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Hurricane Matthew Rips Through Caribbean; Contractor Accused Of Stealing Top Secret Data; South Korea: At Least 6 Dead From Typhoon Chaba. Aired 1-2am ET
Aired October 06, 2016 - 01:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[01:00:17] JOHN VAUSE, CNN NEWSROOM ANCHOR: This is CNN NEWSROOM live from Los Angeles. Ahead this hour, bracing for Matthew, the hurricane barrelling across the Caribbean right now, while millions in the U.S. could be in the path of this deadly storm.
Could be Snowden 2.0, a government contractor accused of stealing top secret intelligence from the U.S. And Donald Trump takes the credit for his running mate's much praised performance in the VP Debate. Hello, everybody, thanks for joining us. I'm John Vause. A second hour of NEWSROOM L.A. starts now.
Millions of Americans could be in the direct path of Hurricane Matthew. The Bahamas are being hammered right now and Matthew will likely strengthen as it moves towards the southern U.S. The storm has already caused widespread destruction in Haiti, flooding hundreds of homes and forcing more than 300,000 people into shelters. The main bridge connecting the capital to the southern peninsula has collapsed. In the U.S., hundreds of thousands of coastal residence are hitting the road, evacuations have been ordered in Florida, Georgia, as well as South Carolina. Meteorologist Derek Van Dam joins us now with the very latest on the storm. So, Derek, where are we at the moment?
[01:01:43] DEREK VAN DAM, CNN WEATHER ANCHOR: All right. Good evening, John. This is what we have latest from the National Hurricane Center. And I want to focus on the immediate threats to the Bahamas, and then we'll talk about Florida in just one second across Southeastern United States. There's the hurricane warnings, including Nassau, and this is particularly disturbing for me, because what we're starting to notice with the hurricane is it becoming more organized, and that's an indicator to meteorologists that this storm is intensifying, and Nassau in the Bahamas on the island of New Providence is right in the line of sight for the potential of a landfalling Category 3 hurricane, which could easily become a Category 4 here by the National Hurricane Center at the next update by 2:00 a.m. Winds at 185 kilometers per hour, it is about 200 kilometers to the south and east as Nassau as we speak. And what you're looking at here is the chance of tropical storm force winds, that's a minimum of 63 kilometers per hour, extremely likely if not 100 percent probability across the Bahamas, because they're experiencing that as we speak.
But going forward in time, you can see that that deep shade of purple and red stretches across the southeast coast of the United States. But there are some specifics that determine how strong the winds will become and how strong that storm surge will become along the coast. And what I want to point out here is this computer model making landfall along the Florida coast here by early Thursday - or rather, Friday morning. And what I want you to notice is that the strongest part of the storm is just offshore, but that is all dependent on exactly where the center of the storm goes. Let me explain, and you could see my graphics below me. What we're noticing is the National Hurricane Center track runs it parallel with the Atlantic coast of Florida, but any deviation inland brings the strongest part of the storm inland along with it. So, we'll see those strong hurricane force winds, Category 3, Category 4, inland, and even as far as Orlando, but if that shifts offshore, that brings the strongest parts of winds along with it, and that spares the Florida coast from the worst devastating effects from this potential - or this hurricane.
So, going forward, what can we expect? Storm surge, that will be a major concern. Nassau, by the way, 10 to 15-foot storm surge, that would completely inundate the shorelines of that area and be almost catastrophic for that island, so that's going to be something we'll be talking for days to come. Rainfall leading to flash flooding, easily 500 millimeters. Plus, there's the storm system, there's our computer model showing a landfalling Category 4 hurricane along the Florida coast. Will that eyewall cross inland, time will tell. And by the way, John, you can see temperatures in the ocean waters here, just ripe for strengthening for this hurricane, and that's what we're seeing right now.
VAUSE: Yeah, those warm waters are like jet fuel for a hurricane.
VAN DAM: Yeah, absolutely.
VAUSE: Derek, thank you. Thank you for the update. We also have to report on a Typhoon Chaba, which has battered the southern tip of South Korea, killing at least six people. Officials say four others remain missing. Heavy flooding has swamped hundreds of homes and thousands of hectares of farmland.
The FBI says there has been a high-level security breach at the National Security Agency. Investigators accused Harold Martin of taking classified material home. He was arrested in August. CNN's Justice Correspondent Evan Perez has the details.
[01:05:09] EVAN PEREZ, CNN JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: The justice department says the leak of these documents could cause, quote, "Exceptionally grave damage." Harold Martin is facing charges for allegedly stealing some of the nation's most sensitive secrets. Some classified at the highest levels. Among the information that the FBI believes he stole, were documents detailing a sophisticating hacking tool that the NSA developed to break into foreign computer system. Now, a couple of months ago, someone calling themselves "The Shadow Brokers" began offering the computer code for the hacking tool for sale online. The computer code dates back to a few years ago. It's not the latest technology, but it still considered highly sensitive. The FBI raided Martin's home back in August, and he was arrested then, but the charges remained secret until Wednesday. CNN caught up to his wife outside his home in the D.C. suburbs. Here's what she had to say. DEBORAH VINSON, HAROLD MARTIN'S WIFE: He's a good man, and that's all I can really tell you. OK? I would deeply appreciate it if you guys would respect my privacy, and respect my family's privacy. I love him very much, and he's a good man.
PEREZ: Martin worked as a contractor for Booz Allen Hamilton, and he had a top secret security clearance. Booz Allen is also the contractor of the employed, Edward Snowden, who the government blames for carrying out one of the biggest and most damaging leaks of U.S. government secrets. The FBI is still trying to figure out what Martin's motivation was. So far, investigators don't think that he was working for a foreign government. Now, his attorneys issued a statement that reads in part, quote, "There is no evidence that Hal Martin betrayed his country. What we do know is that Mr. Martin loves his family and America, he served his nation honorably in the U.S. Navy as a lieutenant and has devoted his entire career to making America safe." This is just another major blow to the NSA, which has been working to rebuild its reputation after the Snowden leaks. They've been doing a lot of work to try to prevent things just like this, the so-called insider threat. Evan Perez, CNN Washington.
VAUSE: OK. More on the story now. Internet security analyst Hemu Nigam joins us now here in Los Angeles. Hemu, thank you for coming in. Let's look at what was allegedly stole, because right now these are accusations and allegations, nothing has been proven, but what we're being told is that what is believed to be taken are these computer codes for hacking into foreign countries, adversaries like Russia, or China, and Iraq, maybe even North Korea. Is there a market out there for that kind of stuff? Is it just those countries who would be interested or is there a commercial market for someone (INAUDIBLE) and buy those codes?
[01:07:39] HEMU NIGAM, INTERNET SECURITY ANALYST: Actually, there's both a government market and a commercial market. So, if I'm - let's say, I'm China or Russia or some other nation state, it could be even a friendly nation state, if the NSA has done the job of creating malware, which in essence, what it is, it's a piece of code that can break into secure systems, it finds vulnerabilities and gets into there, so that the NSA can secretly collect data, watch what's going on, read communications and get a insider view of another government's inner workings. So, if I'm another government that's anti-American or a friendly government going after those same countries, I would absolutely want that.
VAUSE: Commercially?
NIGAM: Commercially, it's even bigger in the sense that there's a lot of hackers out there who want to know what all the governments are doing not just the U.S. And so, it can be used against the U.S., it can be used against citizens, it can be used by organized crime, the list just goes on and on.
VAUSE: OK. So, this is valuable stuff?
NIGAM: It's very valuable.
VAUSE: OK. The question though, appears to be one of motive, because we've been hearing from the officials.
NIGAM: Right.
VAUSE: There's no political motive here to the alleged that it's not like Edward Snowden.
NIGAM: Yes. There's one thing we should make clear up front. This is - this particular individual doesn't have any of the signs that Edward Snowden did. He doesn't seem to be like the kind of person who wants to be a whistle blower, he doesn't have a grudge that he's portraying, and he's got issues going on in his personal life. This seems to be an individual who actually, as your story was saying, served the country. He was a lieutenant in active duty in the reserves, even now, he had gone to, I think, across the seas twice. And the data he was collecting wasn't hidden. What's really interesting is I read the DOJ complaint, and they said data was shown about, there were printed copies in his car, there were printed copies in house. It was kind of sitting there.
VAUSE: Sitting there in plain sight for all the world to see, essentially.
NIGAM: Yes.
VAUSE: OK. So, from that point of view, from the motivation point of view, not Edward Snowden, but from another point of view, it kind of is because it's the same contractor, Booz Allen Hamilton. What does this say about that firm, for a start, and also about the billions and billions of dollars which are being spent since the Edward Snowden affair to try and make the NSA more secure?
NIGAM: Right. That's what - actually, that is truly the two shocking events that are going on here. One is it's Booz Allen again. It's kind of like, "here we go again." And then the other side is the NSA's insider threat again. So, it's another, "here we go again." And the question that raises is what's going on in the Booz Allen hiring process, and the government's top secret clearance review process that's allowing individuals like this to happen? But even more importantly, how does somebody walk out with printed copies and copies and floppy disks and other types of disks from top secret secured locations, and brings them home, in their car when they're leaving? So, that raises the question of, did the security -- maybe the network security got stronger, but did regular physical security get any better?
VAUSE: Right. So, what you're saying is that it appears allegedly that this guy has simply walked out of the building with all of these documents and no one has bothered to stop him.
NIGAM: Right. That's what it appears. And I know everything is an allegation currently and he hasn't gone to trial and all of that. But the reality of the situation is that happened after an event as significant as Edward Snowden happen again. Now, it could be that he did this before. It could be that he had already done this, it's been lying around his house. If you look at his -
VAUSE: Maybe he got sloppy.
NIGAM: He could - he could be sloppy with his floppy disk.
VAUSE: Yeah, exactly. So, who knows? Like you say, (INAUDIBLE) they just didn't know it.
NIGAM: Right.
VAUSE: OK. Hemu, thanks for coming in. Thanks for the explanation.
NIGAM: Thanks for having me.
VAUSE: Thank you. Well, we'll take a short break here. When we come back, the U.S. says Russia has moved a new missile defense system into Syria. Well, have the reaction to this latest show of strength. Also, Donald Trump has his say on the Vice Presidential Debate.
DONALD TRUMP, REPUBLICAN PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Mike Pence did an incredible job, and I'm getting a lot of credit, because that's really my first so-called choice, that was my first hire, as we would say in Las Vegas.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
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[01:14:01] AMANDA DAVIES, CNN SPORTS ANCHOR: Hi, I'm Amanda Davis with your CNN WORLDSPORT headlines. Maria Sharapova may have been cleared to get back to tennis action from April next year, but before she puts her doping ban behind her, she's been having her say about how she feels she's been treated over her failed drug test and suspension. The former world number one has told us at CNN that the tennis governing body, the ITF could and should have done more to avoid the situation. On Tuesday, Sharapova had her two year ban for taking meldonium, cut to 15 months. It's a drug that was only added to the prohibited list at the start of the year, and Sharapova and her team claimed they were unaware.
On the court, a disappointing day for local fans at the Japan Open with top seeded, home favourite Kei Nishikori forced to retire from his second round match through injury. Better news, though, for world number two, Andy Murray at the China Open in Beijing. He crushed Russia's Andrey Kuznetsov in straight sets.
And in the latest match in the NBA's global games, Oklahoma City played Barcelona. It was tight until the very end. Enes Kanter's layup giving the Thunder a one-point lead with just a minute to go. Oklahoma City holding on to win, final score 92-89. The Thunder's first victory of preseason. That is a look at your SPORTS headlines, I'm Amanda Davies.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
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[01:15:52] VAUSE: Welcome back, everybody. Donald Trump has nothing but praise for his running mate's debate performance. While campaigning in Nevada, the Republican presidential nominee called it a major victory for his campaign. Trump is just days away now from another face off with Hillary Clinton. Jim Acosta has more now from the campaign trail.
[01:16:09] JIM ACOSTA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Donald Trump is taking a victory lap declaring the bottom of his ticket came out on top in the Vice Presidential Debate.
TRUMP: Mike Pence did an incredible job, and I'm getting a lot of credit because that's really my first so-called choice. I'd argue that Mike had the single-most decisive victory in the history of Vice Presidential Debates.
TIM KAINE, DEMOCRATIC VICE PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: If you can't meet the mixing standard, people ought to have some -
ELAINE QUIJANO, VICE PRESIDENTIAL DEBATE MODERATOR: Gentlemen, the people at home cannot understand either one of you.
ACOSTA: But in the rumble of the running mates, Mike Pence was a time sprinting as fast as he could away from Trump as Tim Kaine was in hot pursuit.
MIKE PENCE: I'm happy to defend him. Most of what you said is completely false, and the American people know that.
ACOSTA: While the Indiana Governor state cool, deflecting most of Kaine's attacks, Democrats are seizing on Pence's defense of Trump's past comment that some undocumented Mexican immigrants are rapists and criminals as a defining moment.
PENCE: Whipped out that Mexican thing again. He - look --
KAINE: Can you defend it?
PENCE: There are criminal aliens in this country. He also said and many of them are good people. You keep leaving that out of your quote.
ACOSTA: And Kaine repeatedly raised the GOP ticket's praise of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
KAINE: This is one where you can just kind of go to the tape on it. But Governor Pence said inarguably, Vladimir Putin is a better leader than President Obama -
PENCE: You're -- that is absolutely inaccurate.
ACOSTA: But here's what he said to CNN.
PENCE: It's in inarguable that Vladimir Putin has been a stronger leader in his country than Barack Obama has been in this country.
ACOSTA: Instead during the debate, Pence was talking tough on Putin, insisting that President Trump would stare down the Russian leader in Syria. That's despite reservations voiced by Trump himself.
TRUMP: I would have stayed out of Syria.
PENCE: If Russia chooses to be involved and continue, I should say to be involved. In this barbaric attack on civilians in Aleppo, the United States of America should be prepared to use military force.
ACOSTA: Still post-debate poll showed Pence's Reagan-isk performance carried the night. The Indiana Governor shrugged off the likelihood that Trump didn't pay federal income taxes for nearly two decades.
KAINE: He stood on the stage last week and when Hillary said, "You haven't been paying taxes." He said, "That makes me smart." So, it's smart not to pay for our military. It's smart not to pay for veterans.
PENCE: Senator, do you take all the deductions that you are entitled to?
ACOSTA: But after the debate, when Trump's son, Eric was asked by Dana Bash whether his father had in fact paid any federal income taxes over the last 20 years, his answer hardly put the matter to rest.
ERIC TRUMP: Of course, yes, absolutely. My father has paid a tremendous amount of tax. We as a company pay a tremendous amount of tax.
ACOSTA: With the next presidential debate just days away, the pressure is back on the top of the ticket, and this time, Trump's campaign manager says the GOP nominee will be ready.
KELLYANNE CONWAY, TRUMP'S CAMPAIGN MANAGER: We prepare constantly and he has - again, very excited about the format, the town hall format is really a sweet spot for him.
ACOSTA: And the Trump campaign is pushing back on the notion that the GOP nominee is somehow jealous of Pence's performance in the words of Kellyanne Conway, Trump's Campaign Manager, that is truly outrageous. Jim Acosta, CNN, Reno, Nevada.
VAUSE: Joining us here in Los Angeles is Mitchell Schwartz. He worked on Bill Clinton's campaign in New Hampshire. He also ran Barack Obama's California campaign in 2007. Also, James Lacy, a Trump supporter and author of "Taxifornia." OK. Thanks for being with us. Let's pick up on that last point that Jim Acosta made in his piece about, you know, there's talk out there that Trump was somehow angry or unhappy because Pence didn't defend him. He felt upstaged, and that's kind of why he was going out on the campaign today saying, "He did a good job, but it's all because of me." Jim.
[01:19:48] JAMES LACY, TRUMP SUPPORTER AND AUTHOR OF "TAXIFORNIA": Well, I mean, who cares? I mean, this is really devolving the debate to focus on these personal issues. I mean, you know, we're in a situation where we have real problems. We've got terrific problems with national security. We've got problems with immigration. We've got problems with being taxes too high. We've got problems with unemployment. I mean, really, who cares to speculate on that? I think that unfortunately, Donald Trump is in a situation where he's running against not only the Democratic Party, but he's running against media that wants to popularize and sensationalize the obscure and unnecessary.
VAUSE: Mitch, obscure and unnecessary?
[01:20:28] MITCHELL SCHWARTZ, LOS ANGELES MAYORAL CANDIDATE: Here's what I would say. I think Mike Pence showed the Republicans what a true candidate looks like. Somebody who could talk about the issues in a serious way, in a conservative way. I disagreed with a lot that Mr. Pence said, but he was smart, he was thoughtful, he knew the issues. Compare that with Donald Trump who can't get up and just talk about the issues. We saw that in the first debate, we're going to see that on Sunday. When it comes to actually talking about substance, he can't do it.
VAUSE: I mean, there was a lot - there were a lot of people who tuned in and thought, you know, if they - if they didn't know any better, "Well, that Mike Pence guy, he's pretty good. I wonder who his running mate is going to be."
LACY: Well, no. Mike Pence looked absolutely terrific, and he did - he's done a fabulous job as the Governor of Indiana. He's used the Reagan-type policies of low regulations and trying to encourage businesses to create employment. And he's done a great job. I think he's got a $2 billion budget surplus. You know, that's exactly the type of thinking that can help Donald Trump. But Donald Trump is the man who chose -
VAUSE: But we know that.
LACY: -- this vice presidential candidate, and he - and he obviously made a very good decision.
VAUSE: We heard a lot about that today. OK, let's move on to the Democrats and Hillary Clinton because she was out on the campaign trail. She's now hunkering down, getting ready for the debate, but before that, she was praising Tim Kaine for the job that he did.
(BEGIN VIDEOCLIP)
HILLARY CLINTON, DEMOCRATIC PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I thought Tim did a great job, and every time he tried to push Mike Pence to defend what Donald Trump has said and done, Pence just bobbed and weaved, tried to get out of the way because after all, trying to defend Donald Trump is an impossible task.
(END VIDEOCLIP)
VAUSE: And Mitchell, to your point that, you know, Pence had a very good stylistic debate. Kaine's job was to get out there remind voters to some of the things that Donald Trump has said about women, about Mexicans, about President Obama. He may not won the debate but he did his job.
SCHWARTZ: Yeah. Kaine, in some people's mind and in my mind, too, may not have done as good as he could have done because he just kept interrupting. It was obnoxious and it was rude. Having said that, he repeatedly brought up Trump's positions to Mr. Pence to his running mate, and Mike Pence, what he did, was pivot off them, never tried to defend them, never tried to answer them, pivoted off -
(CROSSTALK)
LACY: But he pivoted to issues. He pivoted to issues. You know, when they want to talk about Donald Trump's tax return, what he did was talk about how taxes are too high and how tax policy has to be reformed.
SCHWARTZ: Right, that may be good in that - yes, he could pivot away from something, but he didn't answer the questions. He didn't say what -- you know, he didn't defend Mr. Trump on what he's doing. Trump is the top of the ticket, now if Pence were the top of the ticket that would be one thing, but Trump is the top of the ticket and Mr. Pence did not explain why Trump said what he said, did not defend what Trump said what he said.
LACY: No, I think that the interest that your side has in trying to get answers to inconsequential questions about Donald Trump's personality or what somebody may think he said or didn't say is completely off the wall. Because at this point in the campaign, where we have 33 - what is it? 33, 34 days before the election -
VAUSE: 32.
SCHWARTZ: Thank God.
LACY: We ought to - we ought to understand what the candidates' positions are on ISIS. What the candidates' positions are on ObamaCare, what the candidates' position are on economic recovery, what the candidates' positions are on the fact that our middleclass is hurting and that our middleclass is not thriving. Those are the types of issues, and that's what Pence talked about and it's what Donald Trump talked about today and (INAUDIBLE).
VAUSE: Well, you're not going to like this next tape because you'll say this is being inconsequential because two videos have emerged today showing Donald Trump photographing "Playboy" models that were fully clothed back in 1994. Take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: And you want to be?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: 40th Anniversary Playmate.
TRUMP: Good. And what qualifications would you say you have? UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I believe that it's not just beauty. I think it's an attitude. I think it has a lot to do with personality and then attitude. I think Playboy really represents that, and I believe I have that, and I have what it takes to represent them.
TRUMP: Well, I think you have what it takes, too. And I think everyone in this room thinks you have what it takes also.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: OK. The other scenes without Trump, the women are naked, they're in sexually explicit poses. Jim, to you, Trump isn't doing well with women. 62 percent on unfavorable. This might -- will not help.
LACY: OK. Look, this is 22 years ago, OK? It has absolutely no relevance to the election today. But if you want to talk about women, let's talk about Hillary Clinton and women. Let's talk about the fact that Hillary Clinton, when she was in the state department, took millions and millions of dollars into the Clinton Foundation from Arabian countries that discriminate against women that don't allow women to vote, that discriminate against homosexuals, that will stone homosexuals to -- and condemn them to death, that do not give women - that treat women like property. OK. Now, this is Hillary Clinton. Hillary Clinton is a hypocrite as a women's advocate, because you have a situation where she's proven as the Secretary of State that she's willing to basically take advantage of that position to be able to help her own foundation. So, is that a good women's policy? I don't think it's a very good women's policy.
VAUSE: There's blood in there, Mitch?
SCHWARTZ: Yeah, I don't remember her any -- taking any money as Secretary of State for the foundation. So, I'm not sure what you're referring to, but Donald Trump has repeatedly put down women. He objectifies women. They're sex objects to him. His own daughter, he talked about dating his own daughter. At 3:00 the other day, he gets up and just starts tweeting about this woman. Talk about 22 years ago, this woman, the Miss Universe.
VAUSE: Alicia Machado.
LACY: Yeah.
SCHWARTZ: He can't help himself, he was making fun of Carly Fiorina's face, and this is a Republican candidate.
LACY: The Inspector-General of the State Department and the associated press, have done many, many reviews of the state department under Hillary Clinton, and it's true that over half of the meetings that she had with private citizens while she was the Secretary of State were people who were donors. It's clear that the Clinton Foundation tried to use her staff to get diplomatic passports for Clinton Foundation donors so that they could go through the lines quicker when they went on international travel. It's a fact that Saudi Arabia, Qatar, country after country that discriminates against women, that don't give the women the right to vote, that treat women like cattle, that these countries have given millions to the Clinton foundation while she was Secretary of State.
(CROSSTALK)
VAUSE: OK. We're out of time. Last word, a minute.
SCHWARTZ: Speaking of Saudi Arabia, do you think that they should have nuclear weapons like Donald Trump thinks that should have?
VAUSE: OK.
LACY: Donald -- he doesn't think that. And it's a lie to say that.
SCHWARTZ: What did he say -- what did he say about Saudi Arabia?
LACY: No. That's absolutely not the case. It's an inappropriate to keep raising it.
VAUSE: OK. We'll go to the videotape on that one. But, you know, again, this is where, you know, this campaign has sort of gone into the he said/she said kind of part. And as you say, we are 32 days away, and there are some serious issues to discuss, but we do seem to be bogged down in who said what and when, but thank you very much, guys, for coming in. We appreciate it.
LACY: Thank you.
VAUSE: And with that, we'll take a short break. Oh, look at that, shaking hands. Awesome. Thousands in Haiti, when we come back, they've lost their homes, Hurricane Matthew has pummeled the country. We'll talk about push to get emergency supplies and shelter there. That's next. Also ahead, we'll show you what was once one of Syria's best kept secrets, a little bit of peace in the midst of a brutal civil war.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: During the entire time of the siege, the underground library here was a sanctuary especially for the children of Daraya. Many of whom would come here braving the dangers to read in peace.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
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[01:31:30] JOHN VAUSE, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome back, everybody. You're watching CNN NEWSROOM, from Los Angeles. I'm John Vause, with the headlines this hour.
(HEADLINES)
Hurricane Matthew is making its way toward the United States after barreling through the Caribbean. It's whipping the Bahamas right now and will likely strengthen as it heads north. Evacuations are under way in Florida, Georgia, and South Carolina.
Haiti was one of those Caribbean nations hit hard by Hurricane Matthew.
Joining me now here is Kerri Murray. She's is with ShelterBox, an international relief charity.
And we have to say this is not the first time ShelterBox has been involved with a natural disaster in Haiti. You were there during the earthquake and now heading back because of Hurricane Matthew. What are expecting?
KERRI MURRAY, PRESIDENT, SHELTERBOX: We were, John. ShelterBox is preparing every day for the worst day ever. In the 2010 earthquake, ShelterBox brought in emergency shelter and tented supplies, tents, water purification units, blankets. We provided about a third of all tented shelter in the 2010 earthquake. You saw a million people displaced with that earthquake. If this situation, you are seeing about 350,000 people in need of humanitarian aid. They are estimating about 14,000 people in need of emergency shelter. With the hurricane that came through, it was a category 4, as you know, they sustained 250 kilometer-an-hour winds. In those situations, you're seeing the wind just sheer off the roofs of the homes. You are seeing extensive flooding, different situation than the earthquakes. Some different needs that we are seeing as a result.
VAUSE: Knowing Haiti, because you've been there, been there during a disaster, you know what the infrastructure of the country is like, clearly, this is an impoverished country, the poorest in the Western Hemisphere. Dealing with these natural disasters is obviously a challenge for the government. They opened shelters but we understand they are overflowing. So something like this, the tents, which you bring in, are crucial especially in the first couple of days and weeks?
MURRAY: Yes, exactly. So you know, with the flooding and the situation we're seeing and the extensive winds it's likely what we'll provide are shelter kits that help you shore up a home. There are tarps and tools to put a roof on a home. In addition you are seeing contamination of the water source and cholera, still an issue in this country. We'll look to bring in mosquito nets, water purification units that can eradicate the viruses and bacteria in the water. And also other essential items like solar lights where you see communication and power outages.
On of the central arteries from Port-au-Prince to the southern peninsula is a bridge that has completely collapsed. So we'll look and do our assessments. We have deployed the emergency response team. We're sending in teams from North America as well as Europe and New Zealand. They're arriving and will be working with local officials to assess what is needed most.
[01:35:06] VAUSE: Clearly, there is an expectation of how long someone will live with a ShelterBox, with the supplies you bring them. There is your assessment and then there is reality. How long is this a home for someone in Haiti right now?
MURRAY: In terms of the tented shelter, it is meant to help someone in the short term, in the immediate response, and give them a place and give them the dignity and security to come back together as a family. The goal is not to set up camps and have people in this on a permanent basis. The reality sometimes is, though, in some countries. Haiti the poorest country in the Western hemisphere, one of the poorest in the world, 60 percent of the population live on less than $2.50 a day. So the situation before Hurricane Matthew was 50,000 people still living in tents provided from the government and aid organizations after the earthquake. But the reality is we'll be looking to not just deploy emergency tented shelter but where can we go and provide shelter kits --
VAUSE: Yeah.
MURRAY: -- and help repair the homes --
VAUSE: The structures that are still standing?
MURRAY: Exactly.
VAUSE: Kerri, thank you so much. And good luck. You do good work.
MURRAY: Thanks, John.
We hope you get there and obviously get the aid the people need.
MURRAY: Thanks so much.
VAUSE: Thank you.
Syria's military says it will scale back air strikes and artillery fire on the rebel-held parts of Aleppo to allow civilians to leave. The military offensive, backed by Russia, left hundreds dead and wounded in recent weeks and has provoked an international outcry. Activists say civilian targets like hospitals and schools have been deliberately hit after a ceasefire collapsed last month.
Meantime, Russia has beefed up its presence in Syria deploying a state-of-the-art air defense system. For now, U.S. officials believe the Russians are not planning to target American pilots but they call the development a concern.
A secret library in Syria once provided sanctuary for many eager to try and escape the violence.
Our Fred Pleitgen takes us inside the now-abandon space and speaks to the teen that helped care for it.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
(EXPLOSION)
FRED PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): For almost four years this was the reality in Daraya --
(EXPLOSION)
PLEITGEN: -- a suburb of Damascus controlled by the rebels but besieged by Syrian government forces.
Amid the shelling the shortages of food, water, and medicine, a space of quiet, of reading, of solace, a secret underground library. The chief librarian, a 14-year-old boy named Amjad (ph).
UNIDENTIFIED BOY: The children are gone.
PLEITGEN: "I like the place and I like learning things. I like to read," he told us.
In August, the rebels made a deal with the Syrian government for free passage out of Daraya in return for government control of the district.
We were one of the first crews to make it in after the evacuation. Amid the flattened and damaged buildings, all of a sudden, we noticed soldiers taking books from a basement, the former secret library of Daraya. Books strewn across the floor, many volumes already gone, but the order of a library still visible.
(on camera): Almost during the entire time of the siege, the underground library was a sanctuary, especially for the children of Daraya, many who would brave the dangers to read in peace.
(voice-over): All civilians have now left Daraya but we found the former librarian, Amjad (ph), in a displaced camp outside Damascus. His eyes lit up when we told him we found the library.
"I would work for hours in the library," he said. "I would go in at 1:00 and come back at 5:00. I was responsible for everything."
For years, the library was the only escape he and others had for from the shelling that killed and wounded so many.
Amjad (ph) is clear on just how special it was.
"I cried the last time I was there," he said. "I used to love it so much."
Daraya is now destroyed and abandoned. The underground library is gone. But it will always hold a special place for Amjad (ph) and the others, a quiet space in the hell they faced for almost four years.
Fred Pleitgen, CNN Daraya, Syria.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: A new movie about Edward Snowden hits theaters in Hong Kong. When we come back, we'll hear from the people who helped the whistleblower stay under the radar.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
VANESSA RODELL (ph), ASYLUM SEEKER WHO HELPED HIDE SNOWDEN: It was him.
IVAN WATSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: The guy who is living in your house.
[01:39:38] RODELL (ph): I'm very, very shocked. Oh, my god, the most-wanted man in the world is in my house.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VAUSE: A new Oliver Stone movie about Whistleblower Edward Snowden opens in Hong Kong on Thursday. Snowden reveals new details how the world's most-wanted man hid in that city after leaking highly classified NSA documents.
Senior international correspondent, Ivan Watson, joins me from Hong Kong.
Ivan, it seems Edward Snowden was relying on the kindness of strangers there to stay ahead of authorities.
WATSON: That's right. I mean, here's a big question, we're in one of the most densely populated cities in the world, where do you hide the most-wanted man in the world? That was a question that the lawyers for Edward Snowden were asking themselves after he went public in the city in 2013. It turns out, they turned to one of the most marginalized communities in Hong Kong, the asylum seekers.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR: Did you access an often authorized program?
WATSON (voice-over): It's Hollywood's take on one of the biggest intelligence leaks in U.S. history, the new Oliver Stone film, "Snowden.
It reveals new details about how NSA whistleblower, Edward Snowden, escaped U.S. authorities.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The government knows we have these documents now.
WATSON: Snowden went public from this hotel in Hong Kong in May 2013 making his revelations about NSA surveillance programs in an interview with "The Guardian" newspaper.
EDWARD SNOWDEN, NSA LEAKER: The NSA specifically targeted the communications of everyone.
WATSON: Around that time, Hong Kong-based lawyer, Robert Tibbo, was hired to represent the most-wanted man in the world.
ROBERT TIBBO, ATTORNEY FOR EDWARD SNOWDEN: Mr. Snowden was nervous when I met with him.
WATSON: The lawyer hid Snowden in the middle of this crowded city for weeks.
TIBBO: I advised Mr. Snowden to be placed with refugee families in a populated area. As this is the last place that anybody would look.
WATSON: The film shows, for the first time, how Tibbo took Snowden to stay with impoverished asylum seekers who are his clients.
UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR: These are good people. They won't talk.
WATSON: Now after staying in the shadows for years --
UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR: Hi, there. Nice to meet you.
[01:45:11] WATSON: -- the real refugees who took turns hiding Snowden are going public.
Families Shaboon Kilipotka (ph) and Nadika Nones (ph), from Sri Lanka who gave their bed in a tiny apartment to an American stranger.
(on camera): Where did he sleep?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Sleep? In the room, the corner room.
WATSON (voice-over): Vanessa Rodell (ph), from the Philippines, says Tibbo showed up one night at her door with Snowden.
(on camera): Was he afraid?
RODELL (ph) Yeah, he was afraid.
WATSON: She didn't know who he was until the next day when she spotted Snowden's face on the front page of a Hong Kong newspaper.
RODELL (ph): I see the newspaper. It was him.
WATSON: The guy who's living in your house.
RODELL (ph): I'm very, very shocked. I said oh, my god, the most- wanted man in the world is in my house.
WATSON (voice-over): But Rodell (ph) continued to shelter and feed Snowden even though, as a refugee, she barely had enough money to feed herself.
(CHANTING)
WATSON: There are at least 14,500 asylum seekers in Hong Kong, some of whom joined this recent protest on behalf of Snowden. The Hong Kong authorities here refuse to accept any of these refugees. Their children are born here stateless.
(on camera): Does he have a passport?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No.
VANESSA RODELL (ph), ASYLUM SEEKER WHO HELPED HIDE SNOWDEN: Does he have a citizenship?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No. WATSON (voice-over): People with the least to give, gave the most to
protect a man on the run. To this day, he is grateful.
SNOWDEN: They protected me. They believed in me. And, but for that, I might have had a very different ending.
WATSON: Ivan Watson, CNN, Hong Kong.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WATSON: John, Edward Snowden, of course, received asylum in Moscow, where he is today and where he is evading U.S. charges of espionage and the theft of government documents.
As for the families who took him in, in Hong Kong, they are still here, still very much in legal limbo and their lives are difficult. For example, Vanessa Rodell (ph), that Filipino woman we just saw, she just had to leave her tiny apartment two days ago with her elderly mother and 4 and a half-year-old daughter because she says the Hong Kong authorities suspended payments of her rent and her electricity bill. And, of course, she is denied the right to work here in Hong Kong because the Hong Kong authorities simply will not allow these asylum seekers to settle here. So a sign of how difficult and edge- of-poverty these people are living -- John?
VAUSE: Wow. Incredible.
Ivan, thank you. Ivan Watson there live there in Hong Kong.
We'll take a short break here. When we come back, those annoying ATM fees keep getting higher, hitting a record in the United States. How do the banks get away with it?
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(WEATHER REPORT)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[01:51:58] VAUSE: ATM fees in the United States have climbed to a record high. It now costs $4.57, on average, to get cash from a machine out of your bank's network. The issue has hit such a nerve, the presidential candidates have been weighing in on this.
And Eric Schiffer joins me now to weigh in as well. He's the CEO of Patriarch Equity.
Eric, thanks for coming in.
ERIC SCHIFFER, CEO, PATRIARCH EQUITY: Thank you.
VAUSE: We should start by saying this is not just an issue unique to the United States. Other countries around the world have a similar bank racket going as well, don't they?
SCHIFFER: All around the world. You're talking about, whether Asia or Australia, you see it everywhere. And frankly, it's a rip off of the consumer in a big way, not just in the United States.
VAUSE: So they do this, everyone hates the fees, but they do this because they can. Is that the bottom line, whether in the United States or Australia or in Europe?
SCHIFFER: They can get away with it. You saw what happened with Wells Fargo. If they can try it, they'll dot. And what's happening is the Fed and the central banks are compressing what they can do in terms of the interest rates. So they're not making money. They're looking for any way to make it. They're making it on the backs of the little guy, which is really unfair.
VAUSE: It does seem to be nickel-and-dime stuff but it does hurt when you get slugged with those big charges.
This issue was brought up by Hillary Clinton. You were talking about the bank reform. She was on "The Late Show" with Stephen Colbert, talking about banking regulations. This is what she said.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
STEPHEN COLBERT, HOST, THE LAST SHOW: Can you at least just get back from them the $3 they charge us to take $20 out of an ATM machine.
(LAUGHTER)
HILLARY CLINTON, (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: You know what, we need to be after that, too, don't you think?
COLBERT: Yeah, I do, I do.
CLINTON: Yeah, that's usurious.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: I had to look up usurious. It basically means unconscionable or exorbitant. Also, her one-time rival, Bernie Sanders, he tweeted this, "We must also cap ATM fees at $2. People should not pay a 10 percent fee for withdrawing $40 of their own money from an ATM."
Sanders makes a couple of good points. But first, the idea of capping these fees, first, is that possible and is that a good idea?
SCHIFFER: Anything is possible if Congress acts. But that's the question, are they going to act. It's even worse for someone who is much lower income, because $20, five bucks on that, that's 25 percent. And that's what's happening. There are many people that have had enough. But whether Congress will do anything about it, whether the governments will actually change this, it has to happen there. Or it happens if there is enough pressure from consumers that really point the light on these practices, because it's unfair. You're talking about in the billions, John, the billions.
VAUSE: When we're talking about the costs involved to the banks for the ATM machines, because I've read that someone said, oh, I mean, there's maintenance costs involved in using an ATM. And I'm just curious, it there any costs for the financial institutions if I use an out-of-network bank or is that just a wash?
SCHIFFER: There may be a little bit of cost but it's not significant.
VAUSE: But it's not $4.57?
SCHIFFER: No. What can happen is, if you can pick the right bank, they will reimburse you for out-of-network costs. That's the type of bank you want. In the United States, Ally Bank or Schwab will give you that. As a consumer, what you want to look at is -- look, plan ahead. Use your own bank where they're not going to charge you again because it's a branch. And plan ahead. If you really need the cash, do it that way, but don't use these crazy out-of-network banks where they're not going to reimburse you.
[01:55:34] VAUSE: No drunk withdrawals at the 7-Eleven at 2:00 in the morning because that's when you get slugged.
SCHIFFER: Yes.
VAUSE: To the point of slugging the people who can least support it, if you have more money in the bank, often the fees are waived. If you don't have a lot of money, that's when you get hit with these fees.
SCHIFFER: Yeah, you are hit bad. It's like everything else. If you are rich, not a problem. If you're not making money, you get really treated unfairly, and people are angry about it.
VAUSE: You can say screwed. I think that's the correct term in this case.
(CROSSTALK)
Eric, thank you for coming in.
SCHIFFER: Thanks. Good to see you.
VAUSE: Good to see you.
You have been watching CNN NEWSROOM, live from Los Angeles. I'm John Vause.
I'll be back with another hour of news after a very short break. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[02:00:09] VAUSE: This is CNN NEWSROOM, live from Los Angeles.
Ahead this hour --
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