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North Korea's Supreme Leader Says He Wants To Run A "Responsible Nuclear State"; Bernie Sanders Still In The Fight But Won't Rule Out Being Clinton's Running Mate; Canada's Devastating Wildfires Threaten To Cross Provincial Boundary; Thousands Seek Refuge From Canadian Wildfire. Aired 12-12:30a ET

Aired May 08, 2016 - 00:00   ET

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

[00:00:02] SUMNIMA UDAS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Sumnima Udas in New Delhi. This is CNN.

NATALIE ALLEN, CNN ANCHOR: Still raging and still spreading, Canada's devastating wildfires threaten to cross the provincial boundary as thousands of people seek refuge.

North Korea's supreme leader says he wants to run a responsible nuclear state. We'll take you to Pyongyang for a closer look at what that might entail.

And Bernie Sanders says he's still fighting for the U.S. presidency but won't rule out being Hillary Clinton's running mate.

It is all ahead here on CNN Newsroom. We're live in Atlanta. I'm Natalie Allen.

As we begin in Canada where there is no end in sight for Alberta's fast-moving wildfire. Fire officials say they now believe the flames have covered some 2000 square kilometers. That's about twice the size of Hong Kong. Flames are spreading northeast and could soon reach neighboring Saskatchewan Province.

British Astronaut Tim Peake took these photos from the International Space Station, showing the massive plumes of smoke covering Alberta.

Our Dan Simon has been following the evacuation for the other developments in Fort McMurray. He reported from there a short time ago.

DAN SIMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, you can see some of that thick smoke behind me. This fire is still very much out of control and you still have so many people who are evacuated. Nearly 90,000 people evacuated. That is an unprecedented situation here in Canada.

In terms of the weather, it's pretty hot today. The conditions remain dry. It can be windy, so terrible conditions for fighting this fire. There is a chance that there could be rain in the forecast tomorrow. So that would be welcome news, but even if it does rain, this fire is going to go on for some time, perhaps, several weeks.

In terms of the damage, the numbers are staggering, 1600 homes and businesses destroyed, most of that destruction in the Fort McMurray community. All the people who have been evacuated, a lot of them are staying at shelters, of course, many also staying with relatives. But if that's not an option, if you can't stay with a friend or family member, perhaps you're going to a hotel. But it's pretty much impossible to find a hotel room in the area.

Of course, people are anxious. They want to know if they have a home to go back to. And right now, they're just dealing with it now. They're trying to get the essentials in place, food, shelter and water, as this fire continues in Canada.

Dan Simon, CNN, Fort McMurray, Canada.

ALLEN: Earlier, CNN spoke with the Wildland Fire professor at the University of Alberta. He said this fire could burn until winter.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There are deep organic layers, what we call peat bogs and they can burn underground and smolder fall away through winter and then pop up next spring. That's not unheard of. It happens all the time. So, this is a huge fire.

It's now moving away from the city in values. It's moving into the boreal forest, where, you know, the boreal forest survives and thrives in high intensity fire. So what happens is you have trees, they burn, you get a new forest, they burn. It's just the cycle of life in a boreal forest.

ALLEN: So the boreal forest can take it but not so much the people who've lost their homes. It's still not clear what caused this massive wildfire but the expert you just heard from says, climate change could bring similar fires in the future. And as we said, the fire is continuing to expand. Our meteorologist Derek Van Dam is here. It's amazing that...

DEREK VAN DAM, CNN METEOROLOGIST: It's hard to believe.

ALLEN: ... it's still going. It could burn for months.

VAN DAM: That's right. He made a very good point that those ashes and embers can stick underneath the peat within the ground so starting new flare-ups even months from now. It's incredible to think.

Just to be clear, boreal forest comprises of pine and spruces so they're very timber, very brittle. And often, coniferous trees so they lose their leaves during the winter time typically.

Listen, we've got three main components to the fire weather conditions that have really been helping fuel these flames, the oxygen from the strong winds that have gusted over 40 kilometers per hour, the heat with the high temperatures, there is from the east coming, and then the brittle timber from the boreal forest.

The extreme fire conditions remain. There have been 12 new starts or flare-ups in Alberta, a total of 43 fires burning at the moment, seven of which are out of control. And there's over 1400 firefighters and 23 air tankers and several dozen helicopters all battling this blaze. By the way, this is Interstate 63 or Highway 63, running south out of Fort McMurray. We continue to talk about this area because this is actually the one and only road in and out of Fort McMurray, at least for the evacuation processes. You can see some of the convoys there in the distance.

[00:05:10] So, what does the future holds for Alberta and the surrounding provinces, Saskatchewan, of course, a border in Alberta? Here's Fort McMurray and the fire danger, you'll start to see as that shading of red starts to diminish a little further to the south and east because weather patterns are going to change, going forward from Sunday and to Monday. There is a cold front coming but that doesn't mean that this fire is just going to abruptly stop. There are still extreme fire conditions in place, not to mention the new flare-ups and the burning embers that could still be within the peat that that man was just referring to a few moments ago.

And in terms of the weather forecast going forward, look at the winds picking up on Sunday, because a cold front will pass over this region, so it could gust as high as 50, even 60 kilometers per hour. So that is going to create spot fires, allowing for the potential for this fire to even spread and grow in size.

Temperature wise, this is the relief we're talking about. With the cold front, maybe a chance to rain but not enough to douse the fire but at least the cooler temperatures will help bring down that threat at least marginally. Temperatures across Alberta also cooler throughout this region.

And the factor here is that the relative humidity, which is good, because it brings a bit of humidity to the air, higher dew points. And that means the moisture contents within the atmosphere will start to increase and that will help the firefighting concerns there across Alberta, but not to say that this isn't a spectacular sight. When you see this from the International Space Station, I mean, you just have to stop and look at that photo, unreal.

ALLEN: Right. And if you think of the people, what are they going to do for the next few months? And you just don't know and the fire rages on. They have posttraumatic stress disorders.

VAN DAM: I read an article that said that they are going to get financial help upwards of $1250, as far as the understanding...

ALLEN: So, that's good news. Thank you, Derek, see you a bit later.

North Korean Leader, Kim Jong-un says he will only use nuclear weapons if the nation sovereignty is threatened. State media quoted him saying that to the country's first ruling party's congress in 36 years. He reportedly stressed that he wanted North Korea to be a responsible nuclear state.

This is one of the first major developments to come out of North Korea's biggest political event in decades. The country's ruling elite have been gathered in Pyongyang for a few days now. But as Will Ripley reports, details from the party congress have been sparse so far.

WILL RIPLEY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Given that North Korea has a reputation for being one of the most secretive countries on earth, it shouldn't come as any surprise that the political process here is also veiled in a real lack of transparency, to say the least.

The past few days of this historic Worker's Party Congress, the first in 36 years, as we noted, it's been happening in the April 25th, People's House of Culture in Pyongyang, a building that we are not allowed anywhere close to, aside from, on the first day, we took some pictures from across the street.

We've been taking on sightseeing tours and shown around the city while the work of the party congress has been happening behind closed doors. And each evening now, around 10 o'clock at night, there's been a surprise news broadcast, an unannounced broadcast proclaiming to the people what had happened at the party's congress at that day. It's only about 30 minutes long today.

We were told that the Supreme Leader Kim Jong-un gave a policy speech, although the narrator didn't specify which policies he talked about, other than to say that he's continuing to hold very true to the policies of his late father and grandfather before him. And then we heard from about 10 different party officials from the different sectors, the nuclear, science, even textiles and manufacturing, all of them saying they wholeheartedly support their supreme leader and they encourage people to be the same. So, it is really -- although we don't get a whole lot of information,

certainly, it's a window into how things work here. The government tells the people what they need to do, what they need to think. And then the people wholeheartedly applaud and they celebrate what the government and their leader is doing.

Another day of life here in the North Korean capital, Will Ripley, CNN, Pyongyang.

ALLEN: Notorious Mexican drug kingpin El Chapo is now just a couple of miles from the U.S. border. He's been transferred to a prison in Juarez.

The exact reason for the move isn't clear but the Mexican government says, it was due to security renovations at the facility he was imprisoned in. There are also suggestions it could be connected to El Chapo's extradition to the U.S.

CNN's Nick Valencia spoke with our Lynda Kinkade about that earlier Saturday.

NICK VALENCIA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: And what we're told by an ear Mexican law enforcement official is that he was transferred very, very early this morning, around 2 a.m. local time to a penitentiary in Ciudad Juarez, which sits just about a mile and a half or two miles away from the city -- the U.S. City of El Paso.

What we were told is this perhaps has something to do with the extradition process, the proximity to the United States, to get him one step closer to the inevitable transfer to the U.S. where the Mexican government had agreed on his extradition.

[00:10:06] We're now being told by the Mexican government that this move has to do with renovation, security measures and precautions being taken in the Altiplano Penitentiary.

We know from Mexican government officials that we -- we were told in the past that they were taking added precautions after his recapture. They were guarding him heavily 24/7. We also understood that he was being shuffled from cell to cell to avoid another embarrassing escape, like the one we saw in July of 2015.

It really does though seem to speak to, you know, the lack of logic and reasoning in Mexico's decision to transfer him. Why would they move him from the most secured prison to one that is not as secure?

They're saying officially that this has to do with renovations. We're also hearing from other sources at the Mexican government that this has to do with the extradition process. The actual reasoning is that he wouldn't have guessed. Lynda?

LYNDA KINKADE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Right. And given he did manage to escape twice from that maximum security prison, there must be major concerns about his ability, possibly, to get out of this new prison.

VALENCIA: Well, we know that this is a man with incredible influence. This is a man that for a lot of people in the country, he's trusted more than the official government. He's seen by many as the de facto leader of the country, a man that is worth an estimated billion dollars. He was, at one time, on Forbes richest people list.

We don't know officially how much money he is worth. We know that he spent $50 million to build that tunnel, that mile and a half long tunnel that he used to escape from, eventually emerging from a rural home there in the countryside in Almoloya de Juarez. There is absolutely concern that it could happen again. He has escaped twice before. He's somebody that has infiltrated all levels and aspects of Mexico, from the local police department to local government officials.

Some would speculate that it goes very far into the federal government. Of course, the federal government has denied that and of course, would deny that. But this is no doubt a man with incredible, incredible power and influence, a man that is dangerous as he is savvy. And there absolutely has to be that concern right now that he's being held in Ciudad Juarez that he could escape again.

ALLEN: And officials say the U.S. has been preparing for El Chapo's transfer for months. They say he'll be sent to New York to face federal charges.

Coming up here, Donald Trump isn't just attacking Hillary Clinton, he's taking shots at her husband too. The latest campaign trail accusations when we come back.

Also, could two Democratic rivals end up on a battle together come November? Here, Bernie Sanders respond to possibly joining Hillary Clinton ticket.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[00:15:10] ALLEN: Welcome back. U.S. Presidential Candidate Bernie Sanders says he'll keep fighting all the way to the Democratic National Convention but he may be open to joining his opponent, Hillary Clinton, as her running mate if he fails to win his party's nomination. He was asked about that possibility by our Wolf Blitzer.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BERNIE SANDERS, U.S. DEMOCRATIC PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: So a lot of the independent votes, which is what you're going to need to win in November. So I would say to those super delegates, look, what's most important is we defeat Donald Trump. I believe that I am the strongest candidate against him.

WOLF BLITZER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: If she were to get the nomination, would you consider being her vice presidential running mate?

SANDERS: Well right now, we are focused in the next five weeks of winning the Democratic nomination. If that does not happen, we're going to fight as hard as we can on the floor of the Democratic convention to make sure that we have a progressive platform that the American people will support.

And then after that, certainly, Secretary Clinton and I can sit down and talk and see where we go from there.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ALLEN: Donald Trump is targeting the Democratic frontrunner, not just on her record but on that of her husband, Former President Bill Clinton. Trump took aim at the Clintons at a Washington State event on Saturday but the former Secretary of State has routinely fired back.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, U.S. REPUBLICAN PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: She's married to a man, who hurt many women. She's married to a man, who got impeached for lying. He was impeached ...

HILLARY CLINTON, U.S. DEMOCRATIC PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE. I don't think we can take a risk on a loose cannon like Donald Trump running our country.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ALLEN: Trump also accused Hillary Clinton of wanting to abolish legal gun ownership in the U.S. He told the Spokane, Washington crowd that Clinton wanted to take away guns and abolish the Second Amendment, an amendment stating the right to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed. Clinton had never argued to abolish the Second Amendment but has called for stricter controls on firearms. Trump has blasted politicians who take money from wealthy donors. The billionaire has boasted about self-funding his presidential bid. But it appears the presumptive Republican nominee is changing course. He's hinting he'll now ask for money for his campaign and the Republican Party. CNN's Sunlen Serfaty reports.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: I'm self-funding so it's a big difference, folks. I don't care. I'm going to do what's right for you.

SUNLEN SERFATY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Donald Trump could be feigned still long to self-funding.

TRUMP: So far, I'm in for like, $40 million or $45 million.

SERFATY: Facing an expensive general election battle, the GOP frontrunner is now opening the door to raving casts for his campaign and the Republican Party.

TRUMP: I do love self-funding and I will -- I don't want anything for myself but we do need money for the party. I'll be asking money for the party. And it really is something that we're going to start on right away.

SERFATY: This setting off a scramble to secure support from the deep- pocketed donors within the GOP. Trump, getting a major nod from the single largest Republican contributor from 2012, casino magnate Sheldon Adelson, one of the richest men in the world, telling the BBC Thursday night...

SHELDON ADELSON, REPUBLICAN SUPPORTER: Yes, I'm Republican, he's a Republican. He's a nominee. Whoever the nominee would turn out to be, any one of the seventy (inaudible) ...

SERFATY: Throughout the primary though, Trump has publicly thrashed wealthy donors, even calling out some by name...

TRUMP: A guy named Singer, who the hell ever heard of -- I'll tell you a little secret. I saw -- I was surprised because I thought I was friends -- Koch Brothers, I thought I was their friend. But somebody said they're linked to a certain pack.

SERFATY: ... decrying their influence over politicians.

TRUMP: When their special interest calls, when their lobbyist calls, when their donors call and they have a stake at a deal, they're not going to do what's right for you. I didn't take any money.

SERFATY: But now, the presumptive GOP nominee is hitting some roadblocks with these Republican rainmakers. According to a survey done by CNN, a substantial number of other big money Republican donors are still sitting on the sidelines, withholding their money from Trump, like the megawealthy Koch Brothers.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: On some of the Republican candidates, we would -- before we could support them, we'd have to believe their actions will be quite different from the rhetoric we've heard so far.

SERFATY: Unhappy with Trump, many donors are now planning to redirect their money elsewhere, investing in down-ballot candidates to help Republicans in Senate House in gubernatorial races instead.

KEVIN MADDEN, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: The biggest challenge in that sense is going up against a very well funded opposition. Not only does Hillary Clinton have a ready and able-fundraising machine but so many of the Democrat -- the Democratic outside groups, the DNC. So, you put all those together and it is a formidable opposition.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[00:20:10] ALLEN: And the Clinton campaign is already sensing an opening that there is potentially some real money left on the table. They are reportedly going after former donors to Jeb Bush's campaign trying to reach out to those moderate Republicans to support and invest in her over Donald Trump.

Well, meantime, the current president hopes to shake the minds of young people. Barack Obama delivered a commencement address Saturday to graduating seniors at Howard University. He encourage the students at the historically black school to become more engage in the political process and warned against censoring speech.

Here's more from our Joe Johns.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE JOHNS, CNN SENIOR WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT: President Obama delivering a commencement speech that was both nonpolitical and very political at the same time, perhaps giving us a glimpse at the message the outgoing president will be sending as the country starts looking toward the November general election.

While he mentioned none of the candidates for the White House by name from either party, he did present a dramatically different view of the country than we've seen and heard from Republicans, especially from the presumptive GOP frontrunner Donald Trump.

BARACK OBAMA, (D), PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: No matter how ridiculous or offensive you might find the things that come out of their mouths, because as my grandmother used to tell me, every time a fool speaks, they are just advertising their own ignorance.

JOHNS: Mr. Obama making the case that things have not only gotten better in the U.S. since he graduated from college, he said the same is true since he took over the White House, giving a speech to one of the country's best known historically black universities which gave him an Honorary Doctor of Science Degree for his work on the Affordable Care Act.

The President also made a few statements that could be construed as writing his own legacy saying, his election did not create a post racial society. And also speaking directly to those who may question why he was not able to get certain things done while in office? The President said it's all about the vote.

OBAMA: It is absolutely true, that 50 years after the Voting Rights Act, there are still too many barriers in this country to vote, there are too many people to trying to elect new various to voting. This is the only advanced democracy on earth that goes -- goes out of its way to make it difficult for people to vote.

JOHNS: And there was an oblique reference in the speech to activists who attempt to shout down politicians and others at rallies and speeches. Mr. Obama did not mention the Black Lives Matter movement or any other group by name but the inference seemed clear.

OBAMA: Our democracy gives us a process designed for us to settle our disputes with argument and ideas and votes instead of violence and simple majority rule. So don't try to shut folks out. Don't try to shut them down, no matter how much you might disagree with them.

JOHNS: The President is expected to give commencement speeches to two other universities this year, the Air Force Academy and Rutgers.

Joe Johns, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ALLEN: A new champion is crowed at Churchill Downs. Coming up here we'll have all the soup on the 140-second running of the Kentucky Derby.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[00:25:05] ALLEN: Leicester City hoisted the English Premier League trophy in front of their home crowd on Saturday. It was a day long celebration with the title clinched long before the game begun. But Leicester gave the fans a finally, the sitting of champion. They beat Everton three goals to one in their final home game this season.

There's a new champion at Churchill Downs, favorite horse Nyquist ridden by Mario Gutierrez took home the win at the Kentucky Derby.

Our Coy Wire has all the race details.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

COY WIRE, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: Over 167,000 spectator here at Churchill Downs witnessed the 140-second running of the Kentucky Derby. This was the second largest attendance in derby history. Nyquist the undefeated (inaudible) of this race is a heavy to two to one favorite and he showed why.

In the final furlong, Nyquist, ahead of the pack with Exaggerator making a valiance surge (ph) but he fall short. Nyquist, too fast, too strong, securing his lead and capturing the Run for the Roses. Final time 2:01.31 seconds, Exaggerator comes in second, coming in third was Gun Runner

Now, with this iconic win, Nyquist is proving he's a force to be wrecking with. The perfect eight for eight in his lifetime of races. Owner J. Paul Reddam bought the horse for $400,000. But, with this derby win, Nyquist career earnings jump to 4.56 million. So, Nyquist, proving to be a pretty good investment.

High hopes for Nyquist now. Could he accomplish with American Pharaoh did just last year, when we became the first triple crown winner in 37 years. Well, no more just a couple of weeks. May 21st when Nyquist will make a run for the second jewel in the triple crown at the Preakness.

Coy Wire, CNN, Louisville.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ALLEN: Well, there's the Kentucky Derby and then there's another race, the running of the Chihuahuas with their shorts, skinny legs and adorable faces. More than 100 Chihuahua race to the finish line and what has become a tradition in the city of Chattanooga, Tennessee. Some of them even wearing customs.

Phoebe Coco took home the title of the fastest Chihuahua this year.

And that we'll do it for us. I'll be right back with our top story after a quick break. You're watching CNN.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ALLEN: Back with our stop stories for you. The wildfire in Alberta, Canada that has left thousand homeless. It's moving northeast nearing to Saskatchewan. Officials now believe it has covered some 2,000 square kilometers. That's an area roughly twice the size of Hong Kong.

[00:30:07]