Return to Transcripts main page
CNN Newsroom
Nomination Path Clear, Trump Shifts Focus; Trump System Is Rigged, Went For "Knockout"; Clinton: Trump Has Said Many Questionable Things; U.N. Official: "Life For People In Aleppo Is Horrendous"; U.S. Defense Secretary: Ending Syrian War Of "Desperate Importance"; Greeks Playing A Key Role In Helping Refugees; Forced To Dance For The "Angel Of Death"; North Korea To Hold First Party Congress In 36 Years. Aired 2-3a ET
Aired May 05, 2016 - 02:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(HEADLINES)
[02:01:31] ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN ANCHOR: Hello and welcome to our viewers all around the world. I'm Rosemary Church. This is CNN NEWSROOM.
The path is now clear for Donald Trump to win the Republican presidential nomination. So his focus is now shifting to the general election in November.
Jim Acosta reports possible running mates are under consideration.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JIM ACOSTA, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Donald Trump is the last man standing.
DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: It's a beautiful thing to watch and a beautiful thing to behold and we're going to make America great again.
ACOSTA: After a convincing win in Indiana, Trump's road to the White House just got a lot less congested with John Kasich dropping out of the race.
JOHN KASICH (R), FORMER U.S. REPUBLICAN PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: As I suspend my campaign today, I have renewed faith, deeper faith that the Lord will show me the way forward and fulfill the purpose of my life.
ACOSTA: The sudden departures of Kasich and Ted Cruz --
SENATOR TED CRUZ (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: We gave it everything we've got.
ACOSTA: -- now present a new challenge for Trump, to unite a Republican Party that is deeply divided. A task made more difficult by the presumptive GOP nominee, who angered many in the party when he speculated that Cruz's father was involved in the Kennedy assassination, an outrageous and unsubstantiated claim ripped right out of the "National Enquirer." Trump still not offering an apology.
WOLF BLITZER, CNN HOST, "THE SITUATION ROOM": You don't believe in that conspiracy --
TRUMP: Of course, I don't. I wouldn't believe it, but I did say let people read it.
ACOSTA: A key Trump adviser conceded Cruz would likely need some space before he speaks with the real estate tycoon.
BARRY BENNETT, SENIOR ADVISER, TRUMP CAMPAIGN: It's certainly not going to be today, but we've just got to move past the primary. In the heat of battle people say things on all sides.
ACOSTA: Moving on, Trump has begun looking for a vice presidential running mate. A Trump source tells CNN Ohio Senator Rob Portman, New Mexico Governor Susanna Martinez, and South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley are the early favorites inside the campaign as they'd be on anybody's short list.
Trump's daughter Ivanka is expected to offer her input on the process, which is in its early stages. But all three potential running mates mentioned, Martinez, Portman, and Haley, say they're not interested.
With the South Carolina governor adding in a statement, "my plate is full." Still Trump wants to pick a politician, telling CNN's Wolf Blitzer Kasich is also on his list.
TRUMP: I would be interested in vetting John. I like John. I've had a good relationship with John. I've gotten along with him well.
ACOSTA: Trump is boldly predicting he will beat Hillary Clinton in traditionally Democratic strongholds like New York. But he won't have the support of the anti-Trump "New York Daily News," which welcomed his victory with a picture of an elephant in a coffin.
RNC Chairman Reince Priebus told CNN Trump will actually help the GOP.
REINCE PRIEBUS, REPUBLICAN NATIONAL COMMITTEE CHAIRMAN: You know what? I think something different and something new is probably good for our party.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ACOSTA: Trump is still planning to campaign in the states that are holding primaries in the coming weeks to focus his attention on Hillary Clinton. And Team Trump is enjoying the fact that he's driven off his rivals before Clinton has. As one Trump surrogate put it, who would have thought that we would have a nominee before the Democrats? Jim Acosta, CNN, New York.
CHURCH: And Donald Trump talked with Wolf Blitzer about his plans for a running mate, his complaints about the nominating system, and his controversial call for a temporary ban on Muslims entering the United States.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BLITZER: Give me the qualifications you're looking for a vice presidential running mate.
TRUMP: Well, you always have to say the same boring answer that probably everybody has given to you from day one. They have to be a great president, potentially have to be a great president. So that's always the number one --
BLITZER: But that is the most important fact. You need somebody -- God forbid if the president --
TRUMP: They're there for that reason primarily, but I would want somebody who would help me from a legislative standpoint, getting things passed through Senate, through Congress. And to me that's why I think probably in terms of vice president, I'm going to go the political route. I don't need the business route. I've got that covered.
BLITZER: Recent weeks and months in fact you've suggested the system is rigged. The Republican system --
TRUMP: A 100 percent.
BLITZER: You still believe that?
TRUMP: Sure, 100 percent.
BLITZER: But you got the nomination.
TRUMP: I don't mind. The only way I got it, I went for the knockout. When I saw these folks going out and getting delegates and they're whining and dining people and bringing them to hotels and paying for hotel rooms. It's a bad system. It's a crooked system. And by the way, Bernie Sanders' system, that's also rigged. That's why he wins and he doesn't get anything out of it.
[02:05:06]BLITZER: But those are the rules.
TRUMP: They're not the rules. It's a dishonest system and who gives out the super delegates? In terms of the Democrats, who gives out the super delegates? The bosses give out the super delegates.
BLITZER: How are you going to work closely with our allies in the Muslim world if you still want this temporary ban on Muslims coming to the United States until the U.S. can figure out what's going on in the war on terror?
TRUMP: Whether or not we have a temporary ban or whether we work over in the Middle East with our Muslim friends -- and I have Muslim friends -- I just had one left my office, a very successful person from the Middle East. Just looked at me and said Donald, what you're doing is so right. You're informing the world of a problem that we have to solve.
BLITZER: He agrees with you that all Muslims should be banned? TRUMP: Many Muslims do.
BLITZER: So you're sticking with this temporary ban?
TRUMP: Until we figure out what's going on. We have to be very tough. We have to be very vigilant. Yes.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHURCH: And Democratic frontrunner, Hillary Clinton, talked with Anderson Cooper about challenging Trump in the general election.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON COOPER, CNN HOST, "AC 360": Are you ready for Donald Trump? He's already got an unflattering nickname for you. He's unlike any other candidate probably certainly you've ever run against. Anybody's seen in a long time.
HILLARY CLINTON (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: You know, Anderson, I've seen the presidency up close from two different perspectives and I think I know what it takes and I don't think we can take a risk on a loose cannon like Donald Trump running our country.
Donald Trump has said it's OK for other countries to get nuclear weapons. I think that's just downright dangerous. He has said wages are too high. I think we need to have a raise for the American people, raise the minimum wage, and get wages back going up.
I think when he says women should be punished for having abortions that is just beyond anything I could imagine, I think most women can imagine.
COOPER: He did walk that back.
CLINTON: Well, he's a loose cannon. I mean, he's somebody who has said so many things and I'm sure he'll be scrambling and his advisers will be scrambling. But he's already said all of these things. He said climate change is a Chinese hoax. And I think it's real.
And we've got to pull the world together to deal with it. So you can go down a long list, some of which he's tried to Bob and weave a little bit. But I think it's a risk. I think he's a loose cannon and loose cannons tend to misfire.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHURCH: All right. Let's turn to the war in Syria now. A top U.N. official says intentional attacks on hospitals and using starvation as a weapon amounts to war crimes. The undersecretary for political affairs tells the Security Council those responsible should be referred to the International Criminal Court.
He made those comments after the U.S. and Russia agreed to extend the cessation of hostilities to Aleppo. One human rights group says the ongoing clashes there between the army and rebels are the fiercest they've been in a year.
Here's how another U.N. official described the conditions there.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
STEPHEN O'BRIEN, U.N. UNDERSECRETARY GENERAL FOR HUMANITARIAN AFFAIRS: Life for people in Aleppo is horrendous and has lost all sense. Access to basic and essential services such as water and electricity are sporadic at best. People are living under daily threat and terror. Those who remain in Eastern Aleppo roughly 300,000 people live in constant fear over the next attack from the air including from barrel bombs.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: The U.S. defense secretary sat down for an exclusive interview with our chief international correspondent, Christiane Amanpour. She asked Ash Carter whether he sees any similarities between Aleppo and the Balkans war of the 1990s.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: When I see Syria, I see a much worse version of Bosnia. When I see Aleppo, I see a maybe much worse version of Srebrenica. Is the United States prepared to see another Srebrenica? People are very concerned that Aleppo is going to be taken by Assad backed by the Russians with a wholesale slaughter of civilians.
ASH CARTER, U.S. DEFENSE SECRETARY: I was in the Pentagon on the day that Srebrenica was taken. I remember that tragic day and this is why putting an end to the Syrian civil war is of such desperate importance. These people have suffered a great deal and you don't want to see that happen again in Aleppo.
That's why I think what John Kerry's doing in trying to get a political settlement to this long-standing -- I know it's difficult, but he's doing an excellent job of it. And I don't want to speak for him.
Now he's in the middle of those negotiations. But he's highly aware, we're all highly aware of the human tragedy associated with the Syrian civil war.
AMANPOUR: You say he's doing an excellent job. In April, more civilians were killed in Syria under a ceasefire than in the five years of the war.
[02:10:09]My question to you is we are sitting here and talking to your military counterparts, do you feel that an offensive, an Assad backed by Russia offensive is coming to Aleppo to seize that city? Is that what you see happening?
CARTER: Well, I can't say that. I can't say that. But I'm sure Secretary Kerry would be a better person to pose that question to, but you talk about the Russians operating with Assad. One of the tragedies of this situation over the last year has been that the Russians entered the Syrian situation. They said to help resolve the Syrian civil war. But that's not what they did. They backed Assad, which fuels the civil war.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHURCH: Ash Carter there with our Christiane Amanpour.
Well, Russia has drawn down some of its forces from Syria, but its fighter jets are still in the air. They have been flying dozens of missions there. Frederick Pleitgen has been traveling with Russian troops in Syria and has more now from Latakia in northwestern Syria.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice- over): Russia's air force still flying missions at a high pace. We saw more than a dozen strike aircraft and fighters take off within only a few hours. A top Russian general says they're intensifying pressure on ISIS.
"Russian aviation was at work today in Raqqah," he says, "also in central Syria and Der Azor." In total, Russian aviation carried out 87 sorties in the past four days.
While the Russian Air Force has withdrawn several aircraft in the past month, it's ramped up other assets, deploying advanced MI-28 gunships that have already seen combat action.
(on camera): Despite Russia's announcement that it would withdraw most of its forces here from Syria, they maintain a fleet of strike aircraft and fighter jets showing that Russia is still very much capable of playing a decisive role in the Syria conflict.
(voice-over): The Russians took us to what they say was the signing of a local reconciliation agreement near the town of Hamah. Russian military brass say they're working closely with the U.S. to also make a ceasefire in Aleppo work, to finally halt the bloodshed there.
The general says so far cooperation with the U.S. has been positive. "The coordination of our air operations is going well," he says, "in the past month of national reconciliation, frank and professional contacts have been established. We share a lot of information."
On May 9th Russia will mark its national holiday, marking the defeat of Nazi Germany. A parade will also be held at the air base, even featuring Syrian troops. But while Russia celebrates past victories, a clear end to its intervention in Syria's civil war still seems elusive. Fred Pleitgen, CNN, at the Hameimi Air Base in Syria.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHURCH: We are now seeing some of a fierce 12-hour firefight in Iraq that led to the death of a U.S. Navy SEAL. The "Guardian" newspaper exclusively obtained this video from that firefight.
(VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: The Pentagon says 31-year-old Navy SEAL Charles Keating was killed while helping to rescue U.S. military advisers in that attack. More than 100 ISIS fighters and 20 vehicles raided a Kurdish Peshmerga checkpoint aiming to capture the town of Telskof. The Peshmerga are now back in control of that town.
Well, she was a young girl trapped in the Auschwitz concentration camp.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Even though I was told every day you're never going to get out of here alive, the only way you get out of here is as a corpse, and I said to myself, oh, yes? I know better.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: Up next, this courageous survivor shares the horror of her encounters with the camp's angel of death.
Plus, firefighters in Canada wrestle with a huge wildfire as it forces the evacuation of an entire city. We'll be right back with more when we come back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[02:16:52]
KATE RILEY, CNN SPORTS: I'm Kate Riley with your CNN World Sport headlines. Real Madrid will yet again face local rivals Athletico in European football's showcase event. Real and Mann City played out a goalless draw in the first leg of the semifinal and there would be only one goal in this one.
Twenty minutes in Gareth Bale's strike deflected off Fernando for what would be proving to be the winning goal. Real will hope to replicate their success against Athletico in the champion's league as they beat them in the final two years ago and knocked them out of the 2015 quarterfinals.
Chelsea and Tottenham have both been charged by England's Football Association with failing to control their players and staff. It follows the ugly melee at the end of Monday's match at the end of Stamford Bridge.
Spurs threw away a two-goal lead to concede the title to Leicester City. Tottenham in fielder Musa Dembele is the only individual named after replays seem to show him poking Diego Costa in the eye.
And we're now just three months away from the opening ceremony for the Rio Olympics and there's more bad news. For the credibility of drug testing facilities across the world.
South Africa's doping control laboratory has become the fourth lab in the last month to be suspended. An appeal can now be made within 21 days of the lab being notified. That's a look at all your sports headlines. I'm Kate Riley.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHURCH: Welcome back, everyone. The Canadian province of Alberta is under a state of emergency. A huge wildfire ripping through the region has forced some 88,000 people from their homes. The entire city of Fort McMurray has been evacuated. The fire has scorched about 100 square kilometers since it started on Sunday. Fierce winds are fueling the flames, making it hard for firefighters to get it under control.
Several European countries are rejecting an EU proposal designed to ease the migrant crisis. The proposal would require member countries to accept a certain number of asylum seekers under a quota system and imposed large fines for countries that don't fully participate. Hungary's foreign minister was among those who lashed out at the plan.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PETER SJIZZATO, HUNGARIAN FOREIGN MINISTER: It's a blackmailing. It's unacceptable and non-European type from the commission. It's simply blackmailing. The quota concept is a dead end street. And I would like to ask the commission not to run into this dead end street anymore. Quota decision has been made by breaking European regulations. It's against common sense.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
[02:20:05]CHURCH: Greece's economic crisis has made it difficult for the government to meet the needs of the thousands of refugees stranded on its shores. However, every day ordinary Greeks are stepping in to assist people fleeing from wars and persecution in the most extraordinary ways.
CNN's Nima Elbagir introduces us to one woman not afraid to help.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): We were five children and our parents. They burned down everything. We had nothing left only the clothes we were sleeping with. I understand the pain these people feel.
NIMA ELBAGIR, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): She's 82 years old. She's called mama by almost everyone who's met her. She's lived in the tiny Greek town of Edemene for most of her life except for the darkest days of the Nazi occupation of Greece. That's why she says when Syrian refugees knocked on her door she couldn't turn away.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): I have been through all of it. If you haven't, you cannot feel for them. I went through it, and I know.
ELBAGIR: Two men staying with her agreed to speak to us. They may be far from the ravages of Syria but neither of them give us their names. There are still family members at home whom they believe could be harmed by the Syrian regime.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): Not just any person would open up their home. Not just any person. Given the war we have come from, most people would think we are a violent people but she found it in herself to do this. It has lifted our spirits, given us hope that we can live with normal people in spite of what we've seen.
ELBAGIR: The future for these young men and the almost 10,000 other refugees in Edemene is bitterly uncertain. Once the gateway to the Balkan moved into Western Europe with the shutting of the Macedonian border, Edemene, they tell us has become a purgatory.
This young woman says they queue for hours for food. Another young man angrily describes the relentless rain and cold. Greece is in the grip of an economic crisis that even as the country teeters on the brink of economic collapse everyday citizens are attempting to do what they can.
(on camera): How long do you think you're going to continue to do this? How long do you think you'll be able to continue to do this?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): I wish I was younger and with more money and take with me half the camp and look after them. The issue won't be resolved with only five of them being taken care of. They were the lucky ones.
ELBAGIR (voice-over): Mama Panapiota knows what she does with the help of her family and neighbors can never be enough. Selua's family like the refugees who live with Mama Panapiota are grateful to the Greek family who allow them shelter in a disused garage. But it doesn't take away the sting of their European dream, turned to dust.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): This is an embarrassment for Europe. Where is the respect for human rights? My child is crying at 3:00 in the morning because he's hungry and there's nothing I can do.
ELBAGIR: Nima Elbagir, CNN, Edemene, Greece.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHURCH: Just over 30 minutes from now, sirens will sound around Israel for Holocaust Remembrance Day. It honors the six million Jews the Nazis killed during World War II. Israeli leaders attended a national memorial ceremony Wednesday in Jerusalem. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed there will never be another holocaust.
An Auschwitz survivor who was just a teenager during the war says she was forced to dance for the man who became known as the angel of death. She shares her horrors and triumphs with our Ivan Watson.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I had my 17th birthday in Auschwitz.
IVAN WATSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Edith Eva Eger is a survivor.
DR. EDITH EVA EGER, HOLOCAUST SURVIVOR: Even though I was told every day you're never going to get out of here alive, the only way you get out of here is as a corpse. And I said to myself, oh, yes? I know better.
WATSON: In Hitler's death camps she witnessed the worst of humanity and yet somehow 71 years later she continues to focus on the brighter side of life.
EGER: I want to have a full life. Not to be damaged goods.
WATSON: Eger was only a teenager and already an accomplished ballet dancer and gymnast when Hungarian Nazis rounded up her family because they were Jews. They ended up packed in a train headed for the Auschwitz concentration camp in Nazi-occupied Poland.
[02:25:08]EGER: My mom had me in the cattle car and said we don't know where we're going. We don't know what's going to happen. Just remember, no one can take away from you what you put here in your own mind.
WATSON: Upon arrival, Eger says her mother and father were immediately ordered into the gas chambers by Dr. Josef Mengele, a camp medical officer who became known as the angel of death.
EGER: And I followed my mom and Dr. Mengele grabbed me. I never forget that eye contact. And he said, you're going to see your mother soon. She's just going to take a shower.
WATSON: Eger's parents were murdered in the gas chambers of Auschwitz, along with hundreds of thousands of others. But that wasn't Eger's last encounter with one of the holocaust's worst war criminals.
EGER: Dr. Mengele came to the barracks and wanted to be entertained.
WATSON: The ballerina was ordered to dance for the man who murdered her parents.
EGER: And I was so scared. So I closed my eyes and I pretended that the music was Tchaikovsky and I was dancing to Romeo and Juliet in the Budapest Opera House.
WATSON: Somehow Eger survived Auschwitz as well as disease, death marches, and slave labor.
EGER: When my little girl was born, and there is the baby here --
WATSON: A year after being rescued by U.S. soldiers, Eger married another Jewish survivor of the war and soon after the young family emigrated to the U.S., where eventually she embarked on an entirely new career.
EGER: And you're in very, very, very challenging times. WATSON: She became a clinical psychologist specializing in the treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder. Now 88, she draws from her own traumatic experiences to help treat patients at her home in California.
(on camera): They are not grandchildren. They're --
EGER: Great grandchildren.
WATSON: Great grandchildren.
(voice-over): The former ballerina's great grandchildren are her greatest pride and joy.
EGER: Four generations. That's the best revenge to Hitler I can think of. Yes. I'm here. I'm here and I'm so happy that I'm able to talk to you.
WATSON: Ivan Watson, CNN, La Jolla, California.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHURCH: And a warm welcome back to CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Rosemary Church. It's time of course to check the main stories we've been following this hour.
A state of emergency has been declared in Alberta, Canada as crews struggle to tame an enormous wildfire about 88,000 people have been forced from their homes including everyone in the city of Fort McMurray. Flames have destroyed at least 1,600 structures.
The U.S. and Russia have agreed to extend the cessation of hostilities to the Syrian city of Aleppo. Clashes there between rebels and the army have been described as the fiercest in a year. The U.S. says the violence continues in Aleppo but has decreased.
Japanese parts maker, Takata, is recalling up to 40 million more air bags in the U.S. over fears they could explode. At least ten deaths in the U.S. have been linked to the faulty bags. And Honda says Takata's air bag inflators ruptured in two car crashes in Malaysia recently, killing two people. Those incidents are being investigated.
Well, North Korea's state-run newspaper is heaping praise on the country's leader one day before the biggest political gathering in 36 years. The paper calls Kim Jong-Un, a great son of the 21st century. He's had North Koreans working almost nonstop to get ready for Friday's ruling party congress. Will Ripley reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
WILL RIPLEY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Pyongyang's morning commute begins an hour early these days. Loudspeakers wake people up at 5:00 a.m. instead of 6:00. The usual six-day workweek now seven. North Korea nearing the end of what they call a 70-day battle, preparing for a once in a generation political gathering.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We do best for the building the thriving country.
RIPLEY: She says she hasn't taken a day off in more than two months. She's a full-time tour guide and on a work crew refurbishing Kim Il- Sung's Stadium, one of countless improvement projects in a 70-day national campaign.
(on camera): Everything we're seeing right now here in Pyongyang is the result of months of work. From the rehearsals for the mass demonstrations that will take place to the tens of thousands of flowers that are planted along every boulevard.
Now that the international media has been invited in, the North Korean government wants to make sure that every detail is picture perfect.
(voice-over): Millions of North Koreans acting on orders from their highest authority.
HYON UN MI, PYONGYANG RESIDENT: Leader Kim Jong-Un is our father just like our father and just like mother.
RIPLEY: The supreme leader wasn't even born when the last party congress happened 36 years ago, but ahead of his own gathering repeated shows of force. A purported H-bomb test in January, a satellite launch in February.
And this submarine missile launch last month along with three apparent mid-range missile test failures, triggering international condemnation and some of the strongest U.N. sanctions ever.
But each successful test also allows the young leader to project power at home. Ahead of North Korea's most important political gathering since 1980, 3,000 party members arriving in Pyongyang for Friday's seventh Workers' Party Congress.
(on camera): This reads "great party motherly party" and it's one of literally hundreds of political banners that have gone up all over Pyongyang. You can't turn a corner here without a reminder of what's happening this week.
(voice-over): Observers believe Kim will use the congress to consolidate his power and reinforce his plan, defying the international community by continuing to grow his nuclear arsenal while also trying to grow the North Korean economy despite crippling international sanctions.
[02:35:01]Many outsiders doubt the two goals are compatible and say they'll only lead to further isolation and hardship. But inside this tightly controlled world doubt is not an option. All people can do is keep working. Will Ripley, CNN, Pyongyang.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHURCH: There is no denying this Republican campaign season in the U.S. has been unlike any other. Here is a look at how Donald Trump's candidacy has been viewed with disbelief, outrage, and eventually for some acceptance.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't think anyone predicted what happened.
SENATOR TED CRUZ (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Donald Trump will not be the nominee.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He's leading right now.
CRUZ: Donald Trump will not be the nominee.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Will you support him if he's the nominee?
CRUZ: Donald Trump will not be the nominee.
DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Kasich. You know, the man eats with large bites.
JEB BUSH (R), FORMER PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: He's a chaos candidate and he'd be chaos president.
TRUMP: Little Marco.
BUSH: You're never going to be president of the United States by insulting your way to the presidency.
TRUMP: I'm at 42 and you're at 3 so, so far I'm doing better.
BUSH: It doesn't matter.
TRUMP: Lying' Ted.
CRUZ: This man is a pathological liar. He combines it with being a narcissist.
TRUMP: I cannot believe how civil it's been up here.
GOVERNOR CHRIS CHRISTIE (R), FORMER PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Showtime is over, everybody. We are not electing an entertainer in chief. I am proud to be here to endorse Donald Trump for president of the United States.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If you nominate Trump and Cruz, I think you get the same outcome. You know, whether it's death by being shot or poisoning, does it really matter?
TRUMP: Many, many people are calling that you wouldn't even believe and they're saying we'd love to get on the train, the Trump train but we'd love to get on the team.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're here. We're going to get behind the presumptive nominee. It's pretty obvious that Donald Trump is going to get to 1,237. (END VIDEOTAPE)
CHURCH: Some Republicans now say they are leaving the party as a result of Trump becoming the presumptive nominee. Just take a look at this tweet from Philip Klein. It reads, "I have officially deregistered as a Republican" and includes a photo of him changing the form.
Now, Mr. Klein joins us now. He is a senior writer for the "Washington Examiner" and author of the books "Conservative Survival in the Romney Era" and "Overcoming Obamacare." Thank you, sir, for talking with us.
PHILIP KLEIN, SENIOR WRITER, "THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER": Thank you for having me.
CHURCH: So what is it about Trump that has moved you to take such extreme action to leave the Republican Party?
KLEIN: Well, to be clear, I'm not a professional Republican. I'm a conservative who has a particular set of ideas having to do with constitutional government, limiting control of the state.
And so as a result of that the Republican Party to me is more of a tool or a vehicle to advance a set of ideas that I happen to agree with. And to the extent that it does not do that, it has no use to me.
And Donald Trump has rejected those viewpoints. He's gone in a different direction. He's no conservative. And on top of that I don't think he's a serious person who can be trusted with the highest office in the land.
And so the Republican Party has decided to make him their standard bearer. That's their prerogative, but I just don't want to be a part of it.
CHURCH: How many more Republicans do you think feel the same way about Trump as you do?
KLEIN: I mean, it's hazardous to say. If you go by social media then certainly there are a lot of people on Twitter and writing and so forth, talking about how they'd never vote for Trump. It's difficult to say how that translates into the average voter.
What we saw in the primaries was that there was a clear disconnect between conservatism as most people who write about conservatism define it. The sort of limited government conservatism that's been a constant since Ronald Reagan and goes back to Barry Goldwater.
However, Trump rejected that vision for the Republican Party and he still won. So maybe it's only a small segment of people. Either way for my own self I could not in good conscience support Donald Trump or be part of any party that would adopt him as their nominee.
[02:40:07]CHURCH: All right. So difficult to quantify. What does this mean, though, about your voting intentions for the general election, could Hillary Clinton perhaps get your vote as some other Republicans have suggested they might do?
KLEIN: No. I'm also in the never Hillary camp. I think Hillary Clinton is corrupt. I disagree with her on virtually every issue. So I'm in the boat that if there's some sort of third-party candidate that emerges who I think worthy of a vote I'd consider voting for that person or else I'll just sit this election out. But I'm not going to vote for Trump.
CHURCH: Philip Klein, thank you so much for talking with us. We do appreciate it.
KLEIN: Thank you.
CHURCH: And we'll take a very short break here. Still to come, in Flint, Michigan the U.S. president takes a sip of water. Why that was such a big deal to some and why a famous filmmaker says it's too little too late?
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHURCH: This is the moment Barack Obama met an 8-year-old girl known as Little Miss Flint. In March, Mari Copeny wrote a letter to the president telling him she was concerned about the lead water contamination in her city, Flint, Michigan.
In return, Mr. Obama promised to meet with her and there it is. And in his first visit to FLint since the water crisis started, Mr. Obama took a sip of what he says was filtered tap water, insisting it is safe to drink.
But he also said the children of Flint should be tested for lead. The crisis there started when the city's water supply was changed to cut costs and lead from old pipes leached into the water supply.
[02:45:12]Mr. Obama said that it would take more than two years to replace the city's pipe system.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: I also wanted to come here, though, to tell you that I've got your back. That we're paying attention. I will not rest and I'm going to make sure that the leaders at every level of government don't rest until every drop of water that flows to your homes is safe to drink and safe to cook with and safe to bathe in because that's part of the basic responsibilities of a government in the United States of America.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: Too little too late. That's what one of flint's most famous former residents had to say about the president's visit. Acclaimed documentary filmmaker, Michael Moore, is condemning officials over how they handled the crisis. Moore, who says he voted for Mr. Obama, demanded changes. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAEL MOORE, FILMMAKER: We need President Obama to step up and do something. Right now. Not just tell us how he's got our back and he feels bad for us and look, I'll drink a little sip of water here. That's not what we need.
We need the Army Corps of Engineers in there. We need to be replacing these pipes. We need people to be given temporary housing. If they don't want their children drinking this water there any longer until things are fixed. The big things need to be done. That isn't what happened today.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: Michael Moore there. We're going to shift now to the weather. And Derek Van Dam is here with us to talk about the fires in Alberta in Canada. And of course, a whole town was evacuated.
PEDRAM JAVAHERI, AMS METEOROLOGIST: It's 90,000 people. Images coming from this area are just completely shocking. Devastating. Especially for the people affected by this. Take a look at this image, Rosemary. I think it really speaks 1,000 words because the entire community just being emblazed by this raging, raging bush fire.
We're going to put it into perspective here. Here's North America. There's Alberta. We'll zoom into the hot fire region. This was all initiated by Google earth. What I want you to see, over the past three days, how the wildfire spread right around Fort McMurray.
You can see just how much it's making this almost u shape to it. It continues tone gulf this area. I've got my producer in the background running this video so you can see just how it is overspreading that region.
Leaving only one road in and out of the city mick making it that much more difficult for people to evacuate. Images like this lighting up Twitter. This is obviously an aerial photograph.
Notice how the smoke as high as the stratosphere nearly 13 kilometers in the sky. That's nearly as high as some volcanic ash will spew into the atmosphere. Just gives you an idea of how expansive this fire is.
In fact, 10,000 hectares burned, 100 square kilometers or roughly the size of Hong Kong Island or half of Manhattan. That puts it into perspective for our international viewers. What is taking place here?
We've got this extremely large ridge of high pressure that's building this warmth. And interesting thing to note her, that even at this late hour, remember it's nearly 3:00 a.m. across this region, 2:00 a.m. in Fort McMurray, 18 degrees.
It's actually warmer than Los Angeles and warmer than here at the CNN World Headquarters in Atlanta. Look at these temperatures on Saturday and even on May 3rd when the fire really started to burn out of control. That was 16 degrees Celsius, above where it should be this time of year so extremely hot. There is some relief in stores at least the next two days. I think there's a narrow window for the firefighters, but then the heat builds and the wind starts up into the weekend once again.
CHURCH: OK. All right, thanks so much. Appreciate it. We'll talk soon.
Well, drones are getting more and more popular, but they can also be dangerous, of course. Up next, we take a new drone for a ride that can follow you while dodging trees and planes. Back in a moment with that.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[02:51:33]
JAVAHERI: Good day, weather watchers. Pedram javaheri on CNN right now breaking down what's happening across the United States. We have a storm on the eastern side of it, a storm on the western side of it. We call it a blocking pattern known as an omega block because it resembles the Greek letter omega.
You can easily pick it out right there. With the high pressure across the central portion of the United States. The temperatures well above the norm. Part of the reason why the fires have been really burning out of control across areas to the north has been the heat that has built across that region.
But things going to change especially around the Midwestern United States. Look at these temps. Wind chills across portions of the great lakes down below zero over the next 24 or so hours in this region.
But again, it does want to warm up. The sun quite high in the sky. The days getting longer on the order of about two minutes every single day. So places like Atlanta go from the teens well into the 30s come Sunday, that's mother's day across the United States.
Notice the showers again expected here on Thursday while back to the west a trio of 18s up and down the I-5 corridor. San Francisco looking at pretty nice conditions but again a change in the pattern.
Watching the storm system come in from the west that should bring in at least some scattered showers around parts of California. It could also introduce a little bit of wintry weather into California. We'll leave you with the conditions across the Caribbean.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHURCH: Well, this will unnerve would-be travelers. 31 passengers were injured during unexpected and severe turbulence on a flight to Indonesia.
(VIDEO CLIP) CHURCH: This video was shot as the plane hit rough air on Wednesday. The Etihad Airways flight from Abu Dhabi was 45 minutes away from landing in Jakarta. And you can see passengers holding up their hands as they scream. The plane did land safely, though. Nine people were taken to the hospital. There it is. There's the pictures. Gives you an idea of what's going on there.
All right. Well, with drone sales skyrocketing, that means crashes are as well. Just last month a British Airways pilot said a drone may have struck a plane as it headed for London. Well, now drone makers are trying to change that by making them crash proof. CNN Money's Samuel Burke went to try one out.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SAMUEL BURKE, CNN MONEY BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The problem with drones, they crash. The DGI Phantom 4 is trying to make that a thing of the past. Drone laws are getting trickier, especially in New York.
(on camera): So we left the city and came to the farm. Even the most experienced drone pilots are afraid of crashing these very expensive toys. This one will set you back 1,400 bucks. To help you crash less DGI is putting the drone on autopilot.
This drone has obstacle avoidance. So even if you want to crash they say it will make it a whole lot harder. It has four sensors that use sonar technology.
[02:55:07]So you can see up to 50 feet in front and 30 feet below. So you can't land on a cow. Another automated feature, tap to fly. It works just how it sounds. You tap, it flies. So you can sit back and feed the goats.
And if you're all alone the Phantom 4 has auto track. It uses three new cameras and ultrasonic sensors to follow you around. These automated features aren't just there to make life easier.
With this industry under more and more scrutiny innovations like these are crucial to stop drones from doing things like crash into airplanes. And drone makers are hoping that will minimize the need for more government regulation.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHURCH: That looks very cool. If diamonds are a girl's best friend this is one heck of a bff. This precious stone is more than 1,100 carats, and it's up for grabs. It's the largest rough diamond to be found in more than 100 years. Sotheby's is auctioning off the massive rock which is expected to sell for more than $70 million.
I'm Rosemary Church. Back in just a moment with more CNN NEWSROOM. Don't go anywhere.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) CHURCH: Hello and welcome to our viewers all around the world. I'm Rosemary Church. And this is CNN NEWSROOM. It is coming up on 10 a.m. in Jerusalem when Israel will honor the six million Jews killed during World War II. People will pause for 2 minutes for Holocaust Remembrance Day.
