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Super Bowl Ads Take on Political Stance; U.S. Recommits to Defending Japan; Iran Introduces Reciprocal Sanctions Against U.S.; Iraqis Begin Reentering U.S.; Israeli Parliament Passes Controversial Law Legalizing West Bank Settlements. Aired 8-9a ET

Aired February 07, 2017 - 08:00   ET

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


[08:00:18] KRISTIE LU STOUT, HOST: I'm Kristie Lu Stout in Hong Kong and welcome to News Stream.

Now, Donald Trump's travel ban is in the hands of three judges. They'll hear arguments for and

against the continued suspension of that ban just hours from now.

Plus, days after the U.S. makes a commitment to defend Japan and its disputed islands, tensions flare in the East China Sea after a move by

Beijing.

And -- a lucky lion dance for the CNN Hong Kong newsroom.

And we begin with the legal fight over Donald Trump's travel ban. Now, hours from now, a U.S. federal appeals court is set to hear arguments from

lawyers on both sides. And the court will decide whether the ban should remain suspended for the time being or be reinstated.

Now, Mr. Trump's executive order temporarily bars people from seven Muslim- majority countries from entering the U.S. and all Syrian refugees indefinitely. Now, we will have more on the legal aspects in just a

moment, but first I want to talk about the impact it's having on people, on families, those directly caught up in the chaos of it all.

Now, CNN's Ben Wedeman is in Irbil, Iraq. He joins us now live. And, Ben, with Trump's travel ban suspended for now, who from Iraq has been able to

make the journey to the U.S.?

BEN WEDEMAN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, there are those who already had visas in their passports and hadn't traveled when the ban was in effect, had their visas canceled and sent back. There are ordinary

businessmen. There are people with relatives in the United States who they're simply going to visit. So it involves a broad range of people

going for a variety of reasons. But many people are now hesitant to travel simply because they don't know how long they'll be able to go, that perhaps

the temporary restraining order on the ban will be overturned.

So there's a lot of uncertainty, a lot of confusion.

One official in Baghdad telling us it's very difficult to explain to Iraqis the ins and outs of U.S. constitutional law. and, therefore -- I mean it's

hard enough for journalists to understand what's going on, but for ordinary Iraqis who were hoping to travel to the United States, it's even more

difficult.

And for instance, for those who are moving to the United States as refugees, keep in mind that many of them sell all their possessions - their

cars, their homes, their furniture in preparation for leaving. I have a friend here who was scheduled to go to the United States

and just days before leaving got a phone call that his security clearance had expired, because as you wait, you have to have regular security

clearances and, therefore, he had to put his plans on hold.

That was even before the executive order went into effect. So it's a very long and difficult process for people who have applied for visas to the

United States as refugees.

And of course now the difficulty is compounded by confusion - Kristie.

LU STOUT: Yeah, this order and the confusion around it has put lives on hold. And again, as you point out, these were Iraqi visa holders who went

through this long and complicated process, who were barred from entering when Trump issued that executive order. And please remind us about what

goes into the application and the vetting process to get a U.S. visa from Iraq.

WEDEMAN: Well, there's a variety of different kind of visas. You can be a tourist. You can be

a businessman. If you want to move to the United States as a refugee, and that includes people who worked with the American military for years, what

is involved is after the initial application is submitted, there are a variety of in-person, in-depth interviews for instance if you're a family

with the husband and the wife.

Then there are security checks. There are background checks. And then, of course, they have to do a variety of medical examinations. And each of

those examinations, like the security clearance, has a certain amount of time, after which it all has to be done again.

For refugees, you're talking about usually 18 months to two years, but often times, and I've

spoken to many Iraqis who have had an application pending for five, six, seven years. And many of them are still waiting - Krsitie.

[08:05:24] ANDERSON: Ben Wedeman live for us from Irbil, Iraq. Thank you, Ben.

Now, our next story started just outside Irbil, Iraq, where Ben Wedeman is reporting from. It involves a young boy severely burned at a refugee camp

on his first birthday.

Now, he has been in the United States ever since receiving critical treatment, except now with

President Trump's travel ban, his parents can't be by his side.

Dr. Sanjay Gupta reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SANJAY GUPTA, CNN'S CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Last week I traveled to Michigan to meet this sweet 2-year-old boy, Dilbreen. A year ago, Dilbreen

was living in this refugee camp in northern Iraq when a fire sparked by a heater left him permanently disfigured.

Dili and his parents were granted medical visas to come to the United States for care at Shriner's hospital for Children in Boston. In her third

trimester of pregnancy, though, Dili's mom, Flosa stayed behind. When it was time for her to give birth, Dili's dad, Ajeel returned to Iraq leaving

his son in the kind care of Adlay Kejjan, a kind volunteer whom he had just met.

GUPTA: Do you have any idea how many procedures they say he will need still?

ADLAY KEJJAN, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, YAZIDI AMERICAN WOMEN ORGANIZATION: I'm not sure. They say up to a year as he is growing they need to kind of

loosen up the scar tissue.

GUPTA: So he needs to, he needs to get this care.

KEJJAN: Yes. So the eye, this one is the main concern.

GUPTA: In December, when Dili's new baby brother was old enough to travel, they applied for his visa so the family could reunite with Dili. The

application was denied. Now when Ajeel and Flosa appealed that decision in January, the baby's visa was denied again. And this time their visas were

revoked because they were, quote, "unable to establish clearly that their stay in the United States would be temporary."

As a parent, it's hard to imagine not being able to get to your child when they need you the most.

Sunday morning in Iraq, Dili's parents are on their way back to the U.S. consulate in Erbil. Ajeel asked closely if she think they'll get their visa

this time.

"I'm hopeful. God willing," she says.

Today, the United States not only has a new president but also a new executive order. A 90-day travel ban that bars Iraqi citizens from entering

the United States.

"It's hard not knowing if they're going to give us a visa or not," Ajeel says. "We're not going for a vacation. We're going to do the surgery on our

child and return back home."

And despite the temporary stay to this travel ban, Ajeel is turned away at the door, denied entry into the consulate, unable to plead his family's

case. He is given no explanation, all part of the chaos and confusion surrounding this executive order.

"We lost our homes and our property," he says. "But the most important thing is to make sure our boy is healthy."

Sr. Shirzad Khaleel, medical coordinator for the U.K. charity Road to Peace which arranged Dili's care in the United States has a message for American

authorities.

SHIRZAD KHALEEL, MEDICAL COORDINATOR, ROAD TO PEACE (through translator): We hope you guys do the right thing for the sake of humanity, he says. All

of these children are victims of ISIS.

GUPTA: Asked to deliver a message directly to their son, Ajeel says, "I am hopeful we will come soon. Finish up all of your operations. And after that

we will return to Iraq. We love you."

Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN reporting.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LU STOUT: One of many, many families caught up in the confusion and chaos of the travel ban and often at a very critical and delicate time.

It has been 11 days since President Trump signed the controversial travel ban. On January 27, his executive order blocked people from seven Muslim-

majority countries from entering the U.S. for 90 days. He ordered the suspension of the U.S. refugee program for 120 days and definitely stopped

Syrian refugees from entering the U.S.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CROWD: Refugees are welcome here. Refugees are welcome here.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LU STOUT: And the following day, protests erupted across the U.S. and in some cities abroad, many angry over what they see as a ban on Muslims.

And on Monday, Sally Yates, the acting attorney general told Justice Department lawyers not

to defend the ban and then President Trump fired her.

Then on Friday a federal judge temporarily suspended the order nationwide. The government moved to get it reinstated but a federal appeals court

denied the request.

Both sides were asked to file legal briefs which brings us to today's oral arguments. But many think the case will end up with the U.S. supreme

court.

This is a fast-moving story. And for the latest developments and additional background, you can go to CNN.com.

Now, let's turn to Ukraine and in a rare act of unity, Moscow and Berlin are both calling for an

end to the flare up in violence there. Dozens have been killed in the past week as a fragile ceasefire eruprted into armed conflict between pro-

Russian separatists and Ukrainian army.

In a phone call on Tuesday, German Chancellor Angela Merkel urged Russian President Vladimir Putin to use his influence with separatists to restore

peace. Now, meanwhile, U.S. President Trump seems less convinced about Russia's influence in Eastern Ukraine.

Now, in an interview with Fox News, Bill O'Reilly, in fact, Mr. Trump cast doubt on whether

Moscow has any control over the pro-Russian separatists. Take a listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BILL O'REILLY, FOX NEWS: Within 24 hours of you on the phone with the Russian leader,

the pro-Russian forces step up the violence in Ukraine.

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Yeah.

O'REILLY: Did you take that as an insult?

TRUMP: No, I didn't, because we don't really know what that is, their pro forces. We don't know, are they uncontrollable? Are they uncontrolled?

That happens also. We're going to find out. I would be surprised, but we'll see.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LU STOUT: And in that same interview on Fox, Bill O'Reilly called Russian President Vladimir Putin, quote, a killer, prompting an angry response from

the Kremlin.

Now, CNN's Ivan Watson has more on this story live from Moscow for us. And Ivan, Bill O'Reilly has dismissed Russia's call to get an apology from him,

so how does the Kremlin respond to that?

IVAN WATSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, there's been an interesting kind of exchange going on via journalists between the Fox News

anchor Bill O'Reilly and the Kremlin. The latest iteration of it, Kristie, is that Bill O'Reilly said, hey, you can expect an apology from me for my

comments in 2023. And the Kremlin spokesman said, OK, I'll mark my calendar and we will be waiting in 2023 for that apology.

But what's notable here is that the same interview has attracted very different criticism on

different sides of the world. In the U.S., some senior members of Donald Trump's Republican

Party have criticized his answers to that killer allegation, whereas here in Russia, it's Bill O'Reilly who's coming under fire for his accusations.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

WATSON: The Kremlin wants an apology after president Donald Trump's latest interview.

O'REILLY: He's a killer, though. Putin's a killer.

TRUMP: There's a lot of killers. We've got a lot of killers. What, you think our country is so innocent?

WATSON: Kremlin spokesman calling Fox News anchorman Bill O'Reilly's words unacceptable and offensive, but refusing to comment on Trump's defense of

the Russian president.

The new U.S. Commander-in-Chief is enjoying a bit of a honeymoon in Russia. Powerful long-time critics of the U.S. literally toasted Trump's election

victory. Russian media tends to view Trump as a sympathetic figure.

A recent poll by the La Vada (ph) shows the majority of Russians surveyed, some 46 percent,

expect U.S./Russian relations will improve under the Trump administration. But some observers are trying to temper expectations.

SERGEY BRIKEV, AUTHOR, RUSSIA 24: People who expected a pro-Russian president of the United States called Donald Trump, were in my view are

mistaken.

WATSON: Russian state TV Sergey Brikev argues it's too early for a breakthrough between Moscow and Washington.

BRIKEV: To use a magical term, we're still at the check-up stage. We'll see what happens next,

what kind of diseases will emerge and what kinds of medicine both sides should be taking.

WATSON: In his first phone call with Putin since assuming the presidency, Trump talked

about repairing ties between the two countries and cooperating in the fight against terrorism.

But just days later, his new ambassador to the UN condemned Russia's invasion and

annexation of Crimea from Ukraine.

A nationalist Russian lawmaker Monday tweeted the U.S. congress, NATO, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Kiev and others are trying to fit Trump

into a hard corset of Obama's anti-Russia politics, tie his arms and legs."

A top Russian tabloid now engaging in reverse Kremlinology trying to guess which members of Team Trump will be friends or foes of Russia.

The Kremlin cautiously waiting to see whether Trump can bring about a thaw in this long and

complicated relationship.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WATSON: Now, Kristie, President Trump seems to be very clearly bristling at criticism, accusations that he has become some sort of a Kremlin

apologist because in the last hour, yes, there's been another tweet from the American president. In this case he wrote, quote, I don't know Putin,

have no deals in Russia and the haters are going crazy, yet Obama can make a deal with Iran, number one in terror, no problem.

But this brings us to an interesting divergence between the Trump administration and Moscow because Trump has gone out and called Iran a

state sponsor of terror and in response to that accusation, the Kremlin has publicly disagreed with the American president, underscoring the strong

relationship that Russia has with Iran. They are military allies against insurgents, against the armed opposition in Syria, Russian war planes have

even carried out airstrikes from an Iranian airbase as part of that campaign and Russia has come out making it clear that it wants to continue

cooperating with Iran, though they are also offering to basically compartmentalize their potential future cooperation with the U.S. saying,

hey we can disagree in some areas, but we should be able to work together in other areas, notably what Trump has repeatedly talked about: possible

cooperation in the war on terror - Kristie.

[08:16:15] LU STOUT: When it involves compartmentalization it is a complicated relationship indeed. Ivan Watson reporting live for us. Thank

you.

Now, the U.S. recently reaffirmed its commitment to the U.S./Japan alliance, and now Beijing may be trying to send a message.

Now, Chinese coast guard ships sailed near Japanese-controlled Islands in the East China Sea on Monday. Now, Beijing has long claimed that the

chain, which it calls the Diaoyu Islands, Japanes calls them the Senkakus.

Now, last week, U.S. Secretary of Defense James Mattis made clear that Washington would defend Japan and its disputed islands.

Now, some experts say the timing of this is a subtle signal by Beijing to both Washington and

Tokyo. Now, David McKenzie joins us now from Beijing with more on the story. Joins us live. And David, first, let's talk about the incident

itself. What happened?

DAVID MCKENZIE, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, the incident itself has been confirmed by both the Japanese and the Chinese, Kristie, and they

say that the Chinese sent three coast guard vessels. And here's a photograph supplied by the

Japanese of the vessels in question - I should say they are undated photographs - of these Coast Guard vessels that were in those territory,

the disputed territory of the Diaoyu, or Senkaku Islands, in the East China Sea.

Now, the Chinese said the Chinese had those vessels stray into, most likely on purpose, Japanese waters for several hours in one case and certainly it

would be a signal from the Chinese, which they -- a signal they send off pretty frequently that they are trying to stake their claim on these

disputed after the strong commitments from the U.S., from Donald Trump's administration of their

alliance with Japan - Kristie.

LUS TOUT: So we have China sailing near disputed islands in the East China Sea. How unusual is it for the Chinese to do this?

MCKENZIE: Well, they did it earlier this year, in fact. And by our count, they did it more than 30 times last year, 2016, sending coast guard ships.

They also send their military aircraft into that region over the disputed area. So this is not entirely unusual. But I think the timing, as you

suggest, is important. And just on Monday the Japanese ministry of foreign affairs

said they had a discussion between Rex Tillerson, the new secretary of state in the U.S., with his counterpart. Their readout of that statement,

again, of that phone call again suggests that the U.S. is standing by its long-term commitments.

They say, that Secretary of State Tillerson said, the United States will be against any unilateral

action made to damage the Japanese administration of the islands. So certainly the U.S. and Japan

are standing by their long-term alliance and their treaty, but the Chinese are also standing by theirs, that these islands have historically from

their perspective been Chinese. And as you remember, Kristie, there have been many flare-ups over recent years. And the worry is, say experts, both

at sea and also in the air should there be some kind of accident or some kind of collision that really could ratchet up the tension between Japan

and China and definitely could bring the U.S. into the fray.

So as this Trump administration gets more into office, this could be one area in the East China Sea that they could see some kind of combustible

situation - Kristie.

LU STOUT: Yeah, a lot of concern out there about this escalating further. David McKenzie, reporting live from Beijing for us. Thank you, David.

You're watching News Stream. And still to come on the program, the controversial Israeli law that Palestinians believe is putting the two-

state solution in jeopardy.

Plus, Iran's supreme leader targets U.S. President Donald Trump as tensions rise between

the two countries.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[08:22:25] LU STOUT: Coming to you live from Hong Kong, welcome back. You're watching News Stream.

Now, Iran's supreme leader says he wants to thank President Trump for showing what he calls the true face of the U.S. Ayatollah Ali Khamanei was

quoted by semi-official Iranian news agency. He says the U.S. can no longer claim the moral high ground when it comes to human rights. Iran and the

Trump administration have squared off recently, first over the travel ban and then over a missile test in

Iran.

Now, for more on the story, let's bring in Nic Robertson from CNN London. And Nic, after Donald Trump, his administration put Iran on notice, Iran's

supreme leader has dismissed that warning. Tell us how.

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, what he is saying here is that over the past few weeks, Donald Trump has done what Iran has

been trying to show for decades, is the true face, as you said, of the U.S. administration and the

depth of the corruption within the U.S. government.

What we're seeing play out, particularly over the past week and a half, is a war of words and a war of actions. We saw at the beginning of the

weekend, the United States put sanctions in place on Iranian individuals and companies connected with ballistic missile systems that Iran had tested

the week before. Iran responded immediately by saying that they would do the same, putting sanctions on

individuals and companies, though over the weekend Iran had some air force drills testing missile capabilities, testing radar capabilities.

And it was designed to send a message to the United States that while Iran has been put on notice and nothing has been removed from the table by the

White House, that Iran is ready.

So what we're seeing here is a continuation of the ratcheting up of the rhetoric of trading rhetorical blows, but of course the core of all of this

that everyone has been watching and the thing that hasn't changed is that that this new White House administration hasn't

backed off on the Iran nuclear agreement. This has been in place now over a year and a half and they haven't backed away on that.

However, what we're seeing here is in a way replicated by many countries. We were talking before the break there about China and those coast guard

vessels. In a way, this White House administration is being tested by countries, you know, that this administration considers are adversaries.

LU STOUT: And it is interesting, isn't it, because it's now a few weeks into the Trump presidency and now not just Iran, not just China, the world

has a good sense of President Trump and his policies.

Do you think pretty soon we're going to see and hear more such statements like what we heard

from Iran's supreme leader, more calls to action from world leaders?

[08:25:15] ROBERTSON: You know, I think we see that going around the world already. Last night in the House of Commons in Britain, the speaker John

Bercow who said that he couldn't support President Trump on his state visit to Britain addressing both houses of parliament in the Westminster

Hall, a very hallowed chamber. President Obama is the first American president to do that.

So that is reflective of the political temperature, if you will, in Britain towards President Trump. Bercow talked about the values of the houses of

parliament on the issues of racism and sexism and these things.

So, you know, we're already seeing that message reflected. You've seen it on the streets of

Britain about the travel restrictions that the United States has put in place or have been trying to put in place. And we see it, perhaps, in

Israel where we've seen over the past few days an increase in commitment to expanding existing settlements. All of these are a reaction

to President Trump's administration. And they quite complicate the picture for him in quite a few weeks.

LU STOUT: Nic Robertson reporting live for us. Many thanks indeed for that.

As Nic just mentioned there about what's happening in Israel, the Israeli parliament has passed a controversial law legalizing about 3,000 settlers'

homes built on private Palestinian land in the West Bank. Now, Palestinian officials are calling it a land grab. A legal challenge is widely

expected. And the law was also criticized within Israel's Knesset by opposition parties.

CNN's Ian Lee is following this story. He joins us live from Jerusalem. And Ian, it's interesting, because this vote for more outposts took place

after Israeli officials closed that outpost in Amona. Why is this happening? And as Nic Robertson suggested just a moment ago, is it a

reaction to Donald Trump?

IAN LEE, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, this law that was passed, Kristie, was in reaction to that Amona outpost. Originally the high court

said it had to go. And so the Knesset, Israel's parliament, tried to create a law to save it. It didn't happen. So that Amona outpost kind of

became the sacrificial lamb so dozens of other outposts across the West Bank that are home to thousands of Israeli settlers could be legalized, at

least in the eyes of the Israeli government.

Now, we have seen a sharp increase in the number of settlements that have been announced, housing units, rather, that have been announced in the West

Bank and east Jerusalem since Donald Trump took office. But this particular law is quite controversial.

And we heard from opposition members last night saying that it could make Israeli politicians as well as army officials more vulnerable to the

international criminal courts because the international community sees all settlements and outposts as illegal. And even last December, a UN Security

Council resolution passed that said they had no legal validity.

This law, though, isn't likely to hold up as the high court is expected to strike it down based on the fact that Israel's Knesset doesn't have the

right to legislate over land that is not part of Israel, Kristie.

LU STOUT: And Palestinian leaders, they were quick to criticize the vote. What more are they saying?

LEE: That's right. And mainly because this law just chips away at the future Palestinian state. And up to now, that has been the stated goal of

the international community is to have a two-state solution. And we heard from Saeb Erekat who is the secretary-general of the PLO's executive

committee. He said all Israeli settlements in occupied Palestine are illegal and a war crime regardless of any law passed by the Israeli

parliament or any decision taken by any Israeli judge.

The Israeli settlement enterprise negates peace and the possibility of the two-state solution. And that has been a real concern here is what does a

viable Palestinian state look like after this is done, and especially with this increase in the announcements of settlement units that are being built

in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.

So there is a real fear not only with the Palestinians but the United Nations that a two-state solution could be in jeopardy.

LU STOUT: Ian Lee reporting, thank you.

Yesterday on News Stream, we discussed a royal commission report revealing 7 percent of

Australian priests have been accused of abusing children between 1950 and 2015. And during an interview with Francis Sullivan, a Catholic church

official and the CEO of the Truth, Justice and Healing Council, we inadvertently ran a still image of Cardinal George Pell. The cardinal has

been testifying on the sexual abuse of children by other priests in Australia, but he has not charged in connection with abuse allegations.

Now, after the break, a race against time to block one of Donald Trump's most controversial cabinet picks. We'll take you live to Capitol Hill for

the latest on the all-night senate hearing to stop Betsy DeVos.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(HEADLINES)

[08:33:50] LU SOUT: In Washington, Democrats have taken over the Senate floor in a last-ditch attempt to block Donald Trump's choice for education

secretary.

Now, two Republicans have already indicated they will vote against the controversial billionaire, Betsy DeVos. Just one more dissenting vote is

needed to block her confirmation.

We're just hours away from DeVos' confirmation vote. It looks like this decision could go down to the wire. And CNN's Sunlen Serfaty is live for

us on Capitol Hill. She joins us now. And Sunlen, are there enough votes to bring the nomination down?

SUNLEN SERFATY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: At this point, Kristie, it does not look likely. What we're looking at a situation where Democrats are going

to fall short of getting the support they need to sink her nomination. But it's going to be razor close. Most likely we will see a 50-50 tie that

senators will be split right down the middle, that's because two Republican senators have broken ranks in the last week and are now voting with the

Democrats. So that what this will prompt is Vice President Mike Pence coming up here on Capitol Hill in his capacity as the president of the

senate and he will cast the tie-breaking vote in favor of Betsy DeVos.

So most likely by midday today here in east coast time we will see Betsy DeVos confirmed as the next education secretary.

[08:35:07] LU STOUT: OK. So this is just one battle. It looks like they're not going to win this one for the Democrats after a long night, but

there is a far bigger battle for the party here.

At the end of the day, Sunlen, how much power do Democrats have over Republicans?

SERFATY: They don't have a lot and that's why we're seeing these changes on Capitol Hill in the last few months because Democrats up here are facing

a new reality. Republicans control the Senate, Republicans control the House and you have a new Republican president in the White House.

So that's why we're seeing in many of these confirmation hearings some delay tactics by the Democrats. They very well know that they can't stop

most, if not all of Donald Trump's nominees for the cabinet, so what they have been trying to do is slow down the process to make a political point,

to make sure that they're dragging their feet a little bit to show frankly their base out in America that they're trying to work to resist parts of

Donald Trump's new administration.

But certainly this is going to be a dynamic that persists on Capitol Hill, Kristie, for many months, many years ahead.

LU STOUT: So politics to make a point. Interesting dynamic. Sunlen Serfaty reporting for us. Thank you, Sunlen.

Now the leader of al Qaeda in the Arabian peninsula has released a message taunting President Trump. Now, a senior U.S. military official says Qasim

al-Reemi (ph) was the target of a U.S. raid in Yemen just over a week ago, but he survived.

And in an audio message, al-Reemi (ph) calls President Trump, quote, the new fool of the White House. And he refers to the raid as a slap in the

face for the U.S. leader.

Now, U.C. Central Command has disputed al-Reemi (ph) was the target of the raid. And the Pentagon says it killed 14 al Qaeda fighters.

A Navy SEAL was also killed as were several civilians.

Now, former French President Nichololas Sarkozy will face trial accused of campaign fraud. The charges are linked to his failed presidential bid in

2012. And Mr. Sarkozy's lawyer tells CNN he will be tried on charges of illegal financing of an election campaign and raising more funds than

allowed. Sarkozy tried to launch a political comeback last year, but was knocked out in the first

round of the French Republican Party primaries.

You're watching News Stream. And still ahead, they are usually as entertaining as the game itself, but some of this year's Super Bowl ads

took a far more serious tone.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LU STOUT: Now, the game is over, the champion crowned, but people are still talking about those Super Bowl ads.

Now, some took a very different tone this year, opting for politics over humor. Here's Brian Todd.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): On their arduous journey north, a young girl and her mother brave the rain, the desert, coyotes. They

arrive at America's border to find an imposing wall. Undeterred, they push it open. At the very end, a message, "The will to succeed is always welcome

here."

This three and a half minute ad is from 84 Lumber and was one of several Super Bowl commercials that took on a political tone and seemed to

challenge President Trump.

NAT IVES, EXECUTIVE EDITOR, ADVERTISING AGE: We've never seen anything this confrontational. Politics has always seeped into the Super Bowl, but never

before have ads so specifically targeted a specific policy, immigration, and a specific president sworn in a couple of weeks ago.

[08:40:07] TODD (voice-over): The 84 Lumber ad was so controversial, at least to Fox and the NFL, that those two entities allowed only part of the

ad to air on T.V.

IVES: The 90 seconds that they were enabled to show on T.V. by Fox stopped in the middle of journey of a mother and her daughter trying to cross the

border in the United States. You had to go online to get the end of the story. But for those who did, you found a very strong anti-border wall

message.

TODD (voice-over): Fox didn't respond to our request for comment. The most controversial Super Bowl ads all seemed to target President Trump's travel

ban.

There was Airbnb's spot, set to music, showing several people of different backgrounds, with the message, "The world is more beautiful the more you

accept."

Anheuser-Busch ran an ad depicting its co-founder immigrating to America in the 1800s to a hostile reception.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You're not wanted here. Go back home.

TODD (voice-over): The company said this commercial was not a political statement. As protest messages, one analyst says, these ads may not work as

well as other tactics companies are trying.

ERIC DEZENHALL, CO-FOUNDER, DEZENHALL RESOURCES: If these companies want to really show muscle, it will happen in the political and legal sphere, not

through soft focus T.V. advertising.

TODD (voice-over): Tech giants, Apple, Facebook, Google, and 90-plus other companies are taking that legal route. They filed a court motion, declaring

that President Trump's executive order on immigration violates the constitution.

Eric Dezenhall, a strategic communications specialist who deals with large corporations, says legal filings and high-profile ads are the first steps

some companies are taking to brushback on a president they're wary of.

DEZENHALL: Now, what you're seeing is corporations believing that one individual has the power to destroy them, largely because if the President

of the United States tweets against you, that can send your stock price down by billions of dollars.

TODD: In fact, several supporters of President Trump quickly called for a boycott of some of the companies which took out those provocative ads in

the Super Bowl, including Anheuser-Busch, AirBnB and 84 Lumber. Ironically that company's owner says she voted for President Trump.

Brian Todd, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LU STOUT: Now it is the end of Lunar New Year's celebrations here in Asia, but the party continues with one more dance, a lion dance through many

offices, including our own, offering a blessing for a smooth year ahead.

(MUSIC)

LU STOUT: It's a tradition that dates back centuries. And I can feed the lion with lettuce of Xion Tsai (ph), which sounds like the words making

money in Chinese. But the lion usually spits it back out at you. So, it's safer to give it this, a red envelope stuffed with cash.

And that is News Stream. I'm Kristie Lu Stout. World Sport is next.

END