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Usain Bolt Wins Ninth Career Gold Medal; Ryan Lochte Apologizes for Behavior; U.S. Issues Warning over Syria Situation; More Changes in Trump Campaign; Zika Virus in Florida. Aired Midnight-12:30a ET

Aired August 20, 2016 - 00:00   ET

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


[00:00:22] NATALIE ALLEN, ANCHOR, CNN NEW ROOM: That's reaction in Jamaica as Usain Bolt makes Olympic history, earning his 9th gold medal to complete his triple-triple.

Plus the U.S. issues of grave warning to war toward Syrians as the Pentagon's scramble, fire death depends on Syrian planes in this country's northern territory.

And a blunt new directive for pregnant women as the threat of Zika spreads in the U.S. I'll talk with Dr. Sanjay Gupta.

Hello everyone, you're watching "CNN Newsroom." We're live at Atlanta. Thank you for joining us. I'm Natalie Allen.

Our top story, Usain Bolt has his triple-triple at the Rio Olympics on Friday. The stars pour in his team Jamaican took gold in the men's 4x100 meter relay. That's nine golds in all for Bolt, three golds in three events in three straight Olympics, Bolt Straight Olympics.

Bolt had already won this year's 100 and 200 meter. He turns 30 on Sunday and says Rio will be his final Olympic. Kate Riley is here to talk about it. Don't you love saying this? Triple, triple, three gold and three events, three straight Olympics and he turns the big 3-0.

KATE RILEY, CNN WORLD SPORT: I know, I think, I don't think we call all ever get boarder to saying that being a player. And quietly simply, we witnessed history in the Olympic stadium in Rio tonight.

Not only is Bolt the fastest man on the planet he is the fastest man ever to be born. We have witnessed something rather incredible tonight. But even Usain Bolt needs little help from his friends. His teammates didn't let him down.

Although the Japanese gave them a real run for their money and then of course came down to Usain Bolt's very special moment on the track. And you can see pictures there, just simply phenomenal. No one was going to stop him.

He comes away with a historic triple-triple. In fact, the Jamaicans ran a time of 37.27 seconds. And as I mentioned, then came the Japanese and what we thought was the U.S. They actually across the line in third but they ended up giving disqualified. So, that means the Canadians go away with bronze.

Well, let's go back to Bolt. He now hangs up his golden spikes as it were. There will be no Tokyo 2020 for him.

Here is CNN's Don Riddell with the look back at Bolt's amazing career.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DON RIDDELL, CNN CORRESPONDENCE: On the greatest stage in the world of sport, Usain Bolt has been the biggest star. The Olympic Games has never seen anything like it. Total domination in the mark key (ph) sprint events, three consecutive games. Some more modest athletes might play it down but not the man himself.

USAIN BOLT, NINE-TIME OLYPIC GOLD MEDALIST: Awesome, that's my one word. That's my $100 is use. Usain is awesome.

RIDDELL: He's been rewriting the record books since sweeping the 100, 200 and screen relay of Beijing. Bolt repeated in London and again here in Rio signing off his Olympic career with an unprecedented triple-triple. It's unlikely that we'll ever see his like again.

SANYA RICHARDS ROSS, OLYMPIC MEDALIST: Usain Bolt is the greatest track and field athlete of all time.

SEBASTIAN COE, OLYMPIC MEDALIST: I can't think of another athlete since Mohammed Ali that has so captured the public imagination.

(FOREIGN LANGUAGE)

RIDDELL: It would also be hard to imagine anyone cementing a legacy in so short of amount time. For the nine gold medals Bolt won of his last three Olympics, it was on track for a total of less than two minutes. Transcending his sport to becoming a global icon and a national hero in his beloved Jamaica.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Truly humbling to be here and be present for this moment. It's a true honor to see him run.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He has lifted the sport and brought all these people here, all the world has seen that you can do it the right way.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Words can't express it and especially since we know that it was his last Olympics. It was great to be here and see his remain.

RIDDELL: In a troubled era for athletics, Usain Bolt has become its shining light. A smiling assassin, ruthlessly crushing his rivals, laughing all the way to the finish line and the bank too.

CHRISTIAN TAYLOR, TWO-TIME GOLD MEDALIST/TRIPE JUMP: Absolute game changer. You know, we just talked about the attendance you know, coming to the track. He has brought faces and he has bought fans. He is truly I mean a legend in the making. But, you know, I'm so grateful for that and what he's doing for the sport and we just, you know, athletics as a whole.

RIDDELL: Tonight, we have seen Usain Bolt write another page of history in his remarkable Olympic career. But now it's over. He says he will retire after the world championships next year and he will celebrate his 30th birthday this Sunday knowing that he is the greatest. It is title that will likely never be surpassed. And make no mistake. He will be profoundly missed.

[00:05:14] Don Riddell, CNN, Rio.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

RILEY: Yeah, it's going to be some 30th birthday party. The question is now, what now for track and field? And who, Natalie, will be the next Usain Bolt?

ALLEN: Well, while we think about with got some-- the women are still running the 4x100 final. And I don't know, maybe there will be a female Usain Bolt one day.

RILEY: Oh yeah it quite possibly in history was made for the U.S. You know going into this one it was really tough for the Americans. Yesterday, we saw them qualified for the final running on their own after that first attempt they were disqualified then they protested then they were allowed to run on their own.

And then 24 hours later we saw them in the final and quite literally Natalie, they were in a field of their own. No one came close to them. And many congratulations. Allyson Felix has become the first woman to win five gold medals in athletics in the history of the Olympics with a U.S. relay win. Really quite amazing Natalie, and something definite to be celebrated.

ALLEN: Yeah, absolutely be a female gymnasts and the track gals the U.S. had going on. Always a pleasure.

RILEY: Thank you so much.

ALLEN: Thank you. Well, the Rio Olympics have gone more smoothly than many critics expected. But for some the alleged armed robbery of U.S. from Ryan Lochte and three team mates confirmed concerns about the city safety that is until their account of the night was called into question. Our Nick Paton Walsh have the controversy.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NICK PATON WALSH, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Gold medalist Ryan Lochte talk to Instagram today saying he apologizes his "For my behavior last weekend for not being more careful and candid in how I described the events of that early morning and for my role in taking the focus away from the many athletes for fulfilling their olympic dreams."

Lochte and three of his teammates stopped at a gas station in Rio early Sunday. Surveillance video appeared to support police accounts but at least one of them vandalized the station. Urinating outside and damaging property. The men then get into their taxi and a confronted by security offices of camera many reportedly change hands Lochte hands publicly described the encounter as an armed robbery. RYAN LOCHTE, US OLYMPIC SWIMMER: They pulled us over, they pulled out their guns and told the other swimmers to get on the ground and then a guy pull out his gun and cocked it and put it to my forehead and say sit down.

PATON WALSH: The police say the American swimmers reached an agreement with the armed guards to pay for damages while the gold medalist has now apologized he stopped short and makes highly changing his story. "It's traumatic to be out late with your friends in a foreign country with a language barrier." He post this "And have a stranger point of gun at you and demand money to let you live."

MARIO ANDRADA, RIO 2016 SPOKESMAN: We obviously accept his apology.

PATON WALSH: The international Olympic committee chiming in as well.

ANDRADA: It's clear that the Brazilian population was kind of felt humiliated.

PATON WALSH: Lochte has been back in the U.S. for days one while his teammates pull the brunt in Brazil Rio's mayor saying he feels "Pity and contempt for all of them."

James Feigen was not allowed to leave Brazil until he paid nearly $11,000 to a national sports charity. Civil police say Feigen and his lawyer agreed to the donation during a court appearance. Jack Conger and Gunnar bentz returned to the U.S. just this morning until being pulled off their original flight by Brazilian authorities Wednesday.

They were given their passports back only after giving statements to police. All this as the U.S. Olympic committee tries to clean up the mess left behind. In the statement he said "The behavior of these athletes is not acceptable nor does it represent the values of team USA."

But U.S. obviously (ph) also stop sort of saying its athletes lies. Their security guard "Displayed their weapons. Ordered the athletes from their vehicle and demanded-- a monetary payment." The statement reads.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ALLEN: That was Nick Paton Walsh for us there. Another news were following Syrian fighter jets turned back Friday after U.S. Pilots flew nearby and encouraged them to leave the area. They encounter came over the northern city of Al-Hasakah. Syrian air strikes targeted Kurdish fighters in Hasakah a day earlier. The Kurds are Washington's main ally in the battle against Isis in Syria.

More now from Pentagon Correspondent Barbara Starr.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: This video is said to show Kurdish fighters in a running gun battle with Syrian regime forces in the Northern Syrian city of Hasakah. Syrian fighter jets also bombing the area. Alarming the Pentagon which secretly then ordered the hasty withdrawal of nearby American special operations forces.

[00:10:02] SETH JONES, RAND CORP.: We got aircraft flying in those areas. We've got forces on the ground including the U.S. special operations forces. Certainly who may will be U.S. intelligence folks on the ground? So this increases the possibility of direct conflict.

STARR: The building smoldering from the air strikes. Hasakah is normally relatively calm and largely under Kurdish control. U.S. forces are training Kurds and Arabs to fight ISIS. Until now the Syrian regime had steered clear of where the Americans operate.

The Pentagon is furious with Damascus and Moscow. When the Syrian attack came the U.S. military scrambled, trying to contact the Syrian aircraft. There was no answer. Warning the Russians and the Syrians, the U.S. will take whatever action is necessary to defend U.S. forces and sending more U.S. aircraft into the area to patrol the skies.

There is now the real possibility of the U.S. and Syrian squaring off in the air. A senior U.S. military official telling CNN "If the Syrians try this again they are at great risk of losing an aircraft." Dozens of additional U.S. special operations forces are still in other areas of Northern Syria. To protect them, a tough U.S. line will continue.

JONES: If the U.S. ends up leaving because things get hot, what it's meant is they were essentially coerced to pull back by a combination on with strongly suspect of Syrian, Iranian and Russian efforts.

STARR: But the Russians are stepping up their action. These cruise missiles launched at what Moscow said were Al-Qaeda targets. And five year old Omran Daqneesh's wounded by air strike in Aleppo now recovery another tiny victim of yet another bombing.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ALLEN: That is quite the picture of that little boy. That's Barbara Starr from the Pentagon. The Obama administration has announced it will surpassed its goal of admitting 10,000 Syrian refugees to the U.S. this year. The news comes as our attention was drowned once again to the war in Syria with one heart breaking photo.

As Barbara Starr mentioned this is 5-year-old Omran Daqneesh's the picture was taken after his family's home in Aleppo was hit by an air strike. That update on Omran now an activist tell CNN the family has been smuggled out of Aleppo and is now staying with relatives. And we will check up on him for sure.

Donald Trump is trying to turn his campaign around after disappointing poll numbers. We'll examine whether this might be the dawn of a new Donald.

Plus, fighting the Zika virus and Florida get more complicated in federal health officials issue another warning. We'll talk with Dr. Sanjay Gupta.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) [00:15:11] ALLEN: Donald Trump facing yet another staff change at the top less than three months before Election Day. The U.S. Republican presidential candidate has accepted the resignation of his campaign chairman Paul Manafort.

This comes just days after Manafort was effectively sidelined in a staff reshuffling. A source says that Manafort felt that he had become a distraction. He's under investigation in Ukraine for allegedly receiving illegal payments when he worked for Ukraine's former pro- Russian ruling party. Manafort denies that he wrong doing and now were learning that U.S. Federal authorities are investigating Manafort's firm as well as other U.S. companies linked to the government of Al Sadd (ph) Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych.

The FBI and justice department are looking into possible U.S. ties so that government alleged corruption.

Recent polls show Hillary Clinton is ahead nationwide. So, Trump is trying to pivot his campaign. The candidate has promoter, a conservative media provoke a tour and respective Republican strategist to senior position. And for now Trump seems to be sticking for the most part to prepared speeches.

Our Jessica Schneider has more on what Trump is doing that turns things around.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, U.S. REPUBLICAN PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: What do you have to lose by trying something new like Trump?

JESSICA SCHNEIDER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Donald Trump making a passionate pitch to African-American voters telling this mostly white audience near East Lansing, Michigan that Democrats have been the ones keeping minorities down.

TRUMP: America must reject the bigotry of Hillary Clinton, who sees communities of color only as votes, not as human beings, worthy of a better future. Hillary Clinton would rather provide a job to a refugee from overseas than to give that job to unemployed African-American youth.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Thank you for coming, Mr. Trump.

SCHNEIDER: Trump started the day in Baton Rouge criticizing the President for staying on vacation on Martha's Vineyard during the worst natural disaster since Superstorm Sandy. The White House announcing just as Donald Trump jet took off that President Obama will travel to the devastation on Tuesday. But Donald Trump didn't let up.

TRUMP: Honestly, Obama ought to get off the golf course and get down there.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: In Hillary Clinton's America the system stays rigged against Americans. SCHNEIDER: Trump's first TV ad hit the air at the campaign spending $4.8 million over the next 10 days for ads in battleground states of Ohio, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, and Florida.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Donald Trump's America is secure. Terrorists and dangerous criminals kept out the borders secure, our families safe.

SCHNEIDER: Clinton's camp already on the attack. Campaign's spokesman Brian Fallon tweeting, in case you thought for a split second Trump was genuine about feeling regret. He is back to demonizing immigrants again in his new ad today.

Trump sharpens tone come does a new team takes over and Paul Manafort resign as campaign chairman. Sources telling CNN Manafort told Trump he was becoming a distraction and wanted to end it.

Donald Trump hasn't spoken about Paul Manafort's departure only releasing a statement saying that he's appreciative to Manafort especially for his help during the delegate and the convention process. But the Clinton camp is pouncing on this saying that the departure of Paul Manafort doesn't put an end to what they have called the odd bromance between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin.

Jessica Schneider, CNN, Dimondale, Michigan.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ALLEN: And as Jessica mentioned Louisiana is struggling to recover from unbelievable flooding. So far flood waters have damaged more than 40,000 homes and killed at least 13 people. FEMA has more than 70,000 people have registered for individual assistance since a federal disaster was declared. And comparing the floods to Superstorm Sandy is an indication of the devastating scale.

And for more on that now, Derek Van Dam joins us. Derek, I mean there are so many places in the country just having this unbelievable extreme weather.

DEREK VAN DAM, CNN WEATHER ANCHOR: That's right.

ALLEN: And Louisiana got to feel form them.

VAN DAM: Louisiana has had a rough past ten days to say the least, Natalie. And what we're talking about here--

ALLEN: Ten days.

VAN DAM: Yeah, in 10 days and still thousands of people still in shelter. This is in Baton Rouge, one of the arenas there. Brings back flash backs since Hurricane Katrina, 2005. There's an insurance in risk management firm that is the economic impact of the flooding just this past week in Louisiana could reach $1.5 Billion. That places it in the top five-- costliest floods in the United States.

Obama has declared at least 20 parishes a disaster area. The problem being that's this is a very flat part of the United States. So the topography not aiding in that slow retreat of the water

[00:20:05] So if we have done a bunch of the calculations. You may or may not have seen this already. But let me just breakdown how much rain actually fell.

On average throughout the entire United States state of Louisiana, 193 millimeters of rainfall actually took place in a seven day period. That's ranging from the 8th of August to 14th of August.

Louisiana is just over 135,000 square kilometers. If you do the math that is over 26 trillion gallons of water that fell specifically around the Baton Rouge area, in fact as we loop the radar over that period of a week. You can see just that constant barrage of rainfall that moved across the south central parts of Louisiana.

That's why there are still flash flood warnings taking place across this area, highlighted in green Interstate 12 and places to the west as well into neighboring Texas. We have flash flood watches thanks to the abundant moisture that continues to moves through the area.

So, the answer if the rain is coming to an end, well, not exactly. The heavy rain has come to an end but we still have the potential for more precipitation as warm humid gulf air continues to streams into the region.

The only light at the end of the tunnel is a cold front that will coming in by the middle of next week. I want to end with this. Here's according CDC the certain disasters or at least Louisiana Health Department contaminated infection, aggressive insects but it's interesting enough to CDC has said that large of rain events just like this actually -- not -- the mosquitoes that transmit disease have getting wiped out by some of the rains that cause this heavy, heavy flooding.

So, this is actually good news for the Zika virus that people are so concerned about. CDC actually claiming that this event not going to make the Zika threat worse.

ALLEN: Good to know, thank very much Derek.

And we're going to talk more about Zika in a minute and the women who are under threat, the pregnant women. The Zika virus is spreading. I talk with Dr. Sanjay Gupta about the new travel warning and what he saw on his Rio trip to Brazil.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ALLEN: A frightening warning yet again for pregnant women from the U.S. centers for disease control, stay away from a section of Miami Beach, south beach in Florida because the Zika virus has spread there.

CDC issued the travel warning Friday. The virus had already been identified in an area north of downtown Miami.

Dr. Sanjay Gupta joins us now and talks about the growing situation. Its interesting Sanjay, how quickly this was a threat in one area of one country and now we have it a threat is another and another and another and two places near Miami. A very popular place and a place you don't want to cover up.

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: No, right. I mean you tell people to wear long sleeves in where there in south beach area. It's not going to happen probably.

So, it's one of these things that I think in many ways was expected. We have seen what's happened in Brazil, Salvador-- many places in the southern hemisphere in particular. And given the climates the same, given that the mosquitoes. These mosquitoes not as Aedes Aegypti already exist in south Florida and many other states.

We knew we were likely to get Zika. What is interesting to me now, they are really like pinpointing these areas literary block by block. And here's where you needed to be concern about. Give you map just to sort to show you.

In the middle of the screen was the first area, that first hot spot. The Wynwood community and that was an area where they said mosquitoes are spreading Zika.

[00:25:04] Now, on the right side of the screen is the south part of Miami Beach, known as south as beach, that where they say mosquitoes are spreading Zika. What was interesting is the CDC director, Centers for Disease Control director said, "Really, I'm kind of concerned about all of Miami-dade, the entire area because while we haven't confirmed it in other areas there's enough reason for suspicion."

ALLEN: All right south beach that is a destination for people the world over.

GUPTA: It is-- you reported on SARS quite a bit. You remember what SARS did to certain communities like Toronto in terms of the economy, people not wanting to trouble there.

It is a balance. You really get a balance saying look we are concerned enough to say hey pregnant women should not come to these areas but we don't you want to completely frighten people away from Miami altogether.

ALLEN: Right, and you know people, I heard some report about some families of thinking of moving away for a pregnancy but who could do that? I could go live somewhere for nine months.

GUPTA: Yeah, it's a wonderful option if the resources to do that. But can you imagine pregnant woman are saying don't go to this neighborhood. What if you are a pregnant living in that neighborhood? Can you imagine the emotional toll that must taken you're saying I worried about a mosquito bite, passively at leading to the birth defect on my unborn child.

ALLEN: Yeah and you can cover up everywhere and it lands right here or what have you. Yeah, absolutely, and doctors are being inundated with questions of course. This is also new, isn't it? For the most part of Zika and the research of what happens to people. I saw something where a woman wanted to know if I get all the way to my two weeks before my due date and I get bitten could that harm the baby? Do they know those answers yet?

GUPTA: Well, what the seen to be say is that the earlier in pregnancy that an infection happens the worse it is. So, if it happens in the first trimester it's going to worse than in the last trimester.

But, you know, I was recently in Brazil and I was in Salvador, Brazil. Now, it's really struck by the fact that I met women who said look the entire pregnancy I was fine and then it was the last trimester cause the end where I saw a rash and I was worried that maybe Zika infection sure enough. It did lead to their child inborn with microcephaly, this birth defect. So, it can happen anytime it seems.

ALLEN: Yeah and I also quickly want to talk with you about Puerto Rico. It seems that we having a serious effect there and I saw one report not sure if it is confirmed that a man actually got it, he was paralyzed and died. What is the risk to other people?

GUPTA: It's a great question. I'm glad you bring it up because you know, when you look across the board, 80 percent of people roughly they say if they get a Zika infection may not even know it because the symptoms would be that mild or no symptoms at all.

Pregnant women we've been talking about have you know, the largest concern. But, there is another condition known as Guillain-Barre, people and don't need to remember the name.

But, basically, what it is, its affects all the nerves in your body including sometimes a nerves that we lead to your diaphragm, the muscle that allows you to breathe. So, it's rare and it doesn't just happen with Zika. It happens with other viruses as well. But, sometimes with a bad infection it can lead to this condition.

ALLEN: Hopefully at some point, we get to handle on this. Thank you as always Dr. Sanjay.

GUPTA: You got it, thank you.

ALLEN: And that's our news. Our headlines are right after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)