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Fire Swept Through A Crowded Late Night Party in Oakland, California; China Files Formal Complaint After President-Elect Donald Trump Called President of Taiwan; Jill Stein Dropping Recount Lawsuit in Pennsylvania; Unemployment Rate Now Down to 4.6 Percent; Thousands of Cubans Bid A Final Farewell to Fidel Castro; Trump and Clinton Campaign Managers Shared The Stage. Aired 7-8p ET
Aired December 03, 2016 - 19:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[19:00:09] POPPY HARLOW, CNN ANCHOR: It is the top of the hour. It is 7:00 p.m. eastern. You are live in the CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Poppy Harlow in New York.
And we begin tonight with a very, very sad breaking news story. A holiday party in California turning into a horror scene when a fire erupted in a crowded building killing at least nine people.
Take a look. This is Oakland, California. That building according to city officials was only allowed to be a warehouse. Instead, it was packed with partiers Friday night when a fire suddenly ignited. The cause still unknown.
Adding to the nine confirmed deaths, officials say they still cannot locate 25 individuals witnesses says were at the party. Official saying just last hour that the worst case scenario is that dozens and dozens people, up to 40 could be dead from this fire. Oakland's mayor talked to reporters just a short time ago.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MAYOR LIBBY SCHAAF, OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA: We are trying to be as transparent as possible with you to confirm what we can with, you know, authentically confirm at this moment in time such a short amount of time after this incredible tragedy. But we again remind you that our efforts right now are focused on the humane and compassionate addressing of the victims, as well as securing the sight, as well as caring for those families. And so, that is what we are focused on right now.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARLOW: Our Dan Simon is in Oakland right outside of this warehouse.
Dan, still no word yet on what could have sparked this. Is that right?
DAN SIMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Poppy. Horrific. This is really beyond horrific. The main task at this point is trying to recover the bodies, but that is proving to be very difficult for firefighters because the warehouse is said to be structurally unsound. So you have cruise in there bring in specialized equipment and trying to make that building safe so they can go in there and remove the bodies.
HARLOW: And Dan, at this point, what do we know about those that are missing? Because we heard one of the officials say just about an hour ago, I don't have an answer to how many there are right now, but we expect the number of deceased to go up.
SIMON: They are expecting to deceased - number of deceased to go way up, Poppy. We are talking about, as you said, nine confirmed dead and about 25 reported missing. The problem is they can't really get a firm number because they can't get inside of the building to get a glimpse and to see how many victims we are actually talking about. So that is really the main task.
As a side note to all of this unfolding, you have the investigation, that is, of course, taking a back seat to what they're doing behind me at the moment. But in terms of the investigation, they don't know what started this fire. But we have learned, as you talked about earlier, this building was just permitted to be a warehouse. Certainly was not permanent to have people live. It wasn't permanent to have a party either.
HARLOW: We also heard the fire chief say that he didn't see any evidence of sprinklers in the building. Can you tell us, Dan, what exactly was going on there? I know it was an artist collective, were people living there as well?
SIMON: That's what we have been lead to believe. But crews have not been totally certain in their answers. They believe that people were living there, but that is still part of the investigation. This is said to be what is called an artist collective. And so you go inside there, I mean, we have seen some of the pictures, and you know you have mannequins and you have different tables, and workstations. And so, a lot of people were said to be working there, and working on their various projects.
And then on the top floor it seemed to be more of an open space. So that is where this party was taking place. Live music going on. And again, what may have caused the fire to start, we don't know. I did ask whether or not, you know, sometimes at live music shows you have pyro technics going on. I asked whether or not that may have been a factor and at this point they told me no.
HARLOW: Dan Simon, reporting for us live in Oakland, thank you very much.
And joining me on the phone now is California congresswoman Barbara Lee.
Congresswoman, thank you for being with me. Obviously, Oakland is your district. I'm so terribly sorry about all of this. What can you tell us about the communication you had with the mayor and the different city officials there about their efforts?
REP. BARBARA LEE (D), CALIFORNIA (on the phone): Sure, I have spoken with the mayor and we're about to have another call.
Let me just say, this is a tragedy beyond proportions. It's horrific. It is something that we can't even imagine. And so, right now I think everyone is praying and offering our condolences, and addressing the real grief and mourning that is taking place in the city.
It is so important that families of loved ones and friends call the phone number, and I'm pleased that you have the number posted, the 510-283-3000. That is the family notification center. Because we don't know what has taken place in terms of loss of life, you know. Our first responders, our fire chiefs, our firefighters are doing a phenomenal job but they still can't even enter the building.
And so, right now, I think the mayor is correct. We have to focus on the compassionate care and humanitarian concerns of the people grieving and the community that is grieving, and we'll bring in all of the federal resources once we know what is appropriate and need.
[19:06:03] HARLOW: I'm so sorry to interrupt, congresswoman, stay with me. I just learned we have another press conference updating everyone on the situation. Let's listen in to Sergeant Kelly.
SGT. RAY KELLY, OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA: So that has slowed things down. We continue to have our family assistance center up now. It is actually functioning very well now. We just talked to the mayor and she is going back over there to meet with the families again.
The Oakland police department has some updates in regarding the activity in this part of the city and what will go on here for the next 48 hours. We will anticipate that we will be here at least through Sunday, maybe early Monday morning. We would like to get that -- get functioning as quickly as possible. But Officer Watson will talk about that.
OFFICER JOHNNA WATSON, OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA; Thank you sergeant Kelly. So for this evening until Monday morning, this will be our media staging area. So if you are already here, we will not change this location. If you anticipate coming here, the location is 30th street international entrance from 30th on to international will be the ingress and egress. So we are leaving media staging for briefings until Monday morning. We will assess then at that time.
Additionally tomorrow morning at 8:00, we will give a media availability. The media availability will provide any update and information that had occurred over the evening or over this evening. If there is a significant development tonight --
HARLOW: All right. We will continue monitoring this press conference out of Oakland. Again, they don't seem to have any updates on victim numbers for us at this point in time. We will bring you more information as we have it.
Back with me on the phone is Representative Barbara Lee of California. Oakland is in her district.
Let's talk about the victims. Because I spoke with a freelance journalist earlier from the area. A number of his friends were at this warehouse. A number of them are missing. And he said a lot of people at this party last night were key members of Oakland's music community artists.
What can you tell us about some of these people? Obviously, we are not releasing their identities. We don't have their identities at this point in time. But tell us a little about this, you know, musician community.
LEE: Well, you know, and again, I mean, respecting the family and loved ones of the victim, it is very difficult to really talk about anything as it relates to them other than the fact that our condolences and prayers go out to the victims.
But you know, Oakland is a community of artists, of very creative people, of people who really have visions, and who understand the importance of culture and art. And so, once again, to really hone in on this, I think we have to focus on just making sure that the family and victims are supported and cared for during this moment. And the grieving and the mourning process just, you know, move forward in a way that leads to some (INAUDIBLE). It's hard to imagine, you know, have people feeling that because I know for myself personally, it is something that I can't even begin to explain in terms of emotional reaction to this tragedy.
And so we have to, you know, as we move forward, and as our first responders attempt to get into the building, really focus on supporting them, lifting them up, and finding resource that is necessary. And again, at the federal level, I'm going to make sure that all appropriate settle resources are brought to bear. But right now, we have to really address the humanitarian and the compassionate care for those who are sufferings as a result of this tremendous loss.
[19:10:13] HARLOW: And congresswoman, our thoughts with those families. And also our thanks and our deepest gratitude to the first responders working throughout the day and the night on this. Trying to get access in that building. And, you know, and properly treat the remains of the victims.
Congresswoman Barbara lee, thank you so much.
The most critical information to share at this time point in time is a phone number where victims' families can get information. I want to put that up on the screen. Again, it is 510-382-3000. That is the Alameda County phone number that you should call. For ways you can help those affected by this horrific fire, head to CNN.com/impact.
All right, a lot ahead for us this hour. Politics to China labeling a call between Donald Trump and Taiwan, a quote "shenanigan." How the president-elect broke international protocol just by answering the phone? That story is next.
And after a week-long journey throughout Cuba, traveling from Havana onwards, the ashes of Fidel Castro arriving in the town now where his funeral will take place tomorrow. We will take you to Cuba live this hour. You are live in the CNN NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[19:14:27] HARLOW: It is the ten minute phone call of defying decades of U.S. diplomatic norms. China has now filed a formal complaint with United States after president-elect Donald Trump spoke by phone with the president of Taiwan. She called him yesterday. It is something that no American president or frankly, president-elect has done in some 40 years. The reason, China considers Taiwan part of its territory. And since 1979, the U.S. has respected the to-called one China policy. News of Trump's phone call and other foreign calls with other foreign leaders frankly this week has led Democratic senator Chris Murphy to tweet this yesterday.
In a major pivot in foreign policy without any plan, that's who war start. But Trump is downplaying this call tweeting the president of Taiwan called me today to wish me congratulations on winning the presidency. Thank you.
Let's bring in my colleague Ivan Watson. He is our senior international correspondent. He is also based in Hong Kong, happens to be here in New York. He has unique perspective on this.
Give our viewers a sense of the magnitude of this. Obviously, it hasn't happened in some 40 years. But what does this signal to the international community and the presidency of China?
[19:15:39] IVAN WATSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, we know that president-elect Trump was elected as a disrupter and he seems to be starting to do that with his international relations as well with kind of norms that have been placed for some time.
This is a very delicately calibrated piece of diplomacy that the U.S. has had in placed for trying to recognize communist China of Beijing. We are also being able to sell lots of weapons to Taiwan which Beijing views has a break away.
HARLOW: But of course, Trump's point is to right away.
WATSON: Yes, exactly. But there is a way of being able to do both of those things at once while not risking an escalation of tensions with Beijing, with communist China.
It has already responded by also seeking to kind of downplay the magnitude of this. What also pointing out that this so-called one China policy is a corner stone of the relations between the U.S. and China which arising super power.
HARLOW: Obviously, there is tension between the United States and China when it comes to issues like China is increasing presidents in the South China Sea and island building. But at the same time, the U.S. and China are really partners, obviously, in global trade. Obviously when it comes to China having a seat on the U.N. Security Council, and the United States needing China to be in line with it on say Orion sanctions, et cetera. It is interesting that China is downplaying it and really pointing
their finger at Taiwan and not the president-elect, why do you think that is?
WATSON: Well, the Chinese government made it clear that they don't like - they didn't want this particularly leader to win the recent elections in Taiwan, because she was more critical of the communist China. So they have seemingly put some of the blame on Taiwan. Saying hey, they played a trick. This was not quite good. But some of the Chinese voices out there in the state media are suggesting this might have been a test by president-elect Trump. Others suggesting, hey, maybe he just didn't know because he is not really familiar with foreign policy.
HARLOW: Yes. Which his team says that's not the case. He is fully briefed, et cetera.
This is not happening in a vacuum. Obviously, he had a very controversial call this week with the president of Pakistan. The U.S. president has not gone to Pakistan and met with the Pakistani leader in, you know, a decade. And then on top of that, Trump this week had a phone call with the president of the Philippines, Duterte, who by the way threatened and famously no long ago to break off, you know, relations with United States militarily, sort of the allied relations. And also, at the same time, he of course, just a few months ago that he said that President Obama could go to hell, his words. So here is what the Philippines president said on that call. I think we have it.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RODRIGO DUTERTE, PHILIPPINES PRESIDENT: He was quite sensitive also to our war about drugs. And he wishes me well in my campaign and he said that we are doing it the right way.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARLOW: It is significant that he says that Donald Trump said he is doing the war on drugs "the right way." Because that's a very aggressive war in his country that has led to thousands of people being killed. What's the significance there?
WATSON: Well, I mean, I covered some of this. There have been by police figures more than 2,000 people killed by Philippines cops in five months since Duterte took office.
HARLOW: In five months.
WATSON: As part of his war on drugs. So you have got like a dozen or more bodies showing up a night in the capital of Manila. The suspiciously with handguns next to the corpse and all seemingly killed by police in self-defense after they pull their guns.
This is really bloody what is going on there. And the Obama administration has been criticizing as have a number of human rights organizations in western countries. Duterte hates that. He curses the European Union. He curses the U.S. He seems to visual (ph) anti- American feeling even though the Philippines is probably one of the most pro-American countries I have ever been to. And what is remarkable is while he doesn't get along with President Obama, soon after present-elect Trump was elected, he said, hey, we both like to swear, we are the same guy. So he seems to recognize a similar sentiment or temperament in president-elect Trump. And he even appointed before the election Trump's business partner to be the Philippines special economic envoy to the U.S.
[19:20:09] HARLOW: Ivan Watson, a lot to digest there. Thank you very much for the reporting. We appreciate it. We are lucky to have you in New York with that perspective.
Let's bring in my panel. Ben Ferguson is her, a CNN political commentator, host of the "Ben Ferguson Show." Marc Lamont Hill is with us, CNN political commentator, also host of BET News and a professor at Morehouse College.
Just digesting what Ivan just said. Marc, this is not being done in a vacuum. This is with in the span of a week. The president-elect having very controversial phone conversations with, you know, the leaders from Pakistan and from the Philippines, from Taiwan since it hadn't happened in 40 years. We know that he wasn't going to be the same leaders as past presidents. He is proving to us. Should this be such a surprise to people?
MARC LAMONT HILL, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: No, it shouldn't be a surprise. I mean, throughout the campaign, president-elect Trump did not demonstrate any sophisticated understanding of foreign policy, what is the delicate balance that exist in the geopolitical landscape. That doesn't mean that everything he does is necessarily wrong. When President Obama entered office, people said, hey, he is going to engage North Korea. Hey, he is talking about engaging Cuba differently. And although it had not been done, that was not a sufficient reason not to do it. So (INAUDIBLE) to do thing that haven't done before.
The difference is with Donald Trump, it doesn't seem as if he had some sophisticated nuanced plan to engage (INAUDIBLE). It seems that if he didn't understand the relationship between China and Taiwan. He didn't understand that we have a (INAUDIBLE) with Taiwan or any particular reason. And so that lack of knowledge --
HARLOW: All right. So his team, Kellyanne Conway said to Anderson Cooper last night that is absolutely not the case. She said he is well-aware of what U.S. policy has been. He is fully engaged and fully briefed.
But Ben, I want you to listen to what Trump said at rally in August about, here is an example, why he would not disavow his what some see as an embrace of Russian president Vladimir Putin.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT-ELECT OF THE UNITED STATES: They say Putin likes Trump and he said nice things about me. He call a genius. He said we are going to win. That's good. That's not bad. That's good. You know, some of my opponents said we want you to disavow that statement. Why would I disavow, OK? Why? But if we could get along with Russia, wouldn't that be a good thing instead of a bad thing?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARLOW: So that was on the campaign trail, Ben, in August. And these calls that Ivan was just speaking with us about seem to be a continuation of that. Wouldn't it be better, he said, if we had a warm relationship with Russian, with the Philippines, with Taiwan? However, there are major issues in some of these country that's do not align with U.S. policy, belief, or standing just like Ivan described in terms of the very controversial war on drugs in the Philippines. So where is that? As a Trump supporter, where do you want that line drawn?
BEN FERGUSON, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: I think it is very clear that he says I would rather open up a dialogue early on and see it maybe we can have better relations and maybe have a better deals are made and have better conversations. It has been since 1978 since the last president spoke with the president of Taiwan. He is saying maybe that is long enough. It the same with Barack Obama years used when he was talking with the Castro regime down in Cuba.
(CROSSTALK)
HARLOW: The difference is China. You don't worry about him infuriating China? A country, you know, the United States need on the U.N. Security Council? That they need when it comes to North Korea?
FERGUSON: Poppy, China always acts like they are infuriated anytime they don't get their way. They always, through their state media, overreacting to statements. And this is not as big of a deal as many are making it out to be. And my point is, we have been selling billions of dollars of weapons to Taiwan to directly use to defend themselves against an aggression if China ever decided to do that.
So the idea that Taiwan is going to be more outraged over accepting a phone call from Taiwan than Barack Obama sending billions of dollars in sales of weapons in that country is a little bit overreaction from everyone that wants to attack Donald Trump here. Donald Trump took a phone call. That is what he did. He didn't sell any weapons to Taiwan. Obama did that. No one freak out over.
HARLOW: Just to be clear from the readout from Taiwan on this phone call. They did talk about things such as national defense. So it wasn't just a congratulations Mr. president-elect.
Marc, let me get your take on this. Because this week, as Ivan and I have just discussed, he, Donald Trump spoke with the president of Pakistan. And according to a readout provided, you know, from Pakistan, he told the prime minister quote "you are a terrific guy. You are doing amazing work which is visible in every way."
Obviously, the relationship with Pakistan is complicated. There is a reason, though, U.S. president has been there in a decade when it comes to nuclear proliferation, when it comes to, you know, the questions over harboring terrorism. What is your reaction to the series of phone calls and Pakistan specifically?
[19:25:02] HILL: I don't have a problem with phone calls per se. And again, you know, I wish Ben was just open to engaging untapped territories eight years ago when Barack Obama was doing it. But I do think, again, it is not a question of just engaging these countries, it is a question of asking what is getting along means? Getting along at what cost? Like if we are going to engage Pakistan, what does it mean -- how do we think about the human rights? How do we think about the geographic (INAUDIBLE) of Pakistan? How do we think about harboring of terrorism? How do we think about these things? Are we simply going to talk to everybody and look and then we tell Donald Trump how great he is or are we going to make a hard line and we are going to have a strategic purpose in each place. I would love to talk to Putin, but if we're not going to stop (INAUDIBLE) in Syria, if we are going to talk about (INAUDIBLE), we are not going to talk about the fundamental issues, then there is no point in talking to these nations. We have to have a plan and we have to strategies.
HARLOW: Ben, I want to get this in to you. I want your take on this. Because, you know, he will name as secretary of state soon. And if it is Mitt Romney or someone like, you know, that he has had very different views with when it comes some of these major U.S. relationships in some of the foreign policy with Russia, et cetera, does it complicate things for Mitt Romney? Can he - some make a phone call like this?
FERGUSON: Not if you know going in what you're going to be dealing with here. And I think what Donald Trump has made very clear is diplomats have not done a great job for America recently. Have been winning or I should say we have been losing more than we have been winning on an international stage with many countries including Russia. And so, he is going to go direct. He is a negotiator.
And I also think he understands one other thing. It is a lot easier to have a really rough and tough and blunt conversation with the foreign leader. If you have a report with them before those conversations start.
It is the same thing that Ronald Reagan did with Gorbachov. He talked to him. He met with him. But it was also incredibly tough with him and told him to tear down that and it worked. And I think Donald Trump might be looking at that saying, OK, if I want to be very blunt with China, I don't want to do it necessarily to the media or through diplomats. I want to know who I'm talking and negotiating with on the front lines. And that includes Taiwan or Pakistan for that matter because when you have a report, you usually get more done.
HARLOW: Ben, I have to leave it there. Marc, Ben, thank you guys very much.
A lot coming up, Moscow meddling. New details about Russia's reported attempts to interfere with the U.S. election and Democrats push to make secret reports public. We will explain why in the CNN NEWSROOM next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) [19:31:09] HARLOW: Breaking news we just learned Jill Stein is dropping her lawsuit to pursue a recount in Pennsylvania. The campaign says it is because of the cost ordered by a court ruling. The Pennsylvania commonwealth court demanded that a million-dollars be paid to move forward with the recount. In a statement to the court lawyers for Stein's team wrote, petitioners are regular citizens of ordinary means. They cannot afford to post the $1 million bond required by the court.
Stein has raised nearly $7 million for the recount effort across multiple state. And in the press released just up now, Jill Stein's campaign says it is planning a major announcement on Monday about the recount. We will see if she raises more money and they will file again to do that recount in Pennsylvania.
Meantime, this week, Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton's campaign managers shared the stage in fake news campaign coverage and Russia's possible role in the 2016 elections, all part of the discussion. It got nasty at times. Jake Tapper's interview with Kellyanne Conway and Robby Mook marked the first time that two have appeared on stage together since the election. As you may have guest, they had very different views.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ROBBY MOOK, HILLARY CLINTON CAMPAIGN MANAGER: Congress has to investigate what happened with Russia here. We cannot have foreign aggressors that would argue intervening in our elections. And we know that the Russians were propagating fake news through Facebook and other outlets.
KELLYANNE CONWAY, TRUMP CAMPAIGN SENIOR ADVISOR/GOP POLLSTER: I think the biggest piece of fake news in this election was that Donald Trump could not win. So there is that, and that was pedaled probably for weeks and months before the campaign definitely in the closing days. If you look at major newspapers and major cable stations and networks, Jake, it's unmistakable.
MOOK: I never said that he couldn't win. I said it was a competitive race. Well, there is emotion.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARLOW: CNN senior media correspondent, host of "RELIABLE SOURCES," Brian Stelter is with me. Good to have you here.
BRIAN STELTER, CNN SENIOR MEDIA CORRESPONDENT: Thank you. I can't wait to see that tomorrow morning.
HARLOW: I can't wait. "STATE OF THE UNION." Jake Tapper, 9:00 a.m.
A lot has been written about the so-called is being written in the post-truth era that we are living in. And I think there was no question, you know, that there has been fake news. The question is how much? You call it a fake news plague. Do you have any sense, Brian, will we actually get one of how much fake news is out there and the impact it has actually had on voters?
BRIAN STELTER, CNN SENIOR MEDIA CORRESPONDENT: Yes. There is hundreds of the sites. I think we have all interacted with among Facebook and Twitter. I have been fooled by them. Everybody has been fooled at one point by these sites that are intentionally trying to trick people. And that's what Robby Mook is talking about when he says he believes that fake news possibly from Russia, from Russian propagandas helped to undermine Clinton's campaign.
Now, that is very hard to prove. There been some initial stubs at it. There are some evidence that suggests that some of these fake news sites due have ties, or origins of Russia or fingerprints from Russian intelligence services. But then some of those site just come from kids trying to make a few bucks from advertising. So there are a lot of different kinds of these sites. And it is very hard to discern -- some people say Clinton lost because of fake news sites. Trump won because of the fake news site. Give me a break. There is no way to measure that.
HARLOW: There is none.
STELTER: Trump won for hundreds of reasons and this might be one of the hundred.
HARLOW: There is also varying degrees of fake news, right? There was completely fake stories. And then are stories that are have some falsehoods in them or some things made up or some things that are very pertinent omitted. Our Alisyn Camerota did what I think is just a fascinating interview this week with some of these Trump supporters. And she talk to them about, for example, Trump saying, well, millions of people voted illegally in the election. Let's listen to what they told Alisyn.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ALISYN CAMEROTA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Do you think that three million illegal people voted.
PAULA JOHNSON, DONALD TRUMP SUPPORTER: I believe in California that zero illegals that voted.
CAMEROTA: How many?
JOHNSON: I don't. To tell you the truth, nobody really knows that number.
CAMEROTA: But do you think three dozen or do you think three million?
JOHNSON: I think there is a good amount. Because the president told people that they could vote and it happened in national. We caught some people that they went international and they said the president said I can vote. I'm here illegally.
[19:35:03] CAMEROTA: Did you hear President Obama said that illegal people could vote?
JOHNSON: Yes.
CAMEROTA: Where? On What news? Tell me where.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You can find it - google it. You can find it on Facebook.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARLOW: Well, it's not true. It didn't happen.
STELTER: You can find anything on Facebook.
HARLOW: You can find it on Facebook, that's true.
You say fundamentally, Brian, this is an issue of supply and demand. What do you mean?
STELTER: It is. As long as people want to believe made up stories about the enemy, about the opponent, then they can always find those stories on the line. There is always going to be supply for that if there is demand for it. The harder thing to tackle is how to reduce demand. How you make fewer people want to click on these headlines that seems too good or too bad, if it is true.
HARLOW: People like to see what they agree with.
STELTER: And that is the fundamental issue. And it has becoming more and more true. Been true for years. And the Internet has made it easier to only hear those voices.
HARLOW: So now, tech companies are getting a lot of pressure, you know, everyone from Google, the Facebook, et cetera, how you are going to deal with it.
STELTER: Right.
HARLOW: Google chrome, a search engine actually out with the tool that helps decipher what is real, what is fake.
STELTER: Right. Trying to make it easier to indicate whether these, some of these sites that are kind of - they are very well disguised fake news sites. Google is trying to come up with a way, a plug in for Chrome to help at least tell if they're true or not. These are all small useful steps in the right direction. But ultimately it is on the users. It is on all of us I think as Facebook users, as Twitter users, and as consumers of the worldwide web. It's kind of like spoiled food. You know, some people don't mind eating bad fast food or eating something that hasn't been pasteurized or something has been processed, something that hasn't been FDA approved. But it is bad to eat. And you are going to be better off if you know where your food comes from. The same is actually true for news.
HARLOW: Sometimes it tastes good and sometimes people like what tastes good more than the truth. Well like for some can be hard to stomach.
Brian, thank you so much. We appreciate it. You will see Brian right here tomorrow morning on his show "RELIABLE SOURCES" at 11:00 a.m.
Coming up, the numbers are in for the first job report since the election and they show the lowest unemployment rate since 2007. This week, the job story everyone was talking about, though, was in Indiana where Donald Trump made a deal with Carrier to keep a lot of jobs in the United States. We will talk about why that is such a big deal and debate what precedent is sets, next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[19:40:34] HARLOW: Call it President Obama's pre-inauguration gift to Donald Trump. A nine year low for unemployment in this country. It is now down to 4.6 percent, 178,000 jobs added last month. But President-elect Donald Trump says there is a lot of work that still needs to be done.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: The era of economic surrender is over. We are going to fight for every last American job. It is time to remove the rust from the rustbelt and usher in a new industrial revolution. We are going to do it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARLOW: That was this week on his thank you tour. The president- elect also this week celebrating a deal he was able to strike with Carrier to save some 1800 jobs at their air conditioning plant in Indianapolis, jobs that were slated to moving to Mexico. In return, Carrier gets a $7 million tax break.
Senator Bernie Sanders, though, slamming the deal in a "Washington Post" op-ed saying that Carrier had taken Trump for hostage and won. He said that it would signal to every corporation in America that they can threaten off for jobs in exchange for business, friendly tax benefits and incentives.
Let's debate it. Scott Paul is with me, president of the Alliance for American Manufacturing, a nonpartisan group and CNN's Tom LoBianco who covered Indiana politics extensively as a reporter for both the "Indianapolis Star" and the "Associated Press."
Gentlemen, thank you for being here.
And Scott, let me begin with you. And let me begin by saying it is great that these hundreds of workers in Indiana are going to keep their job and not lose their job. No one can debate that. I think the question is big picture is precedent, right? Because this number of jobs represents only 0.2 percent of manufacturing jobs across the state of Indiana. So the question is do you want to see the Trump administration make these deals with all of those companies that are planning to move workers out of the United States, move those jobs out or do you want to see them pause on this and pursue an over extreme strategy?
SCOTT PAUL, PRESIDENT FOR AMERICAN MANUFACTURING: Well, I will say a bit time and cheek that if Donald Trump is tweeting about anything, I hope it's about companies moving jobs overseas. Because it does seems to move the needle a little bit.
But in all seriousness, it is going take macroeconomic policy to produce the kinds of changes that I think Donald Trump and a lot of voters want to see. That means trade policy, tax policy, investing in infrastructure, and workers. Although for anyone who thought that Carrier might be a one off, and I will acknowledge they were very unique circumstances with, you know, the sitting governor of Indiana who is about to become the vice president engaged in a viral video for the plan closure.
You know, Trump tweeted about a plant just down the road from Carrier (INAUDIBLE) and called them out for outsourcing to Mexico as well. So we will see where this goes. But I think that the focus has to be on the policy. It's just impractical to expect that company by company you are going to build up a manufacturing base in this country.
HARLOW: I mean, in an essence, you are then taking winners and losers. Even Sarah Palin, former governor of Alaska, big Trump supporter, you know, wrote in a column yesterday. She doesn't like the optics of this. Republicans don't, she said, generally do this. You let the free market system work.
Tom, what do you think? I mean, you were a journalist in Indiana before coming to CNN. You say the optics are great, the details are not so rosy, why?
TOM LOBIANCO, CNN POLITICS.COM REPORTER: The optics were amazing for him because it appear he is delivering on a promise. And (INAUDIBLE), he almost did have to do anything, really, because it sounds like Carrier has saw the writing the wall after the election and decided, OK, we'll keep, you know, about 60 percent of the jobs that we were going to ship out.
You know, what is funny about this? I was looking at Indiana University, the Indiana business research center down there. I was looking at the types of jobs that were getting out in Indiana. And, you know, manufacturing after the recession was already on a decline. But you had bigger losses in the last ten years or so. And they are being replaced with service sector jobs and healthcare service jobs.
And, you know, I remember covering the state house, when you had people like the Republican legislature leaders, House speaker Brian Basma (ph), Senate president David Long out there made a huge deal out of this retraining workers to get help with manufacturing. So you got to wonder, are they, by looking backwards, you are looking at something where you have great money, stability, and you know, promise of the ability to raise your family OK.
But looking forward, it's little frightening, you know? How do you retrain if you're 35, 40, 50 years old for, you know, for something that you regard in doing for 20 years?
[19:45:23] HARLOW: I mean, Scott, Tom bring up a really important point. And when you look at these unemployment numbers, yes, on the surface, they are good. You can't argue with the numbers. In many measures, the economy is healthy.
Still though, Trump was able to get elected on a message that the American worker needs more. That the American economy needs to be revive. What do those job numbers, just out yesterday, what do they not show us about what is actually happening in America's heart land?
PAUL: Well, look at manufacturing. Manufacturing actually has lost about 40,000 jobs nationwide over the last two years. And so, even as you have seen these private sector growth which has been pretty impressive. I mean, that is not outstanding, but is chugging along. Manufacturing has been left behind. And part of it is automation and technology. But a lot of it is these issues that Trump in a lot of these industrial state voters have been worried about which is trade, trade with China, more so than Mexico, really. But also valuing manufacturing.
You got a whole lot of Hoosier experience. I'm a Hoosier native myself. And Indiana has 30 percent of its economy still in manufacturing. That's more than twice the national average. So there is a future for it. We are going to make autonomous vehicles. There is a lot of opportunities in clean energy manufacturing. But it is like anything else. We are going to have to fight for these jobs. And I don't think it is (INAUDIBLE). And I think that we pick winners and losers all the time. This has been going on for a long time even at the presidential level. It may be kind of ugly, but everybody does it, every country does it. And so, if we want to hold ourselves out as being very pure, there is a going to be job cost to it as well.
HARLOW: Look. The question is to what extent do you do it and can you really do this for all companies across the board? It's important for all of us living on the coast in America that don't rely as much on these manufacturing jobs to remember what you said in Indiana, what a huge part of the economy these manufacturing jobs are.
I'm out of time, guys. Scott, thank you very much. Tom, thank you as well.
Still to come, thousands of Cubans turn out to bid a final farewell to Fidel Castro. Out Patrick Oppmann is live tonight for us in Cuba - Patrick.
PATRICK OPPMANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Patrick Oppmann in Santiago, Cuba where hundreds of thousands of people are paying tribute to Fidel Castro.
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[19:51:22] HARLOW: In Cuba, Fidel Castro's funeral procession reaches the end of a long journey. Right now Cuban dignitaries are speaking in what is a final farewell to the nation's longtime leader. Castro's ashes will arrive in their final stop tomorrow at cemetery in Santiago de Cuba, the city where Castro launched his revolution more than 50 years ago.
Our Patrick Oppmann is there. He is the only American television correspondent based in Cuba. And Patrick, you covered this week-long trip down the island to bring
Castro's ashes to where they are tonight. What is the reaction of the Cuban people been that you have talked to along the way?
OPPMANN: Poppy, in five years of living here I never have seen so many people out in support of Fidel Castro or the revolution. His death really set-off an outpouring of grief. You saw, of course, the celebrations in Miami. Here it set off an outpouring of grief at first and now really a very revolutionary spirit, sort of a throwback to the days, the early days of the revolution, where people were very defiant, very much out and speaking in favor of the revolution. And, you know, the long week of covering this, we have seen people tear up. We have seen genuine emotion, pretty from the older generations that knew Fidel Castro better. But tens of thousands of people throughout the out now, hundreds of thousands of people here tonight in Santiago are bidding farewell to Fidel Castro.
HARLOW: And what can we expect tomorrow for the funeral services? Who will be there? Will foreign leaders be there? What can we expect?
OPPMANN: So tonight, really, is a mass demonstration in favor of Fidel Castro. Tomorrow, the actual funeral, we are told, will be a small invitation only. No American or international press, of course, invited family, Fidel Castro's family. We rarely see his family that was considered private. He wanted to give the image that he lived for the revolution. He didn't have a personal life, which of course he had. So, of course, we will see his brother, the current president Castro, his wife, his children, his sons, and perhaps a few foreign leaders, very close leaders he considered like his sons like Nicolas (INAUDIBLE) and other Latin-American heads of state. But it will be very small and very private. And it will be, of course, the end of the Fidel Castro era, and a send-off for a leader who changed Cuba and Cubans forever, Poppy.
HARLOW: Patrick Oppmann live for us tonight in Santiago de Cuba. Again, the only American television reporter in the country right now.
Patrick, thank you very much for that. We will have more, of course, on that funeral next tomorrow.
Coming up next, a community rallies to help the family in need after a fire claimed their homes. We will show you the overwhelming response tonight in our America.
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[19:57:49] HARLOW: Tonight before we go, a look at something wonderful happening in our America. While the country is divided by political beliefs and racial tension and inequality, we also come together in some pretty incredible and unexpected ways. And we want to make sure on this show you see those things as well.
Tonight in our America, a community coming together to help a family in desperate need. The father of nine, a mother, father, grandfather, and six children in Whitney Point, New York lost their home when an electrical fire broke out on Tuesday morning.
The father, Michael Chandler, his 1-month-old infant son and 10-year- old daughter were admitted to the hospital for smoke inhalation and burns. Well, that's when Chandler's co-workers left into action.
You see Chandler is an active firefighter for the Lisle Fire Company. Pretty soon mountains of clothing, children's toys and household items began to fill the firehouse. A community tree lighting last night brought even more donations and a go-fund me page was set up to raise $10,000 for the Chandler family well and has raised more than 24,000 as of tonight.
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CHIEF SKIP KEEP, LISLE FIRE COMPANY: This is great. I mean, it's going to be a big help to them where they don't have anything now. So I'm really very happy to see that everybody has come out.
It's a good feeling. And we are like a family here. We look out for one another. So, it is -- this is a big help from the community and from our own organization people.
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HARLOW: Pretty great people helping out. The Chandler's 10-year-old is still in the hospital in critical condition. We are happy to tell you, though, their infant son was released yesterday.
If you see moment beautiful moment like this, moments of unity, tweet them to me at PoppyHarlowCNN. We will do our best to bring them to you on this program.
Coming up next, it is the premiere of CNN's original film, "Enlighten Us: the rise and fall of James Arthur Ray." And tomorrow morning, a special "STATE OF THE UNION" with our very own Jake Tapper. Trump and Clinton campaign managers together on the same stage and, boy, do they open up about this historic election. Jake Tapper gets the war room stories from an unprecedented race. That is tomorrow morning, 9:00 a.m. eastern and pacific.
Thank you so much for being with me tonight. I'm Poppy Harlow in New York. Have a great night. I will see you back here tomorrow.
