neighbors. This is a community of about 25,000 people here. And this compound, I don't know if you could really appreciate the size of it through the lens, but it's huge, when you come here to Paisley Park --

ELAM: Inside, as well, it's huge ...

BLACKWELL: Yeah, it's a performance space, a recording space, it's his home. We're told there's a vault inside of hours and hours of unreleased music. I had the mayor of this city on earlier this morning. And he says that the city is now in talks with Prince's family to determine what they will do with this facility.

Some of the people here hope that it will be a museum, but they know that Prince was a very private person, and they don't want to violate any of that privacy. So that's still in the works. And of course, the memorial's -- the official memorials -- those are still being decided and planned --

ELAM: And the mayor of Minneapolis also saying that they have been in touch with Prince's estate long before this ...

BLACKWELL: Yeah.

ELAM: ... talking to him, talking to his people about how to memorialize him in the city. Because he is such a huge part of Minneapolis. So that will probably go hand-in-hand ...

BLACKWELL: Yeah.

ELAM: ... between Minneapolis here, and Chanhassen, where he's been living all this time. Where he could actually enjoy life and be left alone, even though he was a super, world renowned, mega-iconic superstar ...

BLACKWELL: He was also, to the people here, a neighbor. ...

ELAM: Yeah. BLACKWELL: ... Fred, we'll send it back to you ...

ELAM: Yeah.

BLACKWELL: ... and we'll continue here, from Chanhassen, later.

WHITFIELD: And you know that bit about the neighbor. That's what so extraordinary. Because you underscore how private he is. I have a cousin who lives there and I spoke with him over the past couple days. And he talked about how he has been to Paisley Park countless numbers of times. Because, "word would just get out," is the way he put it, that Prince was opening his home for a performance, unveiling something.

People would descend -- sometimes for free, sometimes you would leave a donation for one of his favorite charities. And while he was very private, at the same time, he wanted to share this gift with everyone. Which is what we've all been able to enjoy for years.

So just beautiful, personal stories that are coming out of -- what a -- a very private man, but a phenomenal, someone who left a phenomenal mark on so many of us in so many ways. We're going to check back with you guys ...

BLACKWELL: Absolutely.

WHITFIELD: ... Stephanie, Victor, thank you so much, appreciate it. And we will be right back.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PRINCE, MUSICIAN: My father left his piano at the house, when he left. And I wasn't allowed to play it when he was there. Because I wasn't as good as him. ...

UNIDENTIFIED MAN: M-hm.

PRINCE: ... So when he left, I was determined to get as good as him. I taught myself how to play music and I just stuck with it. And I did it all the time.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Oh welcome back. A manhunt is on this hour in Ohio, following the chilling, execution-style murder of a family. Police there are looking for the shooter, or shooters, who gunned down eight family members in Piketon, as they slept. That small town is about 95 miles East of Cincinnati. CNN's Nick Valencia has the latest on the investigation.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NICK VALENCIA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The search is on for the killer or killers of eight family members in Southern Ohio. Police say most were shot execution style, while they slept.

UNIDENTIFIED MAN: This is a horrible tragedy that has occurred here, in Pike County. Each one of the victims appears to have been executed. Each one of the victims appears to be shot in the head.

VALENCIA (voice-over): The seven adults, and a 16-year old boy, found dead at four crime scenes. All have been identified as members of the Rhoden family. Surviving relatives are being warned. Police suspect the victims had been targeted. But there's no apparent motive.

UNIDENTIFIED MAN: Right now we have no one in custody. I want to urge everyone to be under the understanding that there is a strong possibility that any individuals involved with this are armed and extremely dangerous.

VALENCIA (voice-over): Police say none of the victims appear to have committed suicide. The dead include a mother, killed in bed with her 4-day old child beside her. That child, along with a six-month old, and a three-year old, survived the massacre.

UNIDENTIFIED MAN: We talked to a member of the Rhoden family, and their friends actually. They were gathered at a -- in a local church, about 100 people that we met with. And we expressed directly to them, our deepest sympathy for the family. And as you can imagine, this is a very, very difficult time.

VALENCIA (voice-over): The Rhoden family is well-known in the tight- knit community. About 90 miles East of Cincinnati. Toby Smalley (ph) says he knew one of the victims.

TOBY SMALLEY (ph), FAMILY FRIEND: This is a tragedy that we've never had to go through. We've lost people through car wrecks, and cancer, and sudden death for no reason, hunting accidents. But never like this.

VALENCIA: And I just spoke exclusively on-camera with the pastor of the Rhoden family, who tells me that there are about 100 family and friends who've gathered at his church last night, to try to find answers, try to find comfort, any sort of consolation. But it's those answers that are really in short supply.

The pastor speculated that whoever did this, whoever is responsible for this ruthless and unimaginable tragedy, that they may have been stalking the family. He says that one of the victims, Dana Rhoden, left her Hillcrest nursing home job at about 11:00 p.m., last night. And it was about 7:30, 8:00 in the morning when police initially got the phone call about a mass shooting here, in this community of about 2,000 people.

That pastor went on to say that there is a drug problem in the area. He wouldn't go on to commit to saying that any of those victims had drug problems. But certainly, that is the rumor in this community right now. So far, officially, there is no motive. But we anticipate there could be a press conference later this afternoon, perhaps we'll get more answers there. As for that on-camera interview with the pastor, we'll have more from him at 3:00 p.m., Eastern, on CNN Newsroom. Fredricka?

WHITFIELD: All right, we look forward to that. Thank you so much, Nick Valencia, appreciate it.

All right, still ahead,

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MAN: I needed to switch parties. I'm tired of being blamed for all of the things for the people that don't want to get off their butt and get a job.

UNIDENTIFIED WOMAN: Donald Trump has been in real estate for so many years. And I'm quite sure he is still in real estate.

UNIDENTIFIED MAN: He's disrupted the entire system.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: CNN's Michael Smerconish talking very frankly to some of the 90,000 Pennsylvania voters who switched their registration to the GOP for the primary. Many hoping to either help or stop Donald Trump.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[11:30:27] WHITFIELD: All right, welcome back. I'm Fredricka Whitfield. So CNN host, Michael Smerconish, says he's back to being a card carrying Pennsylvania Republican, a party that he walked away from in 2010.

And he's got a lot of company, 165,000 Pennsylvania voters flipped their registration this year to vote in Tuesday's Pennsylvania primary.

To try to understand why so many people were switching their allegiance to another party, he held a focus group and here's what he heard.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MICHAEL SMERCONISH, CNN HOST, "SMERCONISH": So recognizing that you were all Democrats who have become Republicans, how many of you in either 2008 or in 2012 voted for Barack Obama? Wow! Look at -- wait a minute. Keep those hands up. So all but Joe voted for Barack Obama at least once.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: At least once.

JIM FINN, MECHANIC: I'm a middle class mechanic all my life. I've been a Democrat for over 25 years now. In the last eight years I just feel that, I don't know, I just feel that President Obama sits at his desk all day. Just with (inaudible) and everything. I just felt I needed to switch parties.

SMERCONISH: Let me ask you this, I'm not saying to lock in, but how many of you would consider voting for Hillary Clinton? UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Would consider?

SMERCONISH: Would consider voting for Hillary Clinton. To the rest, one, two, three, four, five hands. The rest of you no way, she's dead to you politically.

How many of you would consider voting for Bernie Sanders? One more hand. Now, Joe, interestingly you'd consider voting for Bernie, but not for Hillary and you're from Scranton, that's where her roots are. How come?

[11:35:03]LT. COLONEL JOSEPH ALBERT, U.S. ARMY, RETIRED: Hillary in my opinion is out for Hillary. She's been planning this for eight years. She has everything nailed. She has the experts you can buy. She's got the pledged delegates. What Donald Trump has done is disrupted the entire system.

SMERCONISH: Clark, what are you thinking?

CLARK DELEON, COLUMNIST: I don't think Donald Trump really wants to be president to govern the nation. I think he wants to run for president. I think that we're going to learn at the end it's a $1 bet between him and another rich guy, just like trading places.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: All right, let's talk more about this with our political panel, Marc Lamont Hill, a CNN political commentator and professor at Morehouse College, and Larry Sabato is director of the Center for Politics at the University of Virginia. All right, good to see you both.

Let's start with what we heard, thousands are flipping to the Republican Party for the primary. Is this a wake-up call perhaps, Marc, for Democrats in Pennsylvania or is this strictly just the Trump effect at work?

MARC LAMONT HILL, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: I think it's a wake-up call for everybody. Republicans have to be careful as well. People are switching to the Republican Party so they can vote against Donald Trump or for Donald Trump.

It says something to the party. I think in party honcho was about what the voters want, what the voters desire and what the voters need.

On the other side, I do think it's important to hear what people are saying about Hillary Clinton. Some of this I find a bit unfair. You got a respondent saying Hillary Clinton has been planning to be president for years. Everybody plans to be president for years.

No one wakes up and says I'm going to decide to run for president today. It's always a lifelong planning or at least a decade long planning. So I think they are being rough on Hillary on that issue.

But I do think the fact that Hillary is not resonating with people and that Bernie may not seem like a viable option to some of these voters is something instructive to Democrats.

WHITFIELD: So Larry, this really is a remarkable thing, is it not, when we hear that some people are registering for a party to vote somebody out, to make sure -- you know, they're playing this like a chess game. I don't recall there have been too many races to the White House like this where people are using their vote in a calculated way as opposed to saying I'm voting for the person that I want.

LARRY SABATO, DIRECTOR, UVA'S CENTER FOR POLITICS: You know, Fred, the voters have now become pundits. They all analyze the elections and they analyze their own vote. There are a lot of cross currents in this election, and I'll admit it's a highly unusual election.

I do want to put it in context though, Fred. The context is that 125,000 switches, which sounds like a lot, is minuscule. In Pennsylvania, you will have millions and millions of votes in the fall.

This is not that significant. It's interesting and it's fun. I'd like for that gentleman to be proven true. I'd love to have a "trading places" phenomenon here. It would keep us all busy for years talking about it, but I don't think this is significant as it might appear on the surface.

WHITFIELD: OK, you know, Marc, President Obama is overseas in Great Britain wrapping up his trip there. But before doing so, he told a group of young leaders about the lessons of change. Remember, he ran on change and he was impressing upon them not to be pessimistic about change. This is what he said exactly.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: Change takes time and often times what you start has to then be picked up by your successors or the next generation. I consider myself a runner, and I run my leg of the race but then I've got a baton and I'm passing it on to the next person.

And hopefully they're running in the right direction as opposed to the wrong direction and hopefully they don't drop the baton and then they go and then they pass it on to somebody else. And that's how I think you've got to think about change generally.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: So, Marc, while he's talking to the British audience, he knows this message is global. He's also talking to the U.S. audience. Do you think that he intended to be sending a message to American audiences as well?

HILL: Absolutely. And the president hasn't been particularly shy about saying that the current crop of Republican candidates isn't a very good one in his estimation. He's talked about the tone of their language. He's talked about the content of their message. And he feels very strongly and Vice President Biden has said the same thing, that the Democratic pool is a stronger pool and one that will continue to move America forward.

Now whether you agree or disagree with that is a different issue, but this is not new. The president now is sort of signifying through media or something that he said very explicitly over the last few months.

WHITFIELD: All right, Marc, Larry, we're going to leave it right there. Thank you so much, Gentlemen. Appreciate it.

Still ahead, remembering the legacy of Prince. I'm joined by gospel singer, Bebe Winans to talk about several conversations that he actually had with the purple highness about music and how music is impacting the world.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[11:43:45]

WHITFIELD: He's indeed a perfect storm of conservative Christianity and unbridled sexual energy known for his belting sound and his sensual lyrics. Prince has always said the news behind his music is his faith. So it's no wonder that he had an impact in the world of gospel music as well.

Joining me right now is one of gospel's greatest and Prince's friend, Bebe Winans. What a great it is for you to be here and to reflect on just really this powerful force.

You had the pleasure of knowing him. Before we went on I was telling you I never met him, but I feel there was a connection because I grew up with his music --

BEBE WINANS, GOSPEL RECORDING ARTIST: You feel you know him.

WHITFIELD: Tell me the impact.

WINANS: That to me is the beauty of someone like Prince and Natalie Cole and others that we've lost. They leave us with this joy of music and music has a way of -- we see our lives through their music.

I'm a big Prince fan, have never met them and one day I'm going into this building and I saw this person walk away from the entrance, he had a powder blue suit on and I said that looked like Prince, but I kept on going. He was fashion.

[11:45:07]And then I heard my name called and out comes out of the car comes Prince. You know, that right there said something to me about his character, that he would think enough to come out of his car instead of calling me to his.

So honest in what our music meant to him and how much he enjoyed us and in return you're like you never know who is listening. And it was a pleasure. A couple of times we had a chance to sit and talk. Just an incredible guy.

WHITFIELD: That's incredible because there are so many musicians, musical artists, who talk about he would want to talk about the craft, about the guitar, about a certain rift, very specific.

So when you talk to him about music, how do you have a conversation about the music? Was it about, you know, writing music? Was it about performing? Just give me a little taste of what that conversation would be about between the two of you.

WINANS: You see with me and him, lyrics, being a songwriter, lyrics is very important. So to tell a story was very important to him. So he was -- he was such a prolific writer. So to sit and talk to him about what this song meant to him and why he did this, and wasn't afraid of --

I heard so many people he was a risk taker and he was. You know, even though he had a hit with this, he didn't mind turning in a corner and go in this direction because he felt he had the ability, but beyond the ability the responsibility to speak about things that other people wouldn't speak about.

WHITFIELD: My gosh, so true. He really was breaking barriers for a lot of things. This was an artist who surrounded himself once we saw him in a public way sharing the stage, a lot of his musicians were women.

He was ground breaking in that way in in involving musicians who did not necessarily represent kind of the cookie cutter, right, of rock, of pop music, et cetera.

How else did you see him as being a ground breaker in other realms of music? We talk about the sexuality of music, yes.

WINANS: But for me and for the artist, we cheered him on because it wasn't just for him. When he decided he was going to own his talent, he was going to own his masters and he was going to take, you know, authority of who he was, it wasn't just for him but it was for us.

WHITFIELD: That was a big fight.

WINANS: It was a big fight, you know. So we celebrate him in that because with him taking that lead, it broke down the doors for us. So Prince was unselfish. It wasn't just about him. It was about all of us, you know. So we appreciate that and we celebrate him, you know, this day and for the rest of our lives.

WHITFIELD: We really do. We're all celebrating in so many different ways. I'm a huge Prince fan. I have a giant collection.

WINANS: I see you have purple on.

WHITFIELD: I brought in some of my CDs, we have LPs, cassette players because my first car had a cassette. I have a number of favorites from "Do Me, Baby" and "Diamonds and Pearls." Do you have a favorite? Do you have music your family would allow to you play? WINANS: You know, my brother, we celebrate Whitney as well but one of the things, my father would never allow anything other than gospel in our household so my brother would change lyrics.

One of the songs that he changed the lyrics to, first thing that came to my mind is we would sing latter rain, let it rain, let it rain, Lord, we want you need you asking you to send your rain so instead of purple rain, we sang let it rain

WHITFIELD: It's so beautiful. Thank you so much, Bebe Winans.

WINANS: Thank you. We want Him to continue to send those blessings to his family and to all the world.

WHITFIELD: You said it so perfectly.

WINANS: Thank you.

WHITFIELD: Thank you. We're all shedding this purple tears. Can't stop.

WINANS: We will always carry him here.

WHITFIELD: Thank you so much. We'll be right back. Bebe Winans, it's great to see you.

WINANS: Always, always.

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[11:53:17]

WHITFIELD: All right. Welcome back. Loved ones want to know why a 16-year-old honor roll student died after a brawl in a high school bathroom. Friends of Amy Joiner Francis say she was special and had a bright future ahead of her. They gathered for a vigil at her school in Wilmington, Delaware.

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She was very special to a lot of people, not only to me but to a lot of people.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She was only 16. She didn't really deserve this.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Officials say there was an altercation that initially started between two people and then others may have joined in ganging up on one person.

Our Rachel Crane is following this story. Rachel, are they any closer to finding out exactly what happened, why she died and will there be any charges?

RACHEL CRANE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Fred, there are still lots of questions surrounding what caused this fight. Now, some students are saying that it was about a boy. While other students are saying that is not the case.

What we do know is that this is an ongoing investigation and that police questioned two students and an autopsy is being performed. Now, the fight broke out at around 8:15 on Thursday morning, just as classes were starting.

And Amy experienced serious injuries and was air lifted to a local children's hospital. Now, there has been an outpouring of love and support and grief from the community, family, loved ones. Listen to what one of them had so say.

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SHERRY DORSEY WALKER, FAMILY SPOKESWOMAN: She was a wonderful young lady and the fact that she's gone, it really affects us tremendously. She made a huge difference in society and we need more young people like that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[11:55:00]CRANE: Now, this outpouring of love and support has also hit social media. The #justiceforamy has had over a thousand posts on Twitter and also on Instagram. And a person close to the family said that she's on the honor role. She was an incredible student, she was the manager of the wrestling team and she will be incredibly missed.

WHITFIELD: So tragic, terrible. All right. Thank you so much, Rachel Crane. I know everybody wants to get to the bottom of that. It's really inexplicable.

All right, much more straight ahead in the NEWSROOM next.

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WHITFIELD: All right. Live pictures right now at Paisley Park in Minnesota where the late Prince is being remembered today and every day since his passing on Thursday. Hello again everyone. I'm Fredricka Whitfield.

VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN ANCHOR: I'm Victor Blackwell live outside of Prince's home. This was also the place where he created those classics. This is where he performed, opened his home to the community here, to the larger Chanhassen and Minneapolis community.

A lot of the people here are not just fans, they are also neighbors. We are seeing the largest crowd of the last three days. Hundreds of people here bringing balloons, bringing cards and just speaking with other fans who are remembering an icon.

We'll tell you more about what's happening here and the investigation as to how he died, Fred. We'll be back with you in a moment.

WHITFIELD: All right, thanks so much, Victor. We'll check back with you. Appreciate it.