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Defiant and Divisive, Trump Set To Honor Pittsburgh Victims; China Eases Ban Of Tiger And Rhino Products; Leicester City F.C. Opens Book Of Condolence For Owner; Kanye West Is "Pumkinized" For Halloween; Trump's Rhetoric Scrutinized; Lion Air Crash Aftermath; German Prime Minister Angela Merkel Bows Out; New Brazilian President's Agenda. Aired 2-3a ET
Aired October 30, 2018 - 02:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): The man accused of the worst attack on America's Jewish community faces a judge as we learn more about his online rage and anti-Semitism.
Nearly 200 people on board a Lion Air jet are feared dead after the newest and most advanced Boeing 737 crashed just minutes after takeoff from Indonesia's capital.
And the long goodbye for Angela Merkel, how the German chancellor plans to navigate an orderly exit from power.
Hello and welcome to our viewers joining us from all around the world. I'm Rosemary Church and this is CNN NEWSROOM.
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CHURCH: They had gathered together to pray, to reflect on their faith, only to be gunned down in a place they thought they were safe. In the coming hours, the first funerals will be held for some of the 11 men and women killed in Saturday's massacre at the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh.
President Trump and the first lady will be there Tuesday to pay their respects. The city's mayor suggested they delay their visit while the funerals were underway to keep the focus on the victims.
But the synagogue's rabbi said the president is welcome to come. Meanwhile, the suspected gunman could face the death penalty. We get the latest now from CNN's Brian Todd.
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BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Entering court in a wheelchair, wearing a blue shirt, handcuffed, the accused synagogue shooter, Robert Bowers, who was shot by police but is now out of the hospital, appeared before a federal judge in Pittsburgh. He's now behind bars.
Prosecutors say Bowers is a flight risk and a danger to the community.
SCOTT BRADY, U.S. ATTORNEY FOR WESTERN DISTRICT OF PENNSYLVANIA: We will have the opportunity to present evidence demonstrating that Robert Bowers murdered 11 people who were exercising their religious beliefs and that he shot or injured six others, including four of whom were police officers responding to the shooting.
TODD (voice-over): Bowers faces 29 federal charges, some of them punishable by death.
BRADY: Rest assured, we have a team of prosecutors working hard to ensure that justice is done.
TODD (voice-over): Authorities say the 46-year-old Bowers opened fire inside the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh Saturday during Shabbat services using an AR-15 semiautomatic rifle and three Glock handguns.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Seven-one, seven-one, contact, contact, shots fired, shots fired.
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TODD (voice-over): Just minutes before storming the building Bowers posted a social media message, saying, quote, "I can't sit by and watch my people get slaughtered. Screw your optics, I'm going in."
He posted that message on Gab, a social media platform which bills itself as a free speech alternative to Twitter and Facebook, a platform established in 2016 that has been closely tracked by anti- hate groups like the Southern Poverty Law Center.
RICHARD COHEN, SOUTHERN POVERTY LAW CENTER: Gab is a cesspool of hate, some of the ugliest stuff out there on the Web. And it's because Gab is kind of the wild, wild west, lots of anti-Semites, lots of racists, lots of very hardened bigots have flocked to it.
TODD (voice-over): Gab denies supporting violence and says it contacted the FBI in the wake of the shooting.
Meanwhile, a new and terrifying account from inside the synagogue during the massacre. Rabbi Jeffery Myers, seen here removing the torah from the synagogue, says shortly after the shooting began, he instructed people in his sanctuary to get down on the floor and hide between the solid oak pews. He said he was able to help some people in the front of the sanctuary get to exits or closets. But the people hiding in the back of the sanctuary, he says, were exposed.
JEFFREY MYERS, TREE OF LIFE SYNAGOGUE RABBI: I turned back to see if I could help the remaining eight people in the back of my congregation. At that time, I could hear the gunfire getting louder. It was no longer safe for me to be there and I had to leave them.
One of the eight was shot and she's survived her wounds. The others of my congregants were gunned down in my sanctuary. There's nothing I could do.
TODD: Rabbi Myers said Trump, who plans to go to Pittsburgh, on Tuesday, is always welcome there. But the president's visit has caused a split among leaders of the Tree of Life Synagogue, a former president of that synagogue, Lynette Lederman, says the president is not welcome in Pittsburgh. She calls him a purveyor of hate speech, which White House press secretary Sarah Sanders has vehemently denied -- Brian Todd, CNN. Washington.
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CHURCH: The funerals --
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CHURCH: -- for the synagogue victims are expected to continue through Friday. They were all part of a close-knit community of Squirrel Hill in Pittsburgh. Among them, brothers Cecil and David Rosenthal will be laid to rest on Tuesday. They often sat in back of the synagogue and greeted people as they entered the temple to worship. A close friend said the brothers brought joy to others.
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STEPHEN NEUSTEIN, SYNAGOGUE WORSHIPER: Cecil and David were special, especially Cecil, who was the more gregarious of the two. And whenever I would see him, which was often because he would come to synagogues and places where we would be together, Cecil always had a smile, a greeting and a very pleasant conversation.
Cecil always brought a smile and a good feeling to your day. He would often ask and he would tell me that he was coming to the next sports lunch.
Would I be there?
I'm not sure if he remembered that I was the chair. And this -- and Cecil was a very gentle, a kind soul. And his brother and he were devoted to each other. And they were together that morning because of that devotion.
And I understand even that David went back into the room to try to be and get, bring his brother to safety, unfortunately, unsuccessfully. And the two of them together were always special people.
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CHURCH: The heartache over the synagogue massacre is reverberating around the world. Many gathered in Jerusalem to honor those who died and to show solidarity. More now from CNN's Owen Liebermann.
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OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Thousands of miles separate the synagogue from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, but the prayers and the pain are one and the same.
The Mourners' Kaddish recited as the entire community grieves.
ISAAC HERZOG, JEWISH AGENCY CHAIRMAN: Together we will combat evil and hatred as we've done in the past. We've seen tragedies but here we, of course, trust the authorities in the United States will be firm and much more aware of the possibility of loss of life and extreme violence against Jews than before.
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LIEBERMANN (voice-over): In Jerusalem Sunday night, dozens came out for a vigil in Zion Square, some sang together, others came for the comfort and company of the Jewish community.
Not far away, the walls of the Old City lit up with the Israeli and American flags and a simple message, "We are with you, Pittsburgh."
AVIV HERZLICH, TOUR GUIDE: Now it seems that, all over the world, Jews are not so safe, apparently also in America.
LIEBERMANN (voice-over): Tel Aviv's city hall displayed the flags of the U.S. and Israel showing solidarity between the two countries divided by distance, united by community.
REUVEN RIVLIN, ISRAELI PRESIDENT: The people of Israel and the entire Jewish people stands with you. In your time of pain, in your time of loss, we are with you.
LIEBERMANN (voice-over): Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu echoing his message, telling Pittsburgh the Jewish state mourns with them.
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LIEBERMANN (voice-over): There are no songs in Judaism meant for a time like this, so with songs of mercy and healing.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Rose Mellinger --
LIEBERMANN (voice-over): Faces of the victims looked out from the center podium, the synagogue full of mourners looked back, trying to understand how it came to this -- Oren Liebermann, CNN, Jerusalem.
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CHURCH: The man accused of sending 14 pipe bombs in the mail to top Democrats, Trump critics and CNN was in court Monday in Florida. Cesar Sayoc faces five federal charges and could get up to 48 years in prison if he's convicted. His attorneys tell CNN he will plead not guilty. Law enforcement officials meantime tell CNN that Sayoc had a list of more than 100 people he planned to target. Those people are being warned to stay vigilant. This comes as another
suspicious package was discovered. This one here in Atlanta. It was addressed to CNN's Atlanta headquarters and was intercepted at an offsite screening facility. Authorities believe it was also sent by Sayoc.
The recent hate crimes have focused attention on the impact of the president's fiery rhetoric. But the White House is not backing down. Jim Acosta --
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CHURCH: -- reports the administration is putting the blame on the media.
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JIM ACOSTA, CNN SR. WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): With his own incendiary rhetoric under a microscope, President Trump will visit Pittsburgh Tuesday and come face-to-face with a community that is divided over his mere presence. After the mass shooting at the Tree of Life synagogue.
SARAH SANDERS, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: The American people reject hatred, bigotry, prejudice and violence.
ACOSTA: White House press secretary Sarah Sanders angrily pushed back on any notion that the president's tendency to rip into his adversaries had anything to do with the carnage in Pittsburgh or the pipe bomb sent to Democratic politicians and CNN over the last week. The latest package to CNN discovered today.
SANDERS: The very first thing that the president did was condemn the attacks, both in Pittsburgh and in the pipe bombs. The very first thing the media did was blame the president and make him responsible for these ridiculous acts.
ACOSTA: That's not true. CNN was covering the details of the investigation into the pipe bombs when we were forced to evacuate our news room after one of the bombs was delivered to our offices.
But the president is hardly toning down his act, once again tearing into the caravan of migrants heading to the border, tweeting, "This is an invasion of our country and our military is waiting for you."
Gunman Robert Bowers had also seized on the caravan before he shot up a synagogue, writing in a social media post, "I have noticed a change in people saying 'illegals' that now say 'invaders.' I like this. The Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society likes to bring in invaders that kill our people."
[17:10:02] MARK HETFIELD, PRESIDENT AND CEO, HEBREW IMMIGRANT AID SOCIETY: There's no question that the toxic environment that we're now in of hate speech has not been helped by the president's words. Absolutely not. About the caravan, about refugees, about Muslims. This has to come to an end. ACOSTA: The president has also gone back to blaming the media, tweeting, "The fake news media, the true enemy of the people, must stop the open and obvious hostility and report the news accurately and fairly. That will do much to put out the flame."
But the White House declined to say which outlets it deems to be the enemy.
(on camera): Can you state for the record which outlets that you and the president regard as the enemy of the people?
SANDERS: I'm not going to walk through a list. But I think those individuals probably know who they are.
ACOSTA: Would that include my outlet, which received a bomb last week?
SANDERS: I don't think it's necessarily specific to a general -- broad generalization of a full outlet. At times I think there's individuals that the president would be referencing.
ACOSTA (voice-over): Even after Sanders defended the president's use of the terms "enemy of the people" and "fake news," she falsely stated Mr. Trump's margin in the 2016 election.
SANDERS: And he got elected by an overwhelming majority of 63 million Americans, who came out and supported him and wanted to see his policies enacted.
ACOSTA: But here is a reality check. The president lost the popular vote in 2016 by 3 million votes.
And as for the media blaming the president for Pittsburgh and the pipe bombs, the press has reported on the suspects in both cases. But news outlets have also noted the growing concern coming from all sides of the political spectrum that the president's rhetoric has gotten out of hand, creating a climate where, potentially, violence can happen -- Jim Acosta, CNN, the White House.
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CHURCH: The numbers on hate crimes in the U.S. paint a very disturbing picture, according to the Anti-Defamation League. There has been a sharp increase in anti-Semitic incidents since 2016.
Later this hour, we will hear from an expert on the factors contributing to that spike.
At this hour, search crews are combing the waters of Jakarta, hoping to find what is left of a Lion Air flight that crashed Monday. Crews have recovered parts of the jet and several bodies.
However, they have not located the fuselage, all of the 189 people who were on board or the plane's flight recorders. The plane had only been in the air 13 minutes before contact was lost. Before the Boeing 737 crashed, the plane reportedly made erratic
altitude changes and we asked former aviation inspector Peter Soucie what that could mean.
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PETER SOUCIE, FORMER AVIATION INSPECTOR: What's most peculiar to me is the fact that they didn't declare an emergency. They just simply said we're going back, which of course gives them priority anyway. They don't have to declare an emergency to get priority back into the airport.
But when I look at the track of the aircraft after that, the aircraft made a very steep dive after that, which is not typical of what they would have done. They would have maintained altitude and made that turn and come back to it. So they made a steep dive. The increase in airspeed was about 15-20 knots as well.
So something happened to lose control of that aircraft or something that lost power or something that made that aircraft go down. So there's still way early to determine what the cause was. But there are some peculiarities for sure.
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CHURCH: Meanwhile, the families of those on board have gathered at Jakarta's airport --
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CHURCH: -- hoping for some answers. CNN's Ivan Watson reports from Jakarta.
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IVAN WATSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): On the surface of the Java Sea, pieces of what is left of Lion Air Flight 610, rescuers and divers now searching around the clock for the flight data recorder or black box and fuselage of the doomed plane.
The aircraft crashed Monday morning just minutes after takeoff with 189 passengers and crew on board. Indonesian authorities say they have little hope of finding any survivors.
BAMBANG SURYO AJI, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL SEARCH AND RESCUE AGENCY OF INDONESIA (through translator): My prediction is no one survived because we only managed to retrieve body parts that are incomplete.
WATSON (voice-over): Authorities set up a crisis center at the Indonesian capital's main airport, where friends and families conduct an agonizing vigil, waiting for news of missing loved ones.
KESHIA AURELIA, PASSENGER'S DAUGHTER: Quite a lot of love but in there, when we were waiting for the others, like all the families are crying, too, and I think like I'm not the only one suffering. And so I have to be strong. WATSON (voice-over): Brave words from 14-year-old Keshia Aurelia, whose mother was on board Flight 610.
AURELIA: My mother was a really kind person. And I don't understand why but maybe God has his own way.
WATSON (voice-over): It was supposed to be a routine domestic flight of about an hour from Jakarta to Pangkal Pinang. But 13 minutes after takeoff, the captain requested to return to the airport. Moments later, the brand new Boeing 737 disappeared from radar.
Technical issues with the plane were reported the night before. But the airline's CEO said engineers repaired the problem and determined the plane was ready to fly. Indonesia's president visited relatives of passengers and ordered an investigation into the mystery of why a brand new plane tumbled out of the sky so shortly after liftoff -- Ivan Watson, CNN, Jakarta.
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CHURCH: We'll take a very short break here. But still to come, the German chancellor says it is time for a new chapter. We will look at what is behind Angela Merkel's decision to step aside in the next election.
In Brazil, a huge political shift on the horizon. Voters have picked a far right firebrand for the presidency.
What issues will he take up first?
We'll look at that when we come back.
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CHURCH: Welcome back, everyone.
In politics, Germany's immigration crisis may have been part of what pushed Europe's most powerful woman to announce she's stepping down. The chancellor says she won't stand again after her term ends in 2021. Fred Pleitgen reports from Berlin.
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FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice- over): It was the announcement that spelled the beginning of the end for the German chancellor.
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ANGELA MERKEL, GERMAN CHANCELLOR (through translator): This fourth term is my last term as chancellor of the federal republic of Germany. In the next Bundestag election in 2021, I will not run again as chancellor. I will not run for the German Bundestag anymore and I will not take any other political positions.
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PLEITGEN: After 13 years, as Chancellor Angela Merkel saying she wants to begin a new chapter. Her decision a sign of a weakened position in her party. A party that suffered poor results in the regional election this weekend.
Despite recent struggles over her long career, Angela Merkel became arguably the world's most powerful woman. She adopted several nicknames along the way, including "Mutti" or Mama Merkel. No matter what she's been called, though, Angela Merkel has proven to be a force to be reckoned with.
She grew up in east Germany under its communist regime, studying to be a scientist. But after the Berlin Wall fell in 1989, she threw herself into the world of politics working to unify Germany after the Cold War.
She had enacted for toppling those who underestimated her. Her mentor the formidable chancellor, Helmut Kohl used to tease her for her provincial manners. And yet, within a decade she was calling for his resignation as he faced allegations of corruption.
By 2005, she'd become the country's first female chancellor.
PLEITGEN: Known for being pragmatic and understated, those some found her indecisive. Early on she was criticized for being slow to act and reticent to speak out.
Merkel showed her resolve in 2015 when she allowed more than a million refugees those fleeing from Syria's civil war to cross into Germany. It was initially applauded by many Germans, but later heavily criticized by those thought Germany was overburdened.
Merkel's answer to her critics was "Wir schaffen das," we can manage. It was a decision that has come to define her political career. Merkel is one of the longest serving leaders in Europe. She's worked alongside three U.S. presidents and four British prime ministers and four French presidents.
Under her leadership the country has grown prosperous and powerful. But Angela Merkel has also challenged Germany to open up and shoulder more responsibility for global problems. As she prepares to step down in 2021, Germany will need to decide if its new leader should continue down that path -- Fred Pleitgen, CNN, Berlin.
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CHURCH: In his first interview since being elected Brazil's president, Jair Bolsonaro struck the defiant tone he's known for. The far right candidate won with 55 percent of the vote, beating leftist opponent Fernando Haddad. Bolsonaro spoke to CNN affiliate Record TV about Brazil's sky-high crime rate.
He said the answer to safety is to arm yourself.
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JAIR BOLSONARO, BRAZILIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): If someone is interested in doing something bad, they don't need to buy a gun in the legal market. It is easy to find a firearm on the black market. We need to abandon this political correctness, this notion that Brazil will be better if everyone is unarmed.
It won't be better. Firearms not only guarantee people's lives, they guarantee their freedom.
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Bolsonaro's election comes after a bitter, divisive campaign and now Bolsonaro has the task of repairing the country's crippled economy, rampant crime and pervasive corruption. Shasta Darlington takes a look at what his first moves might be.
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SHASTA DARLINGTON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: A day after sweeping to victory in Brazil's presidential election, Jair Bolsonaro met with advisors and received a flood of congratulatory messages and phone calls from world leaders.
President Donald Trump sent out a tweet after their conversation, saying the two had discussed how to work together on trade and the military.
Now Bolsonaro sold himself to voters as an anti-establishment candidate who would bring radical change, especially when it comes to endemic political corruption and rising violent crime. So some of his first actions are likely to be in the area of security. Legislation is already in the works that would lower the age of criminal responsibility, making it easier to try teenagers as adults and making it easier for citizens to own guns and making it easier for police to shoot suspected criminals.
Bolsonaro's economic team is working on a wave of privatization --
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DARLINGTON: -- and a sorely needed but not very popular pension reform. At this point it is not clear if Bolsonaro's completely on board. In the past, he's voted against privatizations while in congress.
For his critics, however, the biggest concerns are in human rights and the environment. Bolsonaro repeatedly defended Brazil's brutal military dictatorship when he was in Congress. He made misogynist, homophobic and racist comments. So critics want to see if he's going to appoint military men from his inner circle or seek out experienced politicians that can really help rein in the rhetoric. When it comes to the environment, Bolsonaro has backtracked from initial threats to pull out of the Paris climate agreement but he's also made it clear that he will support the agribusiness sector, which is never good news for the Amazon when he takes over on January 1st -- I'm Shasta Darlington, for CNN, in Sao Paulo.
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CHURCH: Jamal Khashoggi's fiancee is calling on the U.S. president to put aside his financial interests and push for the truth in Khashoggi's death. Though their story has shifted multiple times, the Saudis now admit the journalist was killed inside the Saudi consulate in Istanbul.
Riyadh insists the king and crown prince had no knowledge of the operation. The White House said President Trump is weighing different options in response to Khashoggi's killing but Mr. Trump has said he wants to protect a multi-billion dollar arms deal with the kingdom.
At a London memorial for Khashoggi, his fiancee called for answers from the Saudis and support from the West in bringing the killers to justice.
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HATICE CENGIZ, JAMAL KHASHOGGI'S FIANCEE: Jamal Khashoggi is a martyr for the struggle to democracy and freedom in our part of the world. I want to bury the body of the beloved Jamal. Therefore I'm asking once again, where is his body? I believe that the Saudi regime knows where his body is.
They should answer my demand. But this is not only the demand of a fiancee but a human and Islamic demand from everyone, every nation.
I'm deeply grateful for the solidarity of people all over the world. I'm however disappointed in the actions of the leadership in many countries, particularly in the U.S., President Trump should help reveal the truth and ensure justice be served.
He should not pave the way for a cover-up of my fiance's murder. Let's not let money taint our conscience and compromise our values.
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CHURCH: We'll take a very short break here. But still to come, the synagogue slayings in Pittsburgh are the deadliest attack on Jews in U.S. history. This all comes amid a steady rise in anti-Semitism across the country.
Ahead on CNN NEWSROOM, advocates speak out on what needs to be done.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Jews are literally under attack. We should have a zero tolerance policy on intolerance. It is unacceptable that anyone from the president to Mr. Farrakhan to anyone in between should make derisive comments. And all of this should be called out. All of it should be unacceptable.
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[02:30:45] CHURCH: Welcome back, everyone, to CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Rosemary Church. I want to check the headlines for you this hour. A cruise in Indonesia is trying to locate the passengers and crew from Lion Air Flight JT610. The Boeing 737 crashed in the waters of Jakarta Monday, 189 people were onboard. The plane's fuselage and flight data recorders have not yet been found. Angela Merkel says it's time for a new chapter after 13 years at the helm of Europe's largest economy.
The Germany chancellor confirms she won't run for another term. The coalition suffered a major setback in a regional election. Chancellor Merkel's term ends in 2021. President Trump heads to Pittsburgh Tuesday to pay his respects to the victims of Saturday's synagogue massacre. The suspect appeared in court Monday. Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty. Well, funerals for the 11 men and women who died in that rampage begin Tuesday and will continue through Friday.
The victims include two devoted brothers who greeted worshippers each Saturday as they entered the temple. A 97-year-old beloved member of the community and a doctor who had treated patients with HIV when others might have shunned them. The synagogue's rabbi told CNN hate will not win.
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HAZZAN JEFFREY MYERS, RABBI, TREE OF LIFE SYNAGOGUE: I've experienced anti-Semitism my whole life in one form or another. I just never thought it could reach this level of that someone would take into their own hands. They make a decision that they needed to murder Jews. That concerns me not just as a Jew because it wasn't just an attack upon the Jewish community. This was an attack upon America. This gunman made it clear that people anywhere that wish to worship need to be concerned because these challenge our freedom of worship.
We are a tree of life and as I've said before to many, you can cut out some branches from our tree. The Tree of Life has been in Pittsburgh for 154 years. We're not going anywhere. We will rebuild and we will be back stronger and better than ever. I will not let hate close down my building.
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CHURCH: One of President Trump's top advisers suggests anti-religious views are partly to blame for the synagogue massacre.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) KELLYANNE CONWAY, COUNSELOR TO PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: The anti-
religiosity in this country that it's somehow in vogue and funny to make fun of anybody of faith that constantly be making fun of people who express religion, the late night comedians, the unfunny people on T.V. shows, it's always anti-religious. And remember, these people are gunned down in their place of worship as where the people in South Carolina several years ago and they were there because they're people of faith and it's that faith that needs to bring out together. This is no time to be driving God out of the public square.
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CHURCH: The synagogue massacre is highlighting a sharp rise in acts of anti-Semitism in the U.S. CNN's Sara Sidner reports.
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SARA SIDNER, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Investigators say Robert Bowers' wanted all Jews to die. The suspect using his arsenal of weapons to try and kill as many Jews as he could now face a myriad of hate crime and murder charges. In Squirrel Hill, the center of Jewish life in and around Pittsburgh residents Hallie Goldstein says fear was never part of the equation until now.
HALLIE GOLDSTEIN, SQUIRREL HILL RESIDENT: Before, everyone was just saying how they felt stronger and they felt braver, and I don't feel brave. I just feel scared.
SIDNER: Now, there is reason to fear. Eleven people were just slaughtered in a synagogue in America. For years, incidence of anti- Semitism were on the decline in America then came the 2016 presidential election. Since then, a mediocre rise, 34 percent increase in 2016, a 57 percent increase in 2017 according to the Anti- Defamation League that tracks it.
[02:35:02] JONATHAN GREENBLATT, CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, ANTI- DEFAMATION LEAGUE: That's the single largest surge we've ever seen since we started tracking this data.
SIDNER: Nothing is sacred, not human life or places of worship, or even where the dead are buried. In Omaha, Nebraska, a veteran's memorial scared with a swastika. In Indiana, a synagogue desecrated. In Sacramento, California, flyers targeting Jewish students on campus.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It screams of the same type of graphics and the same type of design that the Nazis used.
SIDNER: This is in Potter's County, Pennsylvania just a few months ago.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's my country.
SIDNER: It's great. This is also my country.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You guys didn't win the cultural war. Get the -- out of here, now. Yes, sir. SIDNER: And no one can forget the torched bearing man in
Charlottesville, Virginia spewing their hate field rhetoric. What is behind all this, the ADL and those who track hate say there is no doubt political rhetoric is in part to blame. That rhetoric can be settled or in your face like U.S. Representative Steve King for example retweeting messages from a known Nazi sympathizer.
REP. STEVE KING (R), IOWA: I'm not deleting that because then you'll pile on me and say, King, had to apologize. He was wrong. He knows he's guilty. I'm not. I don't feel guilty one bit. I'm human.
SIDNER: This Trump political ad raised thy brows featuring prominent Jews to target global special interest.
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: And for the global special interest.
SIDNER: While those accused of anti-Semitism for years like Louis Farrakhan continue to tweet and make inflammatory statement.
GREENBLATT: When Jews are literally under attack, we should have a zero power, zero tolerance policy and intolerance. It's unacceptable that anyone from the president to Minister Farrakhan in between should make the risk of comments and all of it should be called out. All of it should be unacceptable.
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SIDNER: It already adds up and let's not forget what's happening online. On the social media site, Gab, for example , the same site that the suspect used to spew anti-Semitic rhetoric. That are dozens hundreds of memes and words and vile pictures that are anti-Semitic. Many of those who were white supremacist or neo-Nazis that got kicked off o spaces like tweeter migrated to Gab after what happened in Charlottesville. We need to remember that that too has an impact. Sara Sidner, CNN Pittsburgh.
CHURCH: And the website Gab defends what it calls free expression online but said it unequivocally disavows and condemns all acts of terrorism and violence. With me now is Randy Blazak, the Chairman of the Oregon Coalition Against Hate Crimes. He has been studying hate crime for more than 30 years. Thank you so much for being with us.
RANDY BLAZAK, CHAIRMAN, OREGON COALITION AGAINST HATE CRIMES: Glad to be here.
CHURCH: Why do you think we are seeing a rise in hate crimes across the United States particularly since the 2016 presidential election?
BLAZAK: Well, we have this problem for a long time. Remember, we had active American Nazi Party in this country all the way up to the 1960s. So it's really nothing new that Oklahoma City bombing in 1995 was fueled by an anti-Semitic conspiracy theory about the federal government. What's different now of course is the role the internet plays. These groups that were kind of -- on the margins of society in hand they sort of wacky conspiracy theories now have access to the whole population.
I mean pretty much everybody has some social media present. So it's very easy to get these conspiratorial theories in front of people and they work really effectively because they explain a whole lot of complexity even some real simple steps, you know, basically, everything that's going wrong in the world can be blamed on one group of people and so very quickly something that seemed just so on a fringe has this move right into the political mainstream.
And of course we can have our president repeat some of these conspiracy theories or promote conspiracy theories and promote conspiracy theorist like the QAnon folks and (INAUDIBLE) so it's completely normalized this whole way of thinking that you see just the associated with neo-Nazis on the right and maybe some anti-corporate folks on the left now is in our mainstream.
CHURCH: Right. And in the wake of the tragic shooting at the Pittsburgh synagogue on Saturday, President Trump suggests that the solution to violence like that was having an armed guard in the building. I just want to listen to what the Israeli ambassador to the U.N. said about that very issue. Let's bring that up.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DANNY DANON, ISRAELI AMBASSADOR TO THE UNITED NATIONS: When I walked into a synagogue in France or in London, I see security. It is (INAUDIBLE) United States and I think we have no other option but to put more guards, more security in synagogues. And the second issue is monitoring the social media of potential terrorists. We do it in Israel and we are able to prevent many cases of people who want to commit a crime.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: Is that the answer having armed security guards in places of worship to combat hate crimes like this?
[02:40:06] BLAZAK: Again, it's an overly simplified solution to a complex problem. We go with a hyper masculine response to a hyper masculine problem, more guns somehow solves the problems. We have four armed guards or four armed police officers who are on the scene almost immediately. This man was heavily armed, no armed security guard when it stopped him. And so I think that's one of those sort of easy solutions. Hey, let's just have more guns.
It will solve the problem. We got lots of evidence where that doesn't work. It's a more complex (INAUDIBLE) issue that goes deep into the fabric of our culture and just a man with a gun isn't going to stop it.
CHURCH: Well, the other point the ambassador rose was monitoring social media for signs of potential hate crimes or terrorism. Is that being done enough in America do you think?
BLAZAK: Well, it's -- it is being done. We have a First Amendment here, so people are allowed to put all kinds of manner of hate on the internet and it's protected by the First Amendment. And so trying to figure out what of that hate speech is leading to violence is sort of like, you know, a really -- a challenging -- a challenging tasks to say that least because it's just so normalize or it does so much vitriol on the internet trying to figure out what of that, so you can have -- and people like Facebook do have the thousands of people who are monitoring this stuff and you can't stop at all, so there has to be a cultural response.
CHURCH: In a tweet early Monday, President Trump called fake news media the true enemy of the people. How much does that sort of language fuel the rage of extremists who are out there who are on line picking up on all of this hate and this division and this rage?
BLAZAK: Yes. I mean there are sort of two parts of this equation. One is the conspiratorial thinking and the other is the us versus them enemies in our midst rhetoric that idea that somehow there is some opponent. We have these enemies that we have to fight against and seeing -- instead of seeing us as all members of a common society, that basically (INAUDIBLE) but this kind of notion that we're constantly in a battle with our enemies just adds to this hyper masculine response and call for violence.
CHURCH: So what's the answer? What does the president need to do and say to the nation to stop the hate, the divisions, and the rage in this country right now? Is it in his --
(CROSSTALK)
BLAZAK: (INAUDIBLE) because he's been kind of (INAUDIBLE) of a lot of this. But he can take the leadership role and this is something I think that we are really clamoring for in America to take the leadership role which includes self-reflection which is hard to do for a lot of people including this particular president to say, well, how have I contributed to this and what can I do and how can I lead by example and to be able to sort of turn down the anger and turn up the kind of notion of we are all part of this on all sides of political spectrum.
And there needs to be kind of a conversation about how we participate and facilitate this division that we're in because frankly we're going in the direction of a civil war and I don't think anybody really wants that.
CHURCH: No, definitely not --
(CROSSTALK)
BLAZAK: I should say there are some people like (INAUDIBLE) into a civil war, so that point should not be lost.
CHURCH: All right. Randy Blazak, thank you so much for joining us. We appreciate it.
BLAZAK: My pleasure.
CHURCH: And Ronald Reagan's daughter is suggesting American stop looking to President Trump in times of tragedy. I will talk to a presidential historian about that and much more. That is next hour. But first, we will go to Leicester, England where the hometown football team and its fans are in mourning, the tributes to the club's owner after he was killed in a helicopter crash.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[02:46:24] CHURCH: Wildlife activists are condemning the Chinese government's decision to legalize the use of tiger and rhino products. A complete ban had been in place since 1993.
This new directive allows tiger bones and rhino horn to be used for medical purposes as long as they come from farmed animals. Conservationists say this will lead to an increased demand from consumers and the illegal trade threatening the tiger and Rhino populations.
All right, to England now, where a book of condolence will be opened in the coming hours as fans mourn the loss of the owner of the Leicester City Football Club. Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha was killed Saturday in a helicopter crash. He was loved by fans and locals.
They consigned the book at the club's King Power Stadium or online. Christina MacFarlane, reports from the stadium.
CHRISTINA MACFARLANE, CNN INTERNATIONAL SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: This is was confirmed here on Sunday night that the chairman of Leicester City Football Club, passed away with four others in a tragic helicopter accident on Saturday evening.
Thousands of fans have flooded to the gates of the King Power Stadium here to pay tribute over the last few hours of flood, a sea of flowers has worked its way down behind me in front of the stadium where fans have come and left candles, they've left shirts, and hundreds of messages. Some of them simply reading, "Thank you, we miss you, we are devastated."
Earlier today, as well the players from the junior and senior team returned here to the stadium for the first time since the accident on Saturday to pay their respects. They took part in a minute of silence in the middle of the pitch wherein amongst them the vice-chairman of the club, the son of Vichai, Aiyawatt Srivaddhanaprabha also paid tribute to his father.
The players then came out to look over tributes here and to read the messages during which some of them were visibly moved to tears. Many of the players, of course, knew the Chairman personally, and this tragedy clearly weighs heavy on their shoulders.
The questions still remain as to when the team will return to action. But questions also remain as to the cause of the accident itself. In a statement released earlier today by the AAIB, the Air Accident Investigation Branch. They confirmed that they had recovered a flight data recorder in the hope that this will shed some light on what caused the helicopter to go down so quickly after taking off here at the King Power Stadium on Saturday, evening. But for now, thoughts and minds are with Chairman Vichai. And Leicester is a city in mourning for a man who brought them this greatest sporting moment in their history, and who will not soon be forgotten. Christina Macfarlane, CNN, Leicester.
[02:49:22] CHURCH: A new report says 93 percent of the world's children under the age of 15 are breathing toxic air. The World Health Organization says air pollution in some parts of the world is so bad that children are dying from respiratory infections at high rates.
Some 600,000 died back in 2016. Doctors say the pollutants can cause children to develop asthma and cancer. The report singled out New Delhi, India as one of the worst polluted cities. Last year, the Indian Medical Association declared a public health emergency because of the country's heavy smog.
Just ahead, Typhoon Yutu makes landfall in the Philippines. The potential destruction and where it's heading when we come back. Plus, rapper Kanye West has been pumkinized We will explain when we come back.
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CHURCH: Typhoon Yutu is bringing heavy rain and strong winds to the Philippines where it's known locally as Rosita. The storm made landfall in the province of Isabela, several hours ago after cutting a destructive path across the Pacific. Now, meteorologist Pedram Javaheri joins us now from the International Weather Center with more on this. Pedram.
PEDRAM JAVAHERI, CNN INTERNATIONAL METEOROLOGIST: Yes, Rosemary, we've been very impressed by this storm system, you know, it made landfall about nine hours ago as a Category 1 equivalent system, and guess what, still reemerging over the South China Sea now. And still retaining that intensity of a Category 1, equivalent 150 kilometer per hour winds.
So, a very impressive feature considering the Sierra Madre Mountains across Luzon, pretty destructive to systems as such as they move over land. But we do have concerns still across this region in particular around towards the western periphery of the island now where we do have Signal 3s and signal 2s issued for a significant storm surge on the coast there as the system pushes away from the Philippines.
Some damage across the coastal communities on the eastern side where it made landfall, certainly, possible here. Still waiting to see some reports across that region. But we know, the rain element are going to be the big story here moving forward. And the storm system, it pretty good guidance on this over the next couple of days.
We believe this will want to restring that over the warm waters of the South China Sea, potentially back up to 165 kilometers per hour. And then, beyond day three, day four, and day five, you notice that cone really widens up here. That's because the model guidance on this very really not seen significant confidence in where this will end up. Some of them suggesting back towards the West, maybe as far west as Hong Kong. Another one is taking it towards Fujian Province even some outliers wanting to bring it in towards Taiwan.
So, certainly, a storm that bears watching here the next couple of days, we will watch this to produce significant rainfall regardless of what comes out of it, and notice how quickly it will want to spin up here and become more of a compact system as it begins to approach northern areas of Guangdong in the next couple of days.
But here we go, with the rainfall forecast right along the immediate coast as you go from one province to another. You notice that's where the biggest concern remains for significant rainfall over the next couple of days.
Now, I do want to take you out towards portions of Italy. Scenes coming out of that region, of the acqua alta that's been in place. In fact, we'll show you some video out of that area. And acqua alta literally means high water, and this is typically the time of year from October as you transition from November and December.
You see winds from the south begin to push up water towards the lagoon here, and Venice takes on quite a bit of water as a result. In fact, the meteorological setup for this pretty fascinating as well when you take a look at how things play out here.
Storms coming short, and again, we get that southerly wind, the Adriatic takes on quite a bit of water kind of funnels it right up towards Venice, we had waters as high as 160 centimeters which by the way was the highest we take since the 1970s across that region.
Expecting it to be at 110 centimeters moving forward, but on Monday, parts of 70 percent of the city of Venice there had at least some water on the ground because of the water being pushed up there.
And again, it becomes a tourist site for a lot of folks and you live across that area may be, it's a day you don't want to wear your nicest shoes when you're going out there, Rosemary.
CHURCH: Yes, absolutely. Thank you so much, Pedram
JAVAHERI: Thank you.
[02:55:01] CHURCH: Well, one of rapper Kanye West songs is titled, I Am a God. But it might need the remix called, I am a gourd. Jeanne Moos, reports on how he's been pumpkinized for Halloween.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JEANNE MOOS, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Kanye West has gone from being a bottle of sparkling water on SNL to being talked about freaky, a 315-pound pumpkin.
Every year, Jeanette Paras unveils a new celebrity pumpkin on her Dublin, Ohio porch, facing her choice on who's hot.
KANYE WEST, AMERICAN RAPPER, SONGWRITER: I love this guy right here.
JEANETTE PARAS, PUMPKIN PAINTER: I don't make the news, but Jeanne, I do pumpkinized the news.
MOOS: Pumpkinizing starts with a sketch, then spent seven hours painting Kanye. But the hardest part --
PARAS: Make pumpkins great again.
MOOS: The hat took nine hours to sew. It's 3 1/2 times bigger than Kanye's make America great again hat.
WEST: When I put this hat on, it maybe feel like Superman.
MOOS: Yes, well, now he can feel like the Great Pumpkin. Jeanette has been out of her gourd over pumpkins for 30 years. Every year, she teases who will it be? There was Donald Trumpkin, Hillary, Kim Jong- un.
She even did Kanye once before wearing weird sunglasses. She uses plastic to protect them from the rain.
PARAS: What air holes.
MOOS: People stop to take photos.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think it's cool as heck.
MOOS: And what does Jeanette get out of it?
WEST: I see she's a gold digger.
MOOS: Self-entertainment, she says.
PARAS: It's just fun. I mean, you could have some like giant celebrity pumpkins.
MOOS: Kanye will last a few months, and then --
PARAS: Like a stabbing knife thing, and we have to cut him up and put him in the trash.
MOOS: Don't let Kanye hear that, which he won't since his ears might look like dinner to you, but to Jeanette, they're giant celebrity pumpkin ears. Jeanne Moos, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHURCH: And thanks so much for joining us this hour. I'm Rosemary Church. Remember to connect with me anytime on Twitter at Rosemary, CNN. And I'll be back with another hour of news in just a moment. You're watching CNN, stick around.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHURCH: An extensive search is underway for the Lion Air Jet that crashed at sea on Monday. But there are fears everyone on board may be dead.
Plus, a stunning announcement about the future German Chancellor Angela Merkel is eyeing retirement. What this could mean for Europe and the world?
