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London Elects First-Ever London Mayor; Oregon Protesters Demonstrate Against Trump; North Korea Holds Rare Party Meeting; Alberta Wildfire Still Out of Control; Rolling Blackouts Hurt Venezuelans; Trump Draws Strong Support in West Virginia. Aired 3- 3:30a ET
Aired May 07, 2016 - 03:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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NATALIE ALLEN, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): A political shakeup in the British capital as Londoners elect their first Muslim mayor. We'll tell about the odds Sadiq Khan had to beat to win the job.
Wildfires which have forces tens of thousands from their homes in Canada could double in size within 24 hours.
And in U.S. coal country, why a small corner of Appalachia is putting its trust in Trump to make life great again.
It's all ahead here on CNN NEWSROOM. We're live in Atlanta. I'm Natalie Allen.
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ALLEN: And thank you for joining us. We begin in London. For the first time ever, a Muslim has been elected mayor of the global center of finance. Sadiq Khan is the son of Pakistani immigrants. The Labour Party candidate triumphed despite a bruising and controversial campaign by his chief rival, which sought to link him to extremism. Phil Black reports Khan says inclusion is the way forward.
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PHIL BLACK, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This hasn't happened in London before.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I therefore declare Sadiq Khan to be elected as the new mayor of London.
BLACK (voice-over): A Muslim election as the city's new mayor.
SADIQ KHAN, MAYOR OF LONDON: I never dreamt that someone like me could be elected as mayor of London. And I want to say thank you to every single Londoner for making the impossible possible today.
BLACK (voice-over): Sadiq Khan is the son of a London bus driver. He mentioned that a few times through his campaign. His parents were Pakistani immigrants; they lived in public housing. He went to state schools. He then became a lawyer, member of Parliament and government minister. More than 12 percent of Londoner are Muslims and many are thrilled about Khan's new job.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think it's a big victory and I'm feeling proud as a Muslim because you see the situation has gone on with Muslims and all around the world and everything.
BLACK (voice-over): Khan's win defies a political trend dividing Western nations.
DONALD TRUMP, REPUBLICAN PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Donald J. Trump is calling for a total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States.
BLACK (voice-over): Across America and Europe, Islam has become an emotive, often fearful political issue after large terror strikes in the U.S., France and Belgium.
BLACK: Londoners have also known terrorism and live with its constant threat. Sadiq Khan's supporters say his win in this election shows many people here are very comfortable with the clear difference between those who murder in the name of Islam and the rest of the Muslim community.
BLACK (voice-over): But extremism was still an issue in this political race. Khan's oppositions, his cultural and political opposite, the wealthy white Conservative Party candidate, Zac Goldsmith, tried to link Khan to people said to support radical Islam. Fellow Conservatives David Cameron repeated the claims in Parliament.
DAVID CAMERON, PRIME MINISTER, GREAT BRITAIN: Well, he stood on a platform with people who wanted an Islamic state.
BLACK (voice-over): The effort was dismissed as dog whistle racism by people on all sides of politics and it did little to change voters' thinking. Perhaps difficult to smear Khan with extremism after he voted in favor of legalizing gay marriage.
KHAN: And I'm so proud that London has today chosen hope over fear and unity over division.
BLACK (voice-over): The mayor of London manages day-to-day issues like planning, transport, housing and police. It's a big job. But it's not the stuff of big political vision. Sadiq Khan's election marks an historic and cultural milestone for an international city long proud of its diversity -- Phil Black, CNN, London.
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ALLEN: As mayor-elect, Sadiq Khan gave his victory speech. There was a clear sign of just how contentious this election has been and the challenges that lie ahead. Take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) ALLEN (voice-over): Paul Golding, the mayoral candidate of the far right Britain First Party, turned his back on Khan as he was speaking.
The moment went viral online as some Twitter users called Golding "a sore loser and a racist." He denied that. He turned back around when Khan finished speaking. Golding finished 8th in the vote count.
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ALLEN: We turn now to the race for the U.S. White House.
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ALLEN (voice-over): Protesters hit the streets against Donald Trump Friday night in the state of Oregon. It's becoming a regular occurrence, protesters outside a Trump event.
But meantime, he's continuing to get pushback from his own party. CNN's Jeff Zeleny is on the campaign trail.
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JEFF ZELENY, CNN SR. WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Donald Trump's victory lap is looking more like an obstacle course and that's just among Republicans.
DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I actually wish the primaries were not over. It's no fun this way. I want the primaries to keep going, but everybody's out. I'm the only one left. That's OK, right?
ZELENY: He's dispatched with his GOP rivals, but the discord inside the party rages on.
Trump has won the hearts of millions of Republican voters but the minds of party leaders remain elusive.
Senator Lindsey Graham says he can't vote Trump.
SEN. LINDSEY GRAHAM (R), SOUTH CAROLINA: I don't think he has the temperament in judgment to be commander in chief. I just can't go there with Donald.
ZELENY: Speaker Paul Ryan told Jake Tapper he can't endorse Trump.
REP. PAUL RYAN (R-WI), SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE: I'm just not ready to do that at this point. I'm not there right now.
ZELENY: So far, Trump is holding his famously sharp tongue, perhaps taking a new stab at diplomacy. TRUMP: He can do whatever he wants to do. It's fine, but I was surprised by it.
ZELENY: But other Republicans are getting on board. Some grudgingly, some not.
BOBBY JINDAL (R), FORMER PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I'm voting for Donald Trump because I don't think we can afford four more years of liberal incompetence.
SEN. JOHN MCCAIN (R), ARIZONA: As I said many times I support the nominee of the party.
ZELENY: Former Vice President Dick Cheney says he always supported the Republican nominee and will do so this year, too.
President Obama and Democrats are watching it all with delight.
OBAMA: There is no doubt that there is a debate that's taken place inside the Republican Party. I think not just Republican officials, but more importantly Republican voters are going to have to make a decision as to whether this is the guy who speaks for them and represents their values.
ZELENY: But Trump knows just how to fire up any tepid Republicans.
TRUMP: Now it's between me and crooked Hillary.
ZELENY: Today alone, he is taking his message to a red state, Nebraska and a blue state, Oregon. But the welcome was not entirely warm. Graffiti in letters eight feet tall saying "Dump Trump" were painted on this grain elevator in Omaha. It's been five extraordinary months since Trump landed in Omaha, campaigning for the Iowa caucuses when party elders thought he would fade away.
TRUMP: I love you Omaha. I love Nebraska.
ZELENY: Now it's his Republican party. And Trump is reveling in the moment, even putting on coal miner's hat Thursday night in West Virginia.
TRUMP: That is great.
My hair look OK?
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ALLEN: Well, we turn now to the Democratic side. Hillary Clinton has been pivoting to the general election although her rival, Bernie Sanders, is fighting on. As Joe Johns reports, Clinton is linking her campaign to President Obama's record and increasingly taking on Donald Trump.
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JOE JOHNS, CNN SENIOR WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): President Obama lending Hillary Clinton a hand, challenging Donald Trump's seriousness to be commander in chief.
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We are in serious times and this is a really serious job. This is not entertainment. This is not a reality show.
JOHNS: That as Clinton runs on a pledge to protect his legacy.
HILLARY CLINTON (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: We cannot let Barack Obama's legacy fall into Donald Trump's hands. I'm running to build on the progress that President Obama has made. I am proud of that progress.
JOHNS: It's an embrace that could benefit Clinton come November, if the president's poll numbers hold. A new CNN/ORC poll showing 51 percent of registered voters approve of the job the president is doing, while 46 percent disapprove.
Clinton is shifting her focus to the general election, repeatedly targeting the GOP frontrunner in the days since he became the party's presumptive nominee, taking aim at his views on immigration.
CLINTON: Now every election is a choice and just yesterday Donald
Trump doubled down on his plan to create a deportation force to round up millions of people. That's actually what he said.
JOHNS (voice-over): But Clinton has not sealed the nomination just yet. Bernie Sanders remains in the race despite the long odds against him.
OBAMA: I think everybody knows what that math is. And I know that at some point, there's going to be a conversation between Secretary Clinton and Bernie Sanders about how we move towards the convention.
JOHNS (voice-over): A long-time Clinton ally, Paul Begala, penning a column for CNN, saying Sanders should actually stay in the race to help Clinton attack Trump, writing, "You are --
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JOHNS (voice-over): -- "in a uniquely powerful position. You can either force Hillary to fight a two-front war or force Trump to. I am urging you to choose Trump as your target."
JOHNS: Clinton also has yet to get past her e-mail controversy, from her use of a private server while secretary of state. CNN has learned that top Clinton aides, including Huma Abedin, have been interviewed by the FBI. Clinton herself is expected to be interviewed in the coming weeks.
The investigation is still ongoing, but so far investigators have not found any evidence to prove Clinton intentionally broke the law.
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(MUSIC PLAYING) ALLEN (voice-over): Joe Johns reporting. Well, for more on the Republican resistance to Trump that we've been talking about and the ongoing battle of the Democrats, watch CNN's "POLITICAL MANN." It's coming up right after this program at 8:30 am in London. Errol Barnett will be anchoring that show this week.
A U.S. think tank says satellite images suggest North Korea may be preparing to carry out another nuclear test. The report comes as leader Kim Jong-un leads a rare ruling Workers Party Congress in the capital, Pyongyang. CNN's Will Ripley is inside North Korea. He has more on the political gathering that's being watched around the world.
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WILL RIPLEY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Right now we're walking through Pyongyang towards the April 25th House of Culture. This is the venue for the 7th Workers Party Congress. It was also the venue for the previous congress back in 1980.
We saw a massive caravan of coaches that we believe are carrying the 3,000 members of North Korea's ruling elite, the Worker's Party who are here, to unanimously show their support for the Supreme Leader Kim Jong-un.
I say unanimously, because here in North Korea, there is no political dissent. It's just not an option.
She says, "we all say the Koreans are so fortunate to have such great leaders starting from the late president right up to the martial Kim Jong-un."
This is as close as we're allowed to get. More than 100 news organizations invited here. And we can't go inside the congress.
It speaks to the fact that the North Korean political system is quite nebulous, it is not transparent to say the least. And they say this event here is to rally support and help him push forward his plan for North Korea, which is a two-pronged approach of developing the country's nuclear program while also growing the North Korean economy.
Now, there are some observers on the outside who say you can't have your cake and eat it, too. You can't have a strong economy and also continue to develop nuclear weapons. But Kim Jong-un's government is intent on proving them wrong. And it's part of the reason why you see so much international press here.
One thing I've noticed in two years of coming here is how much activity there is. Cars in the streets, people are more well dressed. It seems as if the economy is growing, but you wonder how long it can last given these heightened sanctions and their trickle-down effect in the coming months.
Are you worried how the sanctions are going to affect your life?
He says, "We've been under heavy sanctions since the end of the Korean War in the '50s. We're not afraid of stronger sanctions because we're used to them and we've survived."
Now as we monitor this once in a generation meeting of the Workers Party Congress, we wonder what the supreme leader is going to announce.
Will there be a major shift in economic policy?
Will there be a fifth nuclear test or news of improvements to the North Korea nuclear arsenal?
Many around the world oppose the rise of Kim Jong-un, but here in Pyongyang, you won't hear a single person speak badly about their supreme leader and why would they speak badly about him when he holds absolute power in this country, power that inside this building is only expected to increase perhaps dramatically in the coming days -- Will Ripley, CNN, Pyongyang, North Korea.
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ALLEN: Fires that have ravaged a part of Western Canada continue to worsen. We'll have the outlook for you right after this when Derek Van Dam joins us for the latest.
Also ahead: mandatory power blackout in Venezuela making life even more difficult in the midst of a crippling economic crisis. Our Paula Newton reports when we come back.
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ALLEN: In Canada, an official says Alberta's most threatening wildfire could double in size in the coming hours. Emergency crews worked all day on Friday to evacuate thousands of people to the provincial capital, Edmonton. If conditions are safe, a convoy will start up again in just a few hours to help thousands more people escape the flames.
The fire has scorched more than 1,000 square kilometers and distraught residents are trying to come to terms with their staggering losses. Our Dan Simon is there.
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DAN SIMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Flames and smoke filling the sky as a convoy of desperate residents flee the danger zone.
SIMON: What have these last few days been like?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hell on Earth. Just like hell.
SIMON: And the scenes are hellish. The fire that started five days ago is still out of control. And for the displaced, it's gone from bad to worse. Because food and water is running low, Canadian authorities moving some 25,000 people from camps, a double evacuation.
What was it like being in the camp?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hard. They rationed food. Low water. People were upset because they don't know what's going on.
SIMON: The fire has burned nearly 250,000 acres, more than 10 times the size of Manhattan. In one of the more remarkable surveillance videos ever captured, a homeowner could watching his own house go down in flames only 20 minutes after evacuating.
Sixteen hundred structures, including homes and businesses destroyed. The heaviest damage in Ft. McMurray. A resident films his burned out neighborhood after seeing it for the first time.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is my house. It was my house. Ashes are cool now. Nothing left. It's gone.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh, my God. Our house is going to burn down.
SIMON: In another video, we hear a woman's desperation as she drives by the flames destroying her community. As weary residents leave the area, they are greeted by fuel trucks with gas stations either destroyed or down due to power outages. Fuel is a precious commodity.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Makes a guy feel good to actually help these people because they've been through so much loss and so much devastation lately.
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ALLEN: Always to see Good Samaritans stepping in.
You know, Derek Van Dam's here with us now.
We've seen the video. But that woman right there, crying from her car, that's just an audio -- a very powerful little clip of what they're dealing with --
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DEREK VAN DAM, AMS METEOROLOGIST: -- the pictures, they speak 1,000 words. We just keep going back to that dashcam footage of the embers and the ashes falling from sky as that convoy of cars tries to leave Fort McMurray. That is really compelling visual and the stories are harrowing coming out of that area, communities coming together to try and help each other evacuate as quickly as possible.
Really, our hearts go out to those people. Hey, I got a question for you, Natalie, to try and put this into perspective.
Have you ever been to Rome?
ALLEN: I have not. VAN DAM: OK. Well, I've been there; it's a very large place. A lot of our viewers are from Rome or have traveled there. And the size of the Fort McMurray fire, as it stands right now, is roughly the same size as Rome. It's huge --
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VAN DAM: -- 25 percent bigger than New York City. It's even bigger than Hong Kong. And these are just massive wildfires out of control. And it doesn't appear that it's going to get any better at least for the next 24 hours. We do have some relief in sight for the end of the weekend. More on that in just one moment.
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VAN DAM: Large area of smoke still battering parts of the United States. In fact, this has been seen from a NASA Modus satellite image. We'll bring up this a little bit closer for you so you can see it.
Natalie, you may have noticed a bit of a haze over the skies today in Atlanta. That's actually the smoke that caught in the jet stream, all the way from Alberta, Canada, right into the southeastern United States.
ALLEN: Yes, and it brought our Canadian cool weather here, too.
VAN DAM: Yes, it sure did and it brought a nice sunset as well.
ALLEN: All right, Derek, thank you.
We want to turn now to Venezuela. Of course the people there have been hurting; the economic crisis there is getting worse. The country is a major oil producer and has been suffering all the more from declining oil prices. The opposition is trying to remove President Nicolas Maduro. Rolling blackouts are making life in Venezuela even more miserable. Our Paula Newton reports from west of Caracas.
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PAULA NEWTON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): For months now in Venezuela they've been rationing basics. People line up for hours just for food. Hospitals are rationing medicines and supplies and now everywhere, except in the capital Caracas, the energy superpower is rationing electricity, too.
We travelled to the industrial heartland in the city of Valencia (ph), where scheduled blackouts are the new reality. From bakeries to small businesses to families, no one is escaping a daily dose of power rationing.
Julio Perez (ph) walks us through his blacked-out bakery. Every day for at least four hours, the power is cut, he complains, and his business takes a hit. "Besides not having supplies," he tells me, "now I have to deal with the power rationing."
He says the already precious products he has are at risk of spoiling. He can't make coffee for customers, can't tell them when he will have bread.
"It's the same for salon owner, Alison Vandez (ph), no power. No customers."
City counselor Manuel Molina (ph) walks us through what was a busy business area, now nearly shuttered.
NEWTON: What's the situation right now in Valencia?
How critical is it?
"The situation in our country and our city is critical right now," he's explaining.
"We have seen 30 percent of our businesses close."
Molina (ph) blames the government mismanagement for the crisis but the Venezuelan government calls this a natural disaster. El Nino, it says, has deprived the Guri Dam of water and it produces most of Venezuela's electricity.
Gladys Ocai (ph) isn't buying any of it.
"My blender is broken. My refrigerator is broken," and she walks me over to show me.
"I have meat in here and, you can imagine, this goes bad. I have to keep it closed."
"El Nino" she says, "forget El Nino."
She, too, blames the government.
No matter who is to blame, there is no quick solution and it's taking a toll on communities and families. The Ocais (ph) never thought life could get tougher. Now every day when the lights go out, they know it will -- Paula Newton, CNN, Valencia, Venezuela.
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ALLEN: Well, back in the U.S., West Virginia residents hope U.S. presidential candidate Donald Trump can make their state great again. Coal production in this mining state has been plunging. And as CNN's Martin Savidge reports, many West Virginians hope the presumptive Republican nominee can turn things around.
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(MUSIC PLAYING) MARTIN SAVIDGE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): At Big Daddy's off highway 50 outside Grafton, it's open mike night. And they're singing the blues.
It's no secret Donald Trump is the favorite here. During a break, John Haddix tells me why.
JOHN HADDIX, RETIRED AIRCRAFT MECHANIC: I think he can change things. I think he can make things better for our town, for our state.
SAVIDGE: Look around the clock. It's a microcosm of West Virginia. Overwhelmingly white, mostly older, less --
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SAVIDGE: -- college educated and earning less than the rest of the country.
SCOTT CRISHOLWO, POLITICAL SCIENCE EXPERT, WEST VIRGINIA UNIV.: We fit Donald Trump's demographics to a T. And in terms of his message, his message is about turning back to a greater America. And a lot of West Virginians do feel like they haven't gotten a fair shake.
SAVIDGE: It's all about coal. West Virginia coal helped to make America great the first time.
DIANA BARTLEY, BUSINESS OWNER: Because our coal is what fire manufacturers. It's what lights up our cities.
SAVIDGE (on camera): That business is...
BARTLEY: It's decimated.
SAVIDGE (voice-over): Concerns over climate change have the EPA cracking down on coal's use.
As a result, according to a study by West Virginia University, coal production here has plummeted by more than one-third in just seven years, with some counties seeing job losses of 25 percent to 33 percent in just the last three to four years. The latest state economic numbers show West Virginia back in recession.
No wonder Trump's promise for a return to past greatness means so much here.
TONY UJHELYI, DONALD TRUMP SUPPORTER: We always were a powerful nation in the world. We need to be and we need to be a leader in the world.
SAVIDGE: Coal's decline not just changed lives. It's changed politics. Time was West Virginia's coal fields were some of the most consistently Democratic voting areas in the country.
In 1992, Bill Clinton won the state with 48 percent of the vote. In '96, 51 percent. Twenty years later, campaigning in the state for his wife, this is what Bill Clinton got Many here blame the party they once loved for turning its back on coal. And when Hillary Clinton outlined her clean energy policy on CNN, well, this is the only part many people in West Virginia heard.
HILLARY CLINTON (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: We're going to put a lot of coal miners and coal companies out of business.
SAVIDGE: Clinton has since said her comments were taken out of context but the damage was done.
HADDIX: When you come out and say you're going to close the coal mines, it's not been received too well.
SAVIDGE: These days in West Virginia, there are two kinds of trains, coal trains and the Trump train. And for the latter, it's all aboard because, in this state, they're tired of the blues.
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ALLEN: Well, finally bad news for fans of Boaty McBoatface. That name was selected over thousands of other choices in an online vote to name this new British research vessel. It earned more than 120,000 votes last month but now the U.K.'s Natural Environment Research Council has rejected the name, instead opting to name the ship after Sir David Attenborough, a legendary British broadcaster who inspired a love of nature.
So much for Boaty McBoatface.
Thanks for watching. I'm Natalie Allen. We've got much more on the U.S. presidential election right ahead with "POLITICAL MANN" and your top stories.
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