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Authorities: Russian Malware Targets Vermont Utility; Trump to Ring in New Year at Florida Resort; Vladimir Putin Gives New Year's Address; Trump Ditches Press Pool to Play Golf; Top-10 Medical Stories of 2016; Documentary on the Band Chicago; Trump Mania Sweeps Kurdistan in Iraq. Aired 5-6p ET
Aired December 31, 2016 - 17:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[17:00:50] SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN ANCHOR: Here in the CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Suzanne Malveaux in for Poppy Harlow. We begin with a potential new hacking attempt from Russia, this time against an electric company in Vermont. Burlington Electric says, malicious malware has been discovered on one of its laptops and U.S. authorities now believe it is the same malware that Russian hackers used to meddle in the presidential election.
Burlington Electric maintains none of its info has been compromised, but Vermont's Governor Peter Shumlin is taking a hard line stance against the fact that there was even an attempt. Shumlin saying in a statement, quote, "Vermonters and all Americans should be both alarmed and outraged that one of the world's leading thugs, Vladimir Putin, has been attempting to hack our electric grid. This episode should highlight the urgent need for our federal government to vigorously pursue and put an end to this sort of Russian meddling."
That strong condemnation comes as the President-elect offers anything but, instead Donald Trump's relationship with Russian Leader Vladimir Putin appears to only be growing friendlier with Trump praising Putin's response to new U.S. sanctions. Trump tweeting this, great move on delay by V. Putin. "I always knew he was very smart."
I want to bring in our Polo Sandoval who is joining us with more on this. And Polo, just the last hour, I talked with the general manager of Burlington Electric, Neale Lunderville. You've been following the story. What struck you about how he is responding to these potential crises?
POLO SANDOVAL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Suzanne, it has been a fairly revealing hour when it comes to this story here, particularly with the interview that you just had a few moments ago with the general manager of that company. And what it did is it really did confirm much of the information that we have been hearing from sources about how we got here, about how this potential threat was initially discovered recently and as we heard from the general manager of Burlington Electric a few moments ago it all started with a notice from the Department of Homeland Security to not only utility companies but also similar entities throughout the country asking them to be on the lookout for specific internet codes, specific cyber code and that included the one that's specifically linked to grizzly steppe.
It sounds familiar. That is that malware that was directly linked to some of these recent Russian hacks during election season. So, as a result they immediately called authorities. I want you to hear a portion of that interview that you had with the general manager of this company in which he says what they immediately did after they noticed the suspicious IP address.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
NEALE LUNDERVILLE, GENERAL MANAGER, BURLINGTON ELECTRIC DEPARTMENT: We were able to intercept that traffic as soon as it hit our network because of our real-time scanning and able to pull the computer off before we believe that it was able to do any -- any other activity on our system. Ultimately further investigation will look into that but we have no indication that there was any -- any compromise.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANDOVAL: That is key there, that information coming from Neale Lunderville from this company saying that they do not have any reason to believe that their systems were compromised and most importantly that their power grid was compromised for breaches in any way. That service is close to 20,000 people, Suzanne, so you can only imagine what potential damage could have happened or could have been done if that -- if there was any exposure there. But again hearing directly from company officials they said that is not the case here.
That's what we've been hearing all morning. And last thing, I will leave you with another interesting development in a fresh statement that was released by the company, the company going on to say that federal officials have told them that they are not alone. That they have seen this kind of suspicious internet traffic in other entities, other companies as well throughout the country. So, it will be interesting to see what the feds come out within the next few days to see if this in fact is an isolated incident or perhaps more.
MALVEAUX: All right. Polo Sandoval, we appreciate it. Thank you so much for the update there.
And so far, President-elect Donald Trump has not responded to this newest alleged cyber threat. Trump ditched the press pool today to play golf at his club, this is in Jupiter, Florida, he has abandoned the press pool several times since winning the election. The White House Correspondents Association calling the practice unacceptable. Meanwhile Trump is planning to ring in the New Year at his lavish Mar- A-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Florida and Ryan Nobles has a bit more on that.
[17:05:06] RYAN NOBLES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Suzanne, Donald Trump had a pretty successful 2016 so he is going to celebrate this year in style with a big bash at his Mar-A-Lago Resort in South Florida tonight. Some 800 guests are expected for this party. It is sold out, it does require an admission price, $525 for members, $575 for guests which is pretty much in line with what the ticket price has been in past years. Now, there will be some celebrities in attendance, Sylvester Stallone is expected to be there, we thought Quincy Jones was going to be in attendance for tonight but he tweeted this morning that he's in Los Angeles.
In the past celebrities like Regis Philbin and Vanessa Williams have been there. The ballroom is also going to be decorated with what were told as an explosion of green and white flowers, everything up and celebratory there for that party at Mar-A-Lago. This will wrap up Donald Trump's vacation, certainly a working vacation at the Mar-A- Lago Resort. He will head back to New York tomorrow and begin the final preparations for his swearing in on January 20th. Suzanne.
MALVEAUX: All right. Ryan Nobles, thank you so much. Appreciate it.
I want to talk more about this new Russian hacking claims with former CIA operative Bob Baer. And Bob, Happy New Year here of course. Your perspective very valuable here. Your understanding that there is a chain of evidence that is implicating Russia. So tell us how it is that we got from this new cyber breach, if you will, to Russia.
BOB BAER, FORMER CIA OPERATIVE: Well, Suzanne, I think what we talked about first was an intelligence assessment if the Russians were behind that, the CIA said it, Homeland Security said it as well, but what we have now is the FBI has detected malware which comes from Russia, which comes from the Russian government, even in the power grid malware it's the same stuff and we have to look at this as really as forensic, it's computer DNA, it's the kind of DNA you would take to court and get a conviction. I have a lot of faith in the FBI's ability to identify this and track it back to Russia. So to say that the intelligence is just one opinion is absolutely wrong. I think -- I think the government has this nailed. And, you know, I don't have complete faith in the intelligence services, but when the FBI makes a case like this, I trust them.
MALVEAUX: And is this the kind of thing that U.S. authorities have suspected has gone on? I mean, certainly they would have tried to make these kinds of attempts before to impact the electrical grid.
BAER: They've seen it. We've seen it in the Ukraine, the same sort of viruses, when Russians hacked the Ukrainian elections, same sort of sophisticated malware. We've seen it in a lot of places. So none of this is new. And someone may ask, well, why didn't the Obama administration bring this up a year ago? Well, the thing is they've been collecting evidence. It takes a lot of time and it has to be very careful. When you make accusations against Putin and Russia like this you better be sure you know what you're talking about.
MALVEAUX: We've certainly seen in previous examples with China that there has been hacking for intelligence and the kind of businesses and trade secrets, that type of thing. Do we know if China and Iran have the same kind of capabilities that Russia has when it comes to disrupting an electric grid or a dam or something that would be very significant in terms of our national security?
BAER: Chinese are extremely sophisticated they've been stealing our software for years. They are as advanced as we are. The Iranians the same way, very sophisticated. They could hit us when they want. They choose not to. Our defenses are bad. Weak. Our software, our hardware, the rest of it, we haven't put a lot of money into it. Yes, they can definitely hit us and this is the whole problem with Russia that if Russia gets away with this during our elections or in our power grids, who is next? And that's why the Senate and the House and the President has got to face this and come up with a strategy to counter, retaliate, whatever it takes to get people to stop this.
MALVEAUX: And Bob, I imagine that the United States is also probing the vulnerabilities of these essential networks like power grids in other countries. Is the thought here the strategy is that the U.S. doesn't use that information or that technology until it is put into a position where it has to go ahead and retaliate?
BAER: Well, it's an act of war. If we went after the Kremlin, closed down communications, took Putin's secrets and put them out it's an act of war as described by Senator McCain and we have been reluctant to use that because frankly we're more responsible on this. We did not pick this fight with Russia. I know they blame us for interfering in the Ukrainian elections it's simply not true. We have been very reluctant to go to war except with Iran when we went after their nuclear facilities, that a couple of years ago and that was the one time that comes to mind.
[17:10:18] MALVEAUX: Do you consider this a bigger threat than terror groups like ISIS? Where does this fall when it comes to the priorities of the administration?
BAER: I'm extremely alarmed by this. This was an attack on American democracy, it was an attack on our elections, it was an act of war as McCain called it. It calls into question the legitimacy of the new president. I mean, my hunch is he would have been elected anyhow, didn't have a big effect, but there is a lot of people, especially on the left, that believe that he is -- was put in office by the Russians and it's that kind of question we don't need over our elections and that's why we need complete transparency from here on.
MALVEAUX: All right. Bob Baer, have a good New Year. It looks like you are in a beautiful place so thank you so much for taking the time. I appreciate that.
BAER: Happy New Year.
MALVEAUX: Happy New Year. In just three weeks Donald Trump takes the oath of office and relations between Russia and the U.S. may never be the same again. Ahead what a speech from President Vladimir Putin tells us about the Kremlin and how it will handle the White House. And later, Donald Trump's election was popular with one group of global leaders, a group that hasn't always had good relations with the United States. We'll explain why.
But first, while Times Square waits for the ball to drop around the world they are already ringing in the New Year. So we are looking at live pictures now, Moscow and Istanbul welcoming 2017 with the fireworks and everything else. A preview of what's to come in the cities across Europe, back in a moment. You're live in the CNN NEWSROOM. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[17:14:42] MALVEAUX: Thirty five Russian diplomats have to be out of the country by noon tomorrow. The plane that is going to fly them out is waiting at Dulles International Airport that's just outside of Washington, D.C. That is happening now. The expulsions are part of the brand new sanctions that President Obama levied on Russia for hacking during the election. Russian President Vladimir Putin gave his New Year's address today.
And our Matthew Chance, he is in Moscow with more on Putin's message.
MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Vladimir Putin's New Year address was broadcast across Russia with no mention of Donald Trump, U.S. expulsions of diplomats, the war in Syria or any of the controversies that have gripped global attention over the past couple days. It was just a brief message of congratulations to the people of Russia at the end of what Putin described as a very challenging 2016. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PRES. VLADIMIR PUTIN, RUSSIA: Respected citizens of Russia, dear friends, 2016 is slipping away. It was difficult but the difficulties that we face united us and prompted us to open huge reserves of our opportunities to move forward.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHANCE: Putin also called on Russians to be merciful in the New Year which is exactly how the Russian president tried to cast himself as he ended the old one, namely his dramatic refusal to respond in kind to the U.S. expulsion of 35 Russian diplomats over allegations of election hacking. In a classic political theater, Putin publicly rejected the advice of his foreign ministry and said no one would be expelled over the holiday period. Even inviting the children of U.S. diplomats in Moscow to watch New Year's performances at the Kremlin. Earlier Putin also issued a New Year's message congratulating world leaders, one name absent in the greetings, though, President Obama of the United States.
Instead of greeting was offered to the President-elect Donald Trump. The President of Russia side stepping, even ignoring the Obama administration in his last few weeks and making it clear that the future of U.S./Russian relations will depend on the policies of the incoming Trump administration.
Matthew Chance, CNN, Moscow.
MALVEAUX: Well, Matthew Chance, thank you so much.
Since Donald Trump was elected some world leaders have indicated they are eager to work with him, but many of them are considered to have strong man images. We are going to take a look at why these leaders who have had tense relations with the United States are looking forward to the Trump presidency. You're live in the CNN NEWSROOM. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[17:19:52] MALVEAUX: President-elect Donald Trump has made no secret of the fact that he admires Russian President Vladimir Putin and after his election win, Putin and other leaders with strong man images, well, they praised him, expressed their willingness to work with him.
Our CNN senior international correspondent Ivan Watson finds out why.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
IVAN WATSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (on camera): In the aftermath of the election, messages of support come from presidents with tough guy personas who have had tense relations with the U.S. The Russian president calls Trump a successful entrepreneur, a man who is, quote, "probably clever." Turkey's president jumped to the President-elect support calling anti-Trump street protests, quote, "a disrespect to democracy." And then there's the President of the Philippines who not long ago told President Obama he could go to hell.
PRES. RODRIGO DUTERTE, PHILIPPINES: I would like to congratulate President Trump. Mabuhay ka. Pareho tau, nagmumura. Konting rason lang mura kaagad, ano? Parehong pareho kami.
WATSON: Why do these strong men seem to like Donald Trump?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I would call it their capacity to provide simple answers to very complicated questions. That what we're seeing at the moment in the world today is a loss of threats and crises and uncertainty, and what these leaders are providing is simplistic answers, black and white, close the borders, no more foreigners.
WATSON: Vladimir Putin first came to power in 1999, delighting many Russians with his promise to hunt down and kill Chechen rebels in their toilets. Turkey's fiery -- Erdogan inspires fervent pride among pious working class voters while often demonizing and persecuting his critics. And in Europe, several far right politicians embrace Trump's tough talk on immigration and Islamist extremism hoping for their own Trump bump as they compete for the top job in Dutch and French elections scheduled next year.
But not everyone welcomes this new hunger for nationalist politicians. Here in the tiny Eastern European country of Latvia, U.S. soldiers are training alongside the Latvian military. It's part of an effort to better protect this NATO allies from its much bigger neighbor to the east. Latvia's former Soviet ruler, Russia. With Trump so focused on making America great people here fear the U.S. will no longer protect them. The rise of nationalist strong men leaves some of the little guys clearly worried.
Ivan Watson, CNN, Rega.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MALVEAUX: Donald Trump has had a rocky relationship to say the least with some reporters and that might be a problem again today after a trip by the President-elect. We're going to talk about that and his decision to break another long standing tradition. You're live in the CNN NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[17:26:24] MALVEAUX: President-elect Donald Trump ditched the press pool today to play golf at his club in Jupiter, Florida. He has abandoned the press pool several times since winning the election, the White House Correspondents Association calling it unacceptable.
Let's talk it over with our political commentator Ben Ferguson, host of "The Ben Ferguson Show." And Lauren Duca, she is weekend editor of Teen Vogue.
So, Lauren, we know that you've criticized Trump's relationship with the media, having covered Presidents Clinton, Bush and Obama. I know that each one of them is very different with the relationship and the media. Bill Clinton used to love to come back to the back of the plane on Air Force one and chat up all of us, Bush was a little bit more reticent and President Obama even sometimes ditched the press pool, once to take his daughter to a soccer game. So what do you make of this or what do you make of Trump's style and, you know, the fact that every once in a while pretty much all presidents do it?
LAUREN DUCA, FREELANCE JOURNALIST: Yes, it seems like this is not a particularly massive issue, but I think that there are some concerning things with his sort of rejection of the traditional treatment of the press and, you know, threatening access has been a running theme throughout his campaign. So it's concerning to think about, you know, what are the -- what is the level of respect that he attributes to the press and what is the level of transparency that he feels he owes the public.
MALVEAUX: And, Lauren, let's go ahead and actually read some of your op-ed entitled, "Donald Trump is Gaslighting America." You say that Trump has repeatedly attempted to undermine the press including such well respected publications as "The New York Times." He has disseminated a wealth of unsubstantiated attacks on the media. So, Ben, we have seen this where he has literally by name gone after particularly female reporters in front of large audiences, they have had to have security because of that. He has called reporters sleaze bags and all this kind of thing in public. What do you make of his behavior in terms of the media and the press that is assigned to cover him?
BEN FERGUSON, RADIO HOST, "THE BEN FERGUSON SHOW": Well, I think, one, he's not going to give the media a free pass. I think that's very clear. Two, he has also gone directly to the American people many times going around the press by going through twitter which many in the press have criticized him for. And he is going to be unconventional. And if you come after him with a one-sided hit piece I think it's very clear that he's going to let people know the other side of that story.
So I think it is going to be a different relationship, but let's also be clear with some of the fear mongering that just came up a moment ago. This administration has made it abundantly clear in the transition, they are not going to ban anyone from the press, from being at the White House or anything else like that. So some of this was campaign rhetoric, some of this was letting them know he's taking the fight to them --
DUCA: Donald Trump revoked press access throughout his campaign, Ben, and you know that.
FERGUSON: Let's be clear. The transition has said that no one is being banned from the White House. You do understand that, right?
DUCA: But he has revoked access in the past and also -- I don't know what you mean by one-sided hit piece but he has contradicted fact based narratives on multiple occasions. So his attacks on the media --
FERGUSON: Give me an example. Give me an example.
DUCA: There are multiple times when his team has put out a statement.
FERGUSON: Give me one example. I don't need multiple. One example.
MALVEAUX: Go ahead if you would like Lauren.
DUCA: Yes, his repeated lying to -- through his statements that then are reframed by his team.
FERGUSON: Give me an example.
[17:30:00] DUCA: There are plenty of examples. He says that the U.S. is the highest taxed country in the world. He has said that the immigrants are up to 40 billion, he has said --
FERGUSON: No, no --
(CROSSTALK)
MALVEAUX: I want to jump in here because I don't want to relitigate this. But I do know -- and we have heard from President-elect Donald Trump, the name calling that was unprecedented that had never occurred, this kind of public name calling, and the nastiness, the viciousness of that that had occurred. We are not going to deny that. But we also know that Donald Trump, behind scenes, has met with media executives and correspondents and reporters and tried to mitigate some of the damage. It will be interesting to see as we move forward what that kind of relationship is going to be.
Lauren, I want to ask you about the business of press conferences here. We know that there was a press conference that was going to happen, it has been delayed until next month here and there's often a back and forth about the formal press conference and whether or not that is really important.
What do you make of that? We saw Trump with Don King by his side just a couple days ago speaking to reporters, but it has been quite some time since he has actually had a normal sit-down with the press. What kind of weight do you put on that?
DUCA: Sure. I just wanted to quickly clarify that I think Trump has made blanket rejections of respected publications that are not in response to even any specific example he has rejected, you know, "The New York Times" just outright as bad. And that --
(CROSSTALK)
FERGUSON: It is pretty liberal. It's pretty liberal newspaper.
DUCA: He is undermining the power of the journalist --
(CROSSTALK)
FERGUSON: Well, "The New York Times" has undermined him in his entire campaign and including him being elected in a free and fair election. Welcome to the new world of Donald Trump. This goes back to the point that I made earlier, Donald Trump is not going to allow the media to control him and or give them a free pass. "The New York Times" --
(CROSSTALK)
DUCA: We are talking about press conferences. Then do you think he owes the American people a press conference or the media a press conference? Where does that end?
FERGUSON: It's clear that he got criticized by the press, the same press that you're holding up on this pedestal for not having this transition --
(CROSSTALK)
DUCA: I'm holding the whole press up on a pedestal.
FERGUSON: Let me finish what I was going to say.
You look at what happened right after he won the election, the media, "The New York Times" was the head of it, going after Donald Trump saying, where is his cabinet, where is his cabinet, where is his cabinet. He had put more people into cabinet positions before Barack Obama had done it, when Barack Obama had not done it until more than a month and a half later. There is a double standard. So, then what does he do? He focuses on his transition. He focuses on his cabinet appointments. And now you have this same exact people that are screaming, when is our press conference, when is our press conference. He will give one in January. But you can't have it both ways. And when --
(CROSSTALK)
DUCA: This is a highly fraught political moment and there is bias on both sides of the aisle. I think we need more objective reporting overall across the board.
(CROSSTALK)
DUCA: And it's frequently skewed.
(CROSSTALK)
DUCA: But I also think that press conferences are incredibly important regardless of the bias you're citing.
MALVEAUX: I have to wrap it there, both of you.
But Donald Trump will be held to account by the press, the White House press corps, as well as many other different outlets that he uses or that the reporters, that go to him, we will make sure that that that happens.
So, thank you very much both of you. Happy New Year. Thank you for being here.
DUCA: Thank you.
FERGUSON: Happy New Year.
MALVEAUX: We're going to make it a good one. Appreciate you both, Lauren and Ben Ferguson.
DUCA: Happy New Year.
MALVEAUX: Thanks again.
Of course, politics dominated the headlines in 2016. There are plenty of big stories in health as well. From a controversy over the price of a critical medication to the fear over the threat of the Zika Virus, we are going to take a look at the top-10.
You're live in the CNN NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[17:36:48] MALVEAUX: From the miracle operation that separated conjoined twins to the controversy over contaminated water in Flint, Michigan, CNN's chief medical correspondent, Sanjay Gupta, counts down the top-10 medical stories we will remember from 2016.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
(MUSIC)
SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: I'm kicking off my list this year with a bit of deja vu. This could be the biggest health threat facing us today, antibiotic resistance. Sure enough, in May, the United States saw its first bacterial infection resistant to everything we know, all antibiotics of last resort. The CDC called it rare strain of E. coli a warning sign more than a catastrophe, but cautioned we're likely to see more super bugs if we don't cut back on overuse of antibiotics.
Move over Martin Shkreli. In August, Americans got angry about the skyrocketing cost of EpiPen. Drug maker Mylan has hiked the price 15 times since 2009. It's now up 400 percent to $609 for a two pack. The company responded to the outrage by offering severe allergy sufferers saving cards, coupons, even promising a generic version of the lifesaving drug in a matter of weeks, but it didn't hit the market until four months later.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And they love each other.
GUPTA: In October, we introduced you to two beautiful baby boys, cranial pagus (ph) twins, joined at the head, their brains fused together. Without undergoing a risky operation, their chances at long-term survival were slim. CNN was there inside the operating room for the entire complicated and risky 27-hour procedure.
(CHEERING)
GUPTA: The boys pulled through and we're going to follow their story as they enter rehappen and continue on their remarkable road to recovery.
NASA ANNOUNCER: And liftoff. A year in space starts now.
GUPTA: March 27th, 2015, Astronaut Scott Kelly blasts off for his historic mission aboard the international space station.
Station, this is CNN. How do you hear me?
SCOTT KELLY, ASTRONAUT: I hear you loud and clear. Welcome aboard the space station.
GUPTA: Along with his brother, Mark, back on earth, the Kelly brothers are part of NASA's twin study. The goal? To measure the impact prolonged spaceflight has on the human body physically and mentally, in anticipation of years-long missions to Mars and beyond.
NASA ANNOUNCER: Scott Kelly back on mother earth.
GUPTA: Scott Kelly landed safely back on earth March 2, 2016, after spending a record setting 240 days in space.
ELIZABETH HOLMES, CEO, THERANOS: No one has ever seen this. You are the first one.
GUPTA: In July, I traveled to Palo Alto, California, with an interview with Theranos CEO Elizabeth Holmes, who had been laying low for months following some damning reporting from the "Wall Street Journal," and ultimately a federal investigation, sanctions and multiple lawsuits revolving around its mini lab, a proprietary blood- testing device. In 2014, Forbes had valued the company at $9 billion.
It's probably the most important question I think anybody who is watching has about this, does it work?
[17:40:09] HOLMES: Yes.
GUPTA: You're confident in that?
HOLMES: I am confident in that.
GUPTA: As 2016 comes to a close, Theranos is now valued at zero. It has shaken up its operations and its board of directors.
For years, we've been reporting on the country's opioid epidemic but it wasn't until this April 21st that the nationwide crisis finally grabbed everyone's attention.
ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.
WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: CNN has now confirmed that the artist Prince is dead.
GUPTA: Prince died of a Fentanyl overdose. It's a synthetic painkiller 50 times more powerful than heroin. Overdoses are the most common cause of unintentional death in America.
ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR, A.C. 360: We are here to talk about an epidemic that kills 78 Americans every day.
GUPTA: Anderson Cooper and I hosted a town hall to bring to light this epidemic quietly killing people in the shadows.
We need solutions, and that begins with doctors cutting back on excessive painkiller prescriptions.
In January, I traveled to Flint, Michigan, a town still reeling from an April 2014 decision to switch its water supply to the highly contaminated Flint River. Levels of lead in the residents' water were testing off the charts.
Five parts per building would be cause for concern. 5,000 parts per building is associated with toxic waste. This home, 13,000 parts per billion.
GUPTA: On October 16, 2015, Flint switched back to Detroit's water supply but the damage was already done. Many residents still need to boil their water before drinking it. And pipe infrastructure still needs to be replaced and an estimated cost of $55 million.
2016 was the first time most Americans heard of the Zika Virus. An outbreak began last year in Brazil and we saw these hear breaking pictures of babies born with Microcephaly, abnormally small heads and brains. It wasn't long until the virus invaded the United States. Anyone exposed needs to practice safe sex for a full six months.
The 2016 presidential campaign was truly unprecedented. From a health perspective, neither Hillary Clinton nor Donald Trump released as much personal medical information as past candidates for commander-in- chief.
But the single document that invited the most scrutiny was this bizarre letter written by Dr. Harold Bornstein, Donald Trump's physician.
UNIDENTIFIED CNN CORRESPONDENT: Did you really write that letter? DR. HAROLD BORNSTEIN, DONALD TRYMP'S PHYSICIAN: Did I really write
that letter? Yeah.
GUPTA: It was riddled with typos, Trumpian language, and medical terminology no doctor I know would ever use.
One of the cornerstones of Donald Trump's successful presidential campaign was his promise to --
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT-ELECT OF THE UNITED STATES: Repeal and replace Obamacare.
GUPTA: So no surprise his supporters were shocked when after he was elected --
LESLEY STAHL, CO-HOST, 60 MINUTES: Let me ask you about Obamacare. Are you going to make sure that people with preconditions are still covered?
TRUMP: Yes, because it happens to be one of the strongest assets.
STAHL: You're going to keep that?
TRUMP: Also with the children living with their parents for an extended period.
STAHL: You're going to keep that?
TRUMP: We're going to very much try to, yes.
GUPTA: But what will change with your healthcare once Trump takes office? We will be watching in 2017.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[17:46:09] MALVEAUX: And you're now looking at live pictures of Berlin as well as New York, both waiting to welcome 2017. Fireworks and the big, big party, with the legendary rock group Chicago, still touring nearly 50 years after the band first formed.
Tomorrow, New Year's Day, CNN is tracing the band's Windy City roots all the way to the top of the charts. What started as a six-person rock band with horns, back in 1967, has transformed through the years, grown into a nine-member group that still tours the country today.
Here is a sneak peek from the CNN film "Now More Than Ever, The History of the Band Chicago."
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
(MUSIC)
UNIDENTIFIED CHICAGO BAND MEMBER: It was a foresighted album, almost an hour and a half of new music that we performed very well and with enthusiasm and with a lot of joy.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And the material that they themselves created and wrote, they did it with their material, they did it combing jazz, pop and rock in clearly a very, very special way.
(MUSIC)
UNIDENTIFIED CHICAGO BAND MEMBER: "Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is," is the first thing we ever recorded as a band together.
UNIDENTIFIED CHICAGO BAND MEMBER: That's right. Good memory.
UNIDENTIFIED CHICAGO BAND MEMBER: That's the first thing we ever did and it was sort of frightening because we all got in the same recording studio.
UNIDENTIFIED CHICAGO BAND MEMBER: We were in sort of a circle and for myself personally and I think maybe Lee and Jimmy we didn't want to look at each other because we were afraid if we looked at one of the other guys we would make them make a mistake.
(SINGING)
UNIDENTIFIED CHICAGO BAND MEMBER: Once we got into the studio, we started thinking we might not be ready because we had no idea that when this little microphone gets in front of you it hears everything.
UNIDENTIFIED CHICAGO BAND MEMBER: This is going to be forever.
(SINGING)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MALVEAUX: That is fantastic.
Joining me now the director, Peter Pardini.
Peter, the music is amazing. I mean, it really is incredible and in the film also you decided to use all kinds of different camera formats. It's really fascinating to see especially when you go back to the '70s, the '80s. You have the eight millimeter, all the way to the digital cameras. Explain that. What is behind that because it does have kind of that go back to the past old school but modern feel.
PETER PARDINI, DIRECTOR: Yeah, well my cinematographer and I, John Oneray (ph), we decided we wanted to shoot the movie in a way that wasn't just a talking-heads documentary. Because there has been documentaries about bands before and not just Chicago that it just feels like it's just a set of dates and numbers. And we wanted it to be more of a cinematic experience for people to watch that they could get into a story rather than feeling like they were being, you know, taught or, you know -- you know, like they are in school or something.
MALVEAUX: It definitely doesn't have that feel. I know John Oneray (ph). He is an amazing talent as well. Talk about how we're looking at these pictures here and Chicago toured with the legendary Jimmy Hendricks and I imagined that experience early on really affected the band's trajectory and where they went. Explain that a little bit.
PARDINI: Well, Jimmy, from what -- from what I know and what the band has told me, is that, you know, he warned them early on, you know, that there is a lot more to success than just, you know, playing shows and everybody telling you that they love you. There is a lot that goes with it and managing your money and always having to have the next hit. And, you know, for me, as a filmmaker, I learned a lot from that because it's like what happens with my film making career if something happens for me. Be careful what you wish for and you might get it, is what Walt (ph) always tells me.
(LAUGHTER)
[17:50:10] MALVEAUX: That's absolutely right. This is a 50-year journey for Chicago. I imagine it was just brutal to try to squeeze this into one documentary. Kind of the old producer, journalist in me wants to know what got left on the cutting-room floor, what didn't make it?
PARDINI: A lot.
(LAUGHTER)
Like you said, 50 years to be able to try to decide how you're going to make that into two hours. I couldn't even begin to start to tell you what I left on the floor. I mean, they toured with the beach boys in the '70s. They had several hits that aren't even featured in the documentary, but I try to keep it focused on the band's brotherhood and what he experienced with his brothers what to make about certain shows and talking about where they were on the charts, necessarily.
MALVEAUX: Peter Pardini, first that question, then, tell me, in the doc, what is the special takeaway?
PARDINI: The special takeaway for me is just that these guys have been able to do this for 50 years and there's been line-up changes and there's been, you know, different styles of music that you hear side by side, stuff they recorded in 1969 and then what they recorded what's on screen right now in 1982. It's -- they don't sound thinking alike and to be able to have that kind of difference in music and still able to go on the road every year for 50 years, that's a success I think anybody would wish for.
MALVEAUX: It's just such a creative force, those guys.
Thank you so much, Peter. Really appreciate it.
It's an amazing doc. Everybody should take a look at it. Really enjoyable.
Appreciate it. And have a great New Year.
PAARDINI: Thank you.
MALVEAUX: "Now More Than Ever, it's the history of the band Chicago," it's airing tomorrow, New Year's Day, at 9:00 p.m. eastern, right here on CNN.
Also, this year, we lost so many familiar faces, Carrie Fisher, Debbie Reynolds, Alan Thicke, Gene Wilder. This is just a few. Here's a look at just some of the legendary stars who passed away in 2016.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ABE VIGODA, ACTOR: Don't mind if it was my business. Always liked him.
GARY SHANDLING, COMEDIAN: I think he means mink.
(LAUGHTER)
UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR: No, it was mint.
PATTY DUKE, ACTRESS: She was so filled with pain and the need to be perfect.
(LAUGHTER)
DORIS ROBERTS, ACTRESS: She's everybody's pain in the neck. She is the mother-in-law from hell.
FLORENCE HENDERSON, ACTRESS: I created the kind of mother that I wish I'd had.
ALAN THICKE, ACTOR: Your sister is not the type who flirts.
UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR: They all are, Dad.
GENE WILDER: Don't forget what happened to the man who suddenly got everything he always wanted.
UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR: What happened?
WILDER: He lived happily ever after.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
17:56:29] MALVEAUX: Donald Trump mania sweeping across the northern Iraq region known as Kurdistan. A Kurdish fighter battle ISIS named his newborn baby after Trump. A Kurdish businessman named his restaurant Trump Fish.
Our own Ben Wedeman explains why the Kurds are going wild over the American president-elect.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): At three weeks old, little Trump isn't bothered by his pesky brother, Rasheed. Yes, you heard right. This is baby Trump. Trump Hassan Jamiel (ph), to be precise, born in Kyrgyzstan. The father explains what's in a name.
"I called him Trump," he says, "because Trump is charismatic and has clear policies. That's why he won the election."
He heard Trump say he was a big fan of Kurdish forces calling for the fight against ISIS. In his honor, he named his recently opened fish restaurant in the city of Dohuk after the Donald and even designed the catchy logo.
In Iraq's murky waters, Trump has inspired some here to hope he'll also make Kyrgyzstan great again.
(on camera): This fish is your standard carp. It's the way it's cooked, it's called mezguf (ph) here in Iraq. It is big-league popular. And this is a catch fit for a president.
(voice-over): There's no flip-flopping here. It takes just 45 minutes for the carp, a bottom feeder, to go from the tank to cutting board to grill to plate. No time wasted.
"What I admire about Trump's personality," he says, "is that he's decisive, tough, and hopefully, with that toughness, he'll finish off ISIS."
This man shrugs off as mere campaign rhetoric Trump's pledge to cast a wide net banning all Muslims from entering the United States.
Even wants to open a branch of his restaurant near the White House, Maybe Trump will invite him in.
Here's one man ready to serve the incoming administration.
Ben Wedeman, CNN, Dohuk, northern Iraq.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MALVEAUX: And turning to the current president, White House photographer, Pete Souza, spent the last eight years capturing nearly every moment of President Obama's life. Now he is sharing his favorite photos from 2016.
