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AT&T to Buy Time Warner in Media Mega-Deal; Kirkuk Governor: 60 ISIS Fighters Killed; ISIS Leaves Behind Deadly Booby Traps; Attacks on Aleppo Resume as Ceasefire Ends; Trump Lays Out Agenda in Gettysburg Speech; Chicago Cubs to Face Cleveland in World Series. Aired 3-3:30a ET

Aired October 23, 2016 - 03:00   ET

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


[03:00:12] NATALIE ALLEN, CNN ANCHOR: It's one of the biggest media deals ever. AT&T agrees to buy Time Warner for a staggering $85 billion. In Iraq, Peshmerga forces say they're one town closer to recapturing Mosul from ISIS. And an intensive manhunt is under way after nearly 200 inmates escape in a violent prison break in Haiti. It's all ahead here on CNN NEWSROOM. Thanks for joining us. I'm Natalie Allen.

AT&T has agreed to buy Time Warner, the parent company of CNN. It is one of the biggest media deals ever worth over $85 billion. The wireless provider would also control entertainment leaders including HBO and Warner Brothers Pictures.

The merger would turn AT&T into a massive media powerhouse, government regulators had to approve it. Critics are concerned the merger will concentrate power even more among few media companies. The deal shows how AT&T and Time Warner are trying to prepare for the future of media.

Our Senior Media Correspondent Brian Stelter has more from New York.

BRIAN STELTER, CNN SENIOR MEDIA CORRESPONDENT: Hey there. Yes, this is shaping up to be one of the biggest media deals in history, also the biggest merger of any kind in the United States so far this year.

AT&T, as it stands today, is a wireless company. It's one of the biggest wireless companies in the United States, providing phone and internet service to tens of millions of homes. And it's also a satellite T.V. distributor. It has the DirecTV Satellite network. But what AT&T does not have today is content, programming, entertainment, and that's what it's trying to gain through Time Warner.

Now, you think about what Time Warner has. It has CNN, this channel, and it also has a number of other valuable entertainment assets like HBO, the Warner Brothers movie studio and cable channels like TNT and TBS and the Cartoon Network.

AT&T is buying all those up at a cost of $85 billion. That's almost three times as large as the Comcast/NBC merger about five years ago. Now, in that case, government regulators spent more than a year reviewing the deal because Comcast is a big cable provider reaching tens of millions of homes and NBC, like Time Warner, owned really valuable cable channels. But, ultimately, that deal was approved with conditions by regulators in Washington.

The experts I've spoken with expect a similar outcome here, that this deal will take over a year to be reviewed in Washington and will then eventually be approved with conditions. In the meantime, Time Warner's CEO Jeff Bewkes will remain in charge of Time Warner. I spoke with him briefly right after the announcement, and he says he believes this is pro-consumer, very positive for customers, and it's about making sure they can receive content, news, and entertainment in a variety of new ways.

The reality is that's how the media world is changing, whether or not this deal happens. You can see it every day in the way you and I interact with media. You might be watching this newscast on a cell phone, or you might be texting or e-mailing on your phone while it's happening. The future of media is mobile-centric, and that's what this deal recognizes and represents.

AT&T believes it's not just enough to own the cellular data networks; it's important to own the programming as well. So by seeking to buy Time Warner, it's seeking more influence, more power over the future of media. Back to you.

ALLEN: And Time Warner, of course, hoping this deal is not a repeat of its failed AOL merger more than 15 years ago. That one is considered one of the worst corporate mergers of all time.

And we turn now to the fight against ISIS. Peshmerga forces say they're launching a new offensive from two fronts on another town northeast of Mosul. The Kurdish general command says it's part of their campaign to clear ISIS from the province.

Meantime, the Governor of Kirkuk says 60 ISIS fighters have been killed since Friday after the terror group raided the city. He says the situation is now stable. U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter paid a surprise visit to Baghdad Saturday to check on the battle for Mosul.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ASH CARTER, UNITED STATES SECRETARY OF DEFENSE: I'm encouraged by what I see. So far, it is proceeding according to our plan. We've got tough fighting ahead, and the U.S. will continue to play its part.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ALLEN: Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi is refusing to let Turkey join the battle for Mosul. He says it's important to maintain good relations with its neighbor to the north, but the fight against ISIS should be led by Iraqis. Turkey's Prime Minister says he's not confident that Iraq and the U.S. can keep Kurdish militants and Shiite fighters out of Mosul.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

[03:05:06] BINALI YILDIRIM, PRIME MINISTER OF TURKEY (through translator): Turkey can never remain idle against terror threats, potential refugee waves that may come from Iraq, as well as sectarian conflicts and massacres that may be carried out in the region. Therefore, we will not hesitate to take action if necessary. We have clearly said that, and we don't need anyone's advice on this matter.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ALLEN: Yet another complication in this complicated situation. Senior International Correspondent Ben Wedeman is tracking all of these developments. He joins us now live from Erbil in northern Iraq. And we heard the U.S. Defense Secretary, Ben, talk about the move into Mosul and sounding confident. What are you hearing?

BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, there is confidence because the play, this offensive, which began a week ago has proceeded relatively well.

Now, at 6:30 this morning, Kurdish forces launched this attack on two fronts toward the town of Bashiqa, which is very important because it lies right next to one of the main roads going north -- or rather southwest into Mosul. So this certainly is part of the plan to gradually push from the east toward the city.

Now, we did hear yesterday a senior American military official in Baghdad who said, on background, that the plan is not to encircle Mosul but rather to approach it from the east and that coalition aircraft will keep an eye on the western flank of the city.

Now, it's not clear whether the intention is to actually allow an escape route for ISIS or not, but what we see is that the battle is proceeding. The Kurdish and Iraqi forces are being challenged in many ways by the plethora of vehicle-borne explosive devices, otherwise known as truck and car bombs. And in many instances, they will think they have taken control of a town only to find that there are, in fact, ISIS pockets left inside, which is slowing down the advance somewhat.

And even further to the rear, Natalie, you had this incident that began on Friday morning in Kirkuk, a city to the southeast of Mosul, where suddenly several pockets -- rather suddenly several sleeper cells of ISIS fighters popped up, tried to take over some government buildings, and that has caused the redeployment of Kurdish security to that city as well.

So it's going to be a long battle. U.S. officials are saying weeks if not months and really, we are only in the opening stages of this offensive. Natalie.

ALLEN: Right, and so many people that live in Mosul. Ben, are they completely cut off at this point from communications?

WEDEMAN: No, they still are able to communicate secretly, of course, with the outside world. Many people wait until after dark when the signal is better, and they go to their rooftops and call out. In fact, night before last, Iraqi aircraft dropped millions of leaflets on Mosul and other towns occupied by ISIS with a phone number, toll- free number, for them to call, to call the security forces if they have any information that might be useful in the offensive against ISIS.

But they are essentially cut off in the sense that if they are caught with a mobile phone, they face possible beheading by ISIS. At this point, it's very difficult to get out of the city. We heard from an Iraqi intelligence officer that 284 people, including boys under the age of 14, were executed and dumped in a mass grave.

We know that, until now, about 6,000 people have fled from Mosul and the villages around it, but the fear is that many people are simply being held as human shields inside Mosul. Natalie.

ALLEN: Terrible positions. It's a terrible position there. All right, Ben Wedeman for us there in Erbil. Thank you for bringing us the latest.

As ISIS retreats from towns and villages, it is lining roads with explosive devices and booby trapping houses. CNN's Michael Holmes spent time with a Kurdish bomb disposal team who risk their lives every day.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MICHAEL HOLMES, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Peshmerga Captain Chillhan Sadiq (ph) comes face to face with death every day, here showing us the fruits of his labor. He says he has removed hundreds, perhaps thousands, of IEDs like these. "I do it for humanity," he tells us.

CAPTAIN CHILLHAN SADIQ (ph), PESHMERGA MILITARY FORCES (through translator): The people who plant these things are dangerous for my people, for the world, so it is my decision to help save a life.

[03:10:06] HOLMES (voice-over): As Kurdish and Iraqi forces edge ever closer to Mosul, ISIS has been leaving behind the weapons to kill and maim even once they've gone.

Brigadier General Bajat Mazuri (ph) heads the elite Zeravani Special Forces. He says he loses more fighters to IEDs than on the battlefield, 30 percent of those casualties, men working to defuse and remove the explosives. "We liberate a village and they are everywhere," he says.

BRIGADIER GENERA BAJAT MAZURI (ph), ZERAVANI SPECIAL FORCES (through translator): People come back to their homes and open something up and it blows up.

HOLMES (voice-over): The demining teams have rudimentary equipment. A metal detector, if they're lucky. The operator of this one lost his fingers to a booby trap. Usually, the tools are wire cutters and their bare hands, their faces inches from the explosives, not even body armor, let alone bomb disposal suits. "We need training, but it is not enough," he tells us.

MAZURI (ph) (through translator): We need more equipment, new equipment, to find the IEDs and destroy them.

HOLMES (on camera): And he was killed by a mine?

HOLMES (voice-over): Captain Sadiq (ph) has lost many friends who do the same job as he. He shows us a photo of one who died a few days ago trying to defuse one of a wide variety of devices.

HOLMES (on camera): This is just an example of one of the devices, if you like. This is C-4, high explosive, and this is packed with ball bearings. Now, these men killed the man who was carrying this, the ISIS fighter, before he was able to detonate it. You can just imagine the explosion and the damage that would have been done if it had gone off.

HOLMES (voice-over): Captain Sadiq (ph) defused that bomb himself as well as countless booby traps. Here, a pressure device that's set off by a vehicle driving over it. It's the danger from booby traps that means that civilians can't go home to their villages yet, even now that ISIS has gone. All they can do is collect a few things and leave again.

One is Mejwal Akhmir Hadi (ph) who tells me, "We can't live there, no water, no electricity, damage everywhere, and explosives as well."

So Captain Sadiq (ph) and his men will continue their mission to make those villages safe for people like Mejwal (ph) to return to.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HOLMES: How many IEDs and booby traps are along these roads and in villages like this? Well, countless. We with spoke to Peshmerga teams who said they've been clearing one village for three months and they're not done yet. Clearing places like this of rigged explosives is going to take longer, far longer than the battle for Mosul itself. Michael Holmes, CNN, near Mosul, Iraq.

ALLEN: In Syria, regime forces have resumed their punishing attacks on eastern Aleppo. A Russian-declared cease fire in the Syrian city ended Saturday night. The United Nations hoped people would be able to escape Aleppo during the three-day pause in fighting, but a human rights group says it doesn't know of anyone who escaped through humanitarian corridors.

Syrian state news says rebels opened fire on thousands of families who tried to leave through one of them. Earlier, a rescue worker told CNN those corridors were fake and people didn't leave because they don't trust the Russian and Syrian governments.

In Haiti, SWAT teams are hunting for more than 100 inmates who are now roaming free after breaking out of prison. Haiti National Police tell CNN the prisoners escaped after starting a riot. One guard was killed. Police say about a dozen inmates have been found and captured. Authorities are urging people in the area to be cautious and to cooperate with police.

Twenty-six men from Asia are heading back to their families after spending almost five years as hostages. Somali pirates released the men Saturday. Their fishing boat was hijacked in 2012, south of the Seychelles. The group Oceans Beyond Piracy says one man died during the hijacking and two others died while they were being held. The men are said to be malnourished but in reasonable condition.

Donald Trump gives his closing argument, as he calls it, and calls for the healing of a divided nation, but he also called his accusers liars and threatened to sue them as one more comes forward.

Plus, Hillary Clinton campaigning with her running mate. Why the Democratic nominee says she's over responding to Trump's antics, coming next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[03:16:49] ALLEN: On the campaign trail, Donald Trump laid out his agenda for his first 100 days in office if he wins. The Republican nominee held a rally in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, Saturday, site of a famous address by President Abraham Lincoln during the American Civil War. Trump urged voters to follow President Lincoln's example and heal divisions in the U.S. But he also slammed his rival, Hillary Clinton, and threatened to sue every woman who has accused him of sexual misconduct.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, (R) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Thank you very much. Thank you, ladies and gentlemen.

Every woman who lied when they came forward to hurt my campaign, total fabrication.

(APPLAUSE)

TRUMP: The events never happened. Never. All of these liars will be sued after the election.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ALLEN: Well, Hillary Clinton also was in Pennsylvania Saturday pushing for unity against what she calls hate and division. She made a number of campaign stops with her running mate Tim Kaine in this battleground state and told reporters she's done responding to Trump's accusations and is focused on winning voters.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HILLARY CLINTON, (D) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I debated him for 4 1/2 hours. I don't even think about responding to him anymore. I'm going let the American people decide between what he offers and what we offer, so he can say whatever he wants to. He can run his campaign however he wants to. He can go off on tangents. He can go to Gettysburg and say he's going to sue women who've made accusations against him.

I'm going to keep talking about what we want to do, what we think the country deserves from the next president and vice president. And, actually, when it comes right down to it, I think that's what people end up voting on.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ALLEN: So she did have a little blurb about Trump there, and even though she said she's going to focus on her own campaign and not his, she did speak out about his threat to sue the women, as you just heard, who've accused him of sexual misconduct. CNN's Brianna Keilar has more.

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Hillary Clinton picking up the pace of her campaign schedule with a packed weekend of battleground states, something we don't normally see. And here in the all-important state of Pennsylvania, her campaign really emphasizing the keystone state because they say, at this state, that they know she's going to win. Add to that the states they're confident that she'll win, including one she's not advertising -- and they feel so good about them -- and then tack on Pennsylvania and they're on the precipice of 270 electoral votes, that all-important number.

Hillary Clinton also, today, benefiting from Donald Trump stepping on his own message as he tries to give his closing argument. He said that he plans to sue women who have accused him of forcibly kissing or groping them after the election. Hillary Clinton responding.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CLINTON: Today, we're making our closing argument. We're talking about what's at stake in the election. We're drawing contrasts, but we're giving people something to vote for, not just against. And I saw where our opponent, Donald Trump, went to Gettysburg, one of the most extraordinary places in American history, and basically said, if he's President, he'll spend his time suing women who have made charges against him based on his behavior.

[03:20:16] KEILAR: And as Hillary Clinton blankets battleground states, she has some help this week from a cast of high-profile surrogates. Her husband Bill Clinton heading for the Florida Panhandle tomorrow. Chelsea Clinton is going to be, Tuesday, in Wisconsin. And Vice President Joe Biden heading, at the beginning of the week, to Ohio where polls have tightened up a little bit and Hillary Clinton is hoping to squeak out a win against Donald Trump.

Brianna Keilar, CNN, Pittsburgh.

ALLEN: Our Gary Tuchman spoke with Trump supporters in Pennsylvania. They're offering advice for their candidate.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GARY TUCHMAN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Bucks County, Pennsylvania is a swing county in a swing state.

(APPLAUSE)

TUCHMAN (voice-over): So these Donald Trump supporters are particularly valuable commodities for the Republican nominee.

JANET ROMM, DONALD TRUMP SUPPORTER: And he really did not have to run at all. He just felt like he needed to save America at this time.

TUCHMAN (voice-over): But are there enough of these voters? Polls show Trump significantly behind Hillary Clinton in Pennsylvania.

DONNA KROLLMAN, DONALD TRUMP SUPPORTER: I don't believe the polls. I think the media is corrupt.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He will win. He will win, without a doubt.

TUCHMAN (voice-over): There is a widespread feeling at rallies like this that it's disloyal to cast any doubts on a Donald Trump victory. And on his pronouncements that polls are rigged.

VICKI SELLERS, DONALD TRUMP SUPPORTER: I think the polls are not true. And I think he's going to be up there and he's going to make it and he's going to win.

TUCHMAN (on camera): With all due respect, is it possible that maybe they are true?

SELLERS: I don't think they are.

TUCHMAN (voice-over): But there are some Trump loyalists who feel differently than they did from even a few weeks ago.

TUCHMAN (on camera): Are you concerned at this point now that the debates are over that he might not win?

LARRY HARRIS, DONALD TRUMP SUPPORTER: Sure, sure. I think everybody here, that's in the back of their mind.

PHIL HADAD, DONALD TRUMP SUPPORTER: There's always a concern, but he's the beginning of something new. Independence, right? Different people than who've been in there. I would love to see them all come out, out of the woodwork, and start running.

TUCHMAN (on camera): But in the meantime, those who express complete confidence in a Trump November 8th victory and those who do not are all happy to offer advice, some saying don't change a thing.

ROMM: If it's not natural for him, if it's not really him, then I think he should continue to be him. Exactly him. He doesn't need someone to polish him up.

TUCHMAN (voice-over): Others saying --

REBA GRADY, DONALD TRUMP SUPPORTER: I think he needs to keep pounding his policies and the things he's going to do for America to make America great.

TUCHMAN (on camera): Do you think he should continue pounding Hillary Clinton?

R. GRADY: I think he needs to let that go.

BOB GRADY, DONALD TRUMP SUPPORTER: Take the negative out of it. Just talk about the positive things, what he's going to do.

TUCHMAN (voice-over): Michaela Saracino says she still believes Donald Trump will be the next President, but --

TUCHMAN (on camera): If Donald Trump asked you, Michaela, give me some advice to attract the voters I need to win the White House, what would you say to him?

MICHAELA SARACINO, DONALD TRUMP SUPPORTER: A little bit of a filter.

TUCHMAN (voice-over): Donald Trump is their candidate, but for some, the reflecting has begun on what happens if he doesn't win.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It will be sad, but you go on.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

TUCHMAN: Gary Tuchman, CNN, Bucks County, Pennsylvania.

ALLEN: Getting close to Election Day. Well, last week, the Philippines was struck by two typhoons. Now, residents there are trying to regain some sense of normalcy. Derek van Dam's with that before, I guess, the next typhoon. Goodness. Because it's one after another.

DEREK VAN DAM, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Yes. Fortunately, it's quiet now, Natalie. But how do you gain back normalcy when your house has been completely destroyed? I mean, just to recap what the Philippines went through within the past week, we're talking last week, Wednesday, Haima made landfall as a Category 4 storm in the northern Luzon island region. And then four days prior to that, we had Sarika make landfall, not 200 kilometers just to the south.

Unfortunately, 13 lives were lost in the Philippines due to just Haima alone, and damage estimates for the Philippines are into the hundreds of millions of dollars. And this is just one of the many images coming out of that region.

Now, these storms also made a secondary landfall across southeastern China, just really continuing their path of destruction. They destroyed over 6,000 homes there in combination between Haima and Sarika, $800 million in damage in China alone, and that is some of the lower estimates on what we're -- we're actually expecting perhaps that to even range into the low billions.

Look at the tropical track of both of these storms as they made their way across the western Pacific, very active, but this begs the question, what does this compare to previous seasons?

[03:25:09] Well, the Philippines, on average, has eight to nine storms that make landfall, and we've only actually had three this entire season. So for the Philippines itself, this is actually on the lower end of a typical season, which ends right about now. But, of course, the waters are still very warm, still jet fuel in the western Pacific waters to help fuel some of those storms, perhaps, in the weeks to come. We hope not, of course.

I want to take you to Honduras where, unfortunately, seven lives were lost in a landslide that took place about 150 kilometers west of the capital city. This is Villa Santa, Honduras, and you can see just the constant deluge of rainfall as this tropical activity continues across Central America.

An additional 100 millimeters of rainfall on top of what's already taken place across this area means saturated soils. We have steep terrain across this part of the world and, eventually, gravity's going to win, and that's going to take the sides of mountains down and leave the threat for landslides and mudslides to continue.

If you're in Europe, listen up. Got a chance for severe weather today across Portugal and the coastal areas of Barcelona, even the south of France. If you're in Sicily or Sardinia, even North Africa in Tunisia and Algeria, damaging winds and large hail.

Natalie, lots to talk about. We've covered the entire globe.

(CROSSTALK)

ALLEN: Yes, we have. And we've got some baseball weather we'll need in a few days, Derek.

VAN DAM: Go Cubs.

ALLEN: Yes, Chicago Cubs headed to the World Series. They beat the Los Angeles Dodgers to win the National League Pennant Saturday night. The Cubs will face the American League champs Cleveland Indians. Game 1's set for Tuesday night in Cleveland. Cubs' fans were out in the streets of Chicago celebrating. Can you imagine?

The Cubs have not been to the World Series since 1945, when they lost to the Detroit Tigers. And the last time they won, 1908. Yes, go Cubs.

Thanks for watching. I'm Natalie Allen. Next on CNN is "SUPERCHARGED" but I'll be right back with our top stories.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)