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Trump Plays to Fears ahead of Midterms, Obama Campaigns for Dems; Iranians Defiant in Face of U.S. Pressure; Yoga Studio Shooting; Alleged Labour Party Anti-Semitism under Investigation; Roger Stone's Text Messages; Pakistan Government Reaches Deal to End Protests; Seven-Year-Old Girl Who Symbolized Yemen's Suffering Dies; Divers Recover More from Lion Air Wreckage; Cat on the Catwalk Steals Show in Istanbul. Aired 4-5a ET

Aired November 03, 2018 - 04:00   ET

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


[04:00:00]

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GEORGE HOWELL, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): Countdown to the midterms. The president focusing on immigration fears and brushing aside some strong economic numbers. We look at it.

NATALIE ALLEN, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): Democrats bring out their biggest name. Former president Barack Obama hits the campaign trail, highlighting the focus on health care.

HOWELL (voice-over): Plus, we're live inside Iran ahead of the new round of U.S. sanctions about to impact the nation.

ALLEN (voice-over): Welcome to our viewers in the U.S. and around the world. Coming to you live from Atlanta, I'm Natalie Allen.

HOWELL (voice-over): And I'm George Howell from CNN World Headquarters. NEWSROOM starts right now.

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HOWELL: Midterm elections just three days away. Many voters in the U.S. will have a chance to shape that vote, shaping up to be a referendum on the U.S. president, also on the Republican Party.

ALLEN: The president does not appear to think it will all go his way. On Friday he conceded for the first time that Democrats could possibly win a majority in the House in the midterms on Tuesday but he said he would not be to blame if that happens.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: I think it could be a red wave. I'll tell you what. Really, I think it could be a red wave.

The Democrats. And it could happen, it could happen. We're doing very well and we're doing really well in the Senate. But it could happen. You know what you do? My whole life, you know what I say, don't worry about it. I'll just figure it out.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOWELL: The president still confused about immigrants as he makes his final push for the party's candidates. He wants Democrats want to invite migrants and crime into the country. Here's what he had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: They want to turn America into a giant sanctuary for violent predators and MS-13 killers. A blue wave would equal a crime wave. Simple. A red wave equals jobs and security.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ALLEN: President Trump is also attacking former President Obama. He accused him of breaking promises during his presidency.

HOWELL: Our Jim Acosta has more now from the Trump campaign stop in Indianapolis.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JIM ACOSTA, CNN SR. WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: President Trump continues his war of words with former president Barack Obama at a rally here in Indianapolis. The president tore into Obama, who accused Trump earlier in the day of telling lies. The president went after Obama, saying he's told lies of his own and then (INAUDIBLE) by writing out an H with his finger. Here's what the president had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: It's no surprise that Joe Donnelly is holding a rally this weekend with Barack H. Obama. Barack Obama. I watched him speak today. He had a very small crowd. They don't talk about that. And they never talk about how big our crowds are.

ACOSTA (voice-over): The president also seized on the subject of immigration but he took time out to go after ObamaCare, telling this crowd in Indiana that he's, quote, "decimated" ObamaCare. Democrats may want to seize on those comments as they've accused the president of trying to weaken that law and its protections for people with preexisting conditions -- Jim Acosta, CNN, Indianapolis.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HOWELL: And the former president, Barack Obama, took his own shots at Mr. Trump. He accused his successor at lying and fearmongering at campaign events in Florida and Georgia.

ALLEN: The former president also pushed Democrats to get out and vote on Tuesday. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: In the closing weeks of this election, we have seen repeated attempts to divide us, with rhetoric designed to make us angry and make us fearful. They'll get folks riled up just to protect their power and their privilege.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ALLEN: CNN's Randi Kaye went to Mr. Obama's rally in Miami to gauge voters' reaction.

HOWELL: While she was speaking to voters, there was one interview that surprised her, as you'll see.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

OBAMA: Hello, Miami.

RANDI KAYE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Former president Barack Obama, once again --

[04:05:00]

KAYE (voice-over): -- making his closing argument for a candidate.

KAYE: What can President Obama do for Andrew Gillum?

He won Florida twice.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He can energize the young people. He can energize the disenfranchised voters, he can energize those who think their votes don't matter.

KAYE: Do you think that pull over even left-leaning independents?

STEFANO BARBAGALLO, FLORIDA VOTER: 100 percent. I think any -- Republicans have voted for Trump in the past and are maybe not happy now.

DR. LAURA, FLORIDA VOTER: I think he brings credibility. I think whoever he says yes to is a credible candidate.

KAYE (voice-over): Still many here remember 2016 and Obama's cross- country blitz for Hillary Clinton in the final weeks of her campaign. His last rally for her was in Pennsylvania, which she went on to lose.

RHIAN PURDY, FLORIDA VOTER: I don't know that the United States is ready for a woman in the presidential White House. I think that was part of it.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What's different now is that we really know who Donald Trump is. I think anyone who comes out can make a difference now because I think a lot of us are really worried about our country.

KAYE (voice-over): So worried that they're once again embracing Barack Obama's message of optimism.

KAYE: What about Obama's signature idealism and his message of hope?

Is there a place for that in this ugly political climate right now?

BARBAGALLO: I believe so. Even if you look at the upset people, the ones that are the ones upset, I think if you scrape away that top layer, I think everybody wants peace.

KAYE: Is it needed on the campaign trail?

BRENDA JOHNSON, FLORIDA VOTER: It's needed on the campaign. We are the people for the people. And that's what we need. Not no rich man/poor man but for the people.

OBAMA: They promised to take on crooks. Instead they have racked up enough indictments to field a football team.

KAYE (voice-over): And while Obama is breaking precedent by criticizing a sitting president so soon after leaving office himself, some here want even more of it.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (INAUDIBLE) challenge and called him out if something is a lie, call it a lie, I think that Obama has been doing that, which has been so great to see.

KAYE (voice-over): For one voter here, this really is personal.

KAYE: Will Barack Obama's presence in this race in here today influence your vote?

FRANCES GILLUM, FLORIDA VOTER: I believe that it will.

KAYE (voice-over): We picked her randomly out of the crowd. But at the end of the interview, when I finally asked her her name, it sounded strangely familiar.

KAYE: What's your name?

GILLUM: My name is Frances Gillum. In fact, my son is running for governor.

KAYE: No!

GILLUM: Yes.

(LAUGHTER)

KAYE: Wait a minute. Why didn't you tell me that to begin with?

GILLUM: No --

KAYE: That is not true. That is hilarious. Well, now, that changes everything.

So what is your hope for how President Obama will help your son? GILLUM: I know he's going to help him out a lot. Andrew is doing well -- Mayor Gillum is doing well on his own. But with him here, that's just going to make it that much better.

KAYE (voice-over): A proud mother, a former president and question.

Will it be enough?

Tuesday will tell -- Randi Kaye, CNN, Miami.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ALLEN: That governor's race in Florida, one of the ones to watch on Tuesday. Let's talk more about this upcoming week with Richard Johnson. He is in Lancaster, England. He's a lecturer in U.S. politics and international relations at Lancaster University.

Welcome back to our program, Richard. We appreciate it. We've got Obama on the trail, Oprah on the trail for Democrats. Never has a midterm election generated so much interest.

What is fueling, in your opinion, Mr. Trump and his theory and the devotion of his base or those who strongly dislike him, as we heard from one Democrat in that story, she said what's different now is we really know who Donald Trump is.

RICHARD JOHNSON, LANCASTER UNIVERSITY: If we look at the tracking polls since the early '80s, when they ask the question, does the president track into your midterm election vote, we see the highest proportion of people say, yes, it does.

We see an uptick both from those who say yes, it's because I want to vote against the president. That's at a record high. And we've seen an uptick among those who say, yes, I want to vote in this midterm election to support my president.

That's also higher, although not at record levels.

And so I think that obviously the person of Donald Trump is clearly motivating people to vote in this election. And I think issues like de capita confirmation, I think for both sides of the American political spectrum showed what is at stake in an election and how one or two Senate seats can make such a difference in determining the long-term outcomes of the country.

ALLEN: He's doing rally after rally, talking more with the media right now before Tuesday, but he's staying on message at his rallies. He's saying a blue wave will be a crime wave.

[04:10:00]

ALLEN: A caravan of migrants is like an invasion.

But he walked back something he said about migrants on Friday. First, let's listen to what he said on Thursday and how he amended his statement on Friday. Here it is. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: They want to throw rocks at our military, our military fights back. We're going to consider it. I told them consider it a rifle. When they throw rocks like they did at the Mexico military and police, I say, consider it a rifle.

If they do that with us, they're going to be arrested. There's going to be problem. I didn't say shoot. But if they do that with us, they're going to be arrested for a long time.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ALLEN: Missteps like that one right there so close to the election.

Will those kinds of statements hurt him for anyone who might be on the fence?

JOHNSON: I think the thing about midterm elections is they're base elections and they're about motivating your committed supporters to come out to vote. At every midterm election, fewer than one in two Americans do vote in the midterms.

So Trump's strategy from the start has always been to motivate his core supporters. He was very effective at that in the Republican primaries and effective enough to win the presidency.

So rhetoric like this, you know, 71 percent of American Republicans say that they're concerned about immigration; 40 percent of Republicans cite national security as one of the one or two top issues in this election. So he's very much communicating with his supporters.

Even from an outside perspective, this might be reckless language. He's talking to a difference audience and he's talking to an audience of core supporters for whom, I think, they won't even see this as a misstep, to be perfectly honest.

ALLEN: Correct in that. I want to ask you.

If Democrats take the House, what will that mean to the Trump presidency?

JOHNSON: It will make the president's policy initiatives very difficult. This has not been as productive a Congress as we've seen when parties have had unified control of the House and Senate and presidency, which is quite rare.

And you know, the president did get through this very dramatic tax cut. But it's been weaker on other policy initiatives, noticeably his attempt to repeal the Obama health care law.

But any prospect to do that, if the Democrats take the House, will be gone. Of course, if the Democrats don't take the Senate, the president can still make an impact through his appointments, including if a Supreme Court vacancy came up. Also the lower courts and executive office appointments he'll continue

to make if the Democrats can't get that second prize, which would be the Senate.

ALLEN: So much riding on this midterm election. We'll talk with you again. Thank you for bringing your analysis and insights. We appreciate it, Richard Johnson. Thank you.

JOHNSON: Thank you.

HOWELL: Again, just days from the midterm elections, voter suppression tactics have become a flashpoint. Tune in to our special report on CNN, "Democracy in Peril: The War on Voting Rights." That's 9:00 tonight for voters in New York, around the world you can watch at 6:00 pm in Hong Kong and 10:00 am in London, only here on CNN.

ALLEN: Join us on Tuesday night for extensive coverage of the U.S. midterms. It starts at 5:00 pm Eastern and goes until all the results are known.

HOWELL: Ahead this hour, anger and defiance in Iran as the United States is set to impose a new round of sanctions there. CNN live in Tehran with the story for you.

ALLEN: Also, showing up for Shabbat. People from across the world come together to honor the victims of last week's U.S. synagogue shooting.

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[04:15:00]

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ALLEN: Welcome back. The U.S. is set to reimpose sanctions on Iran that had been lifted under the 2015 nuclear agreement. It's happening on Monday. President Trump is counting down the days.

HOWELL: I want you to take a look at this tweet from the U.S. president, a "Game of Thrones" inspired teaser to Iran, showing a stern looking Mr. Trump with the phrase, "Sanctions are coming," a play on the HBO fantasy series, the motto, "Winter is coming."

ALLEN: Author George R.R. Martin, whose book series is the basis for "Game of Thrones," responded with his own tweet.

"Fear cuts deeper than swords. Vote Tuesday the 6th."

HBO also released a statement saying they preferred if their trademark wasn't used for political purposes. HBO and CNN share a parent company, Warner Media. The E.U., France, Germany and the U.K. are expressing deep regret over reinstating the sanctions on Iran.

HOWELL: When the sanctions go into effect on Monday, they order countries around the world to stop buying oil from Iran. They take aim at financial transactions, port operators and shipbuilders.

ALLEN: U.S. secretary of state Mike Pompeo says eight oil importers will get temporary exemptions. Washington won't reveal who they are until Monday but we know the European Union will not be one of them.

HOWELL: It's a lot of downward pressure on Iran. Live in Iran, our senior international correspondent Fred Pleitgen reporting from Iran.

Fred, given what the U.S. president says is coming soon for Iran, a spokesman for the Iranian foreign ministry has repeatedly said that nation is unconcerned with sanctions.

What is the mood there given what we're hearing here?

[04:20:00]

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, I think that there is, indeed, a great deal of concern despite what the foreign ministry has said, especially if you speak to ordinary Iranians.

They said, look, they don't really know what the future is going to hold. The oil and gas industry is so important here. Even with the exemptions, it stands to be the case that Iran is going to be able to export a lot less oil than it has in the past.

This is coming at a time when Iran is already in a big economic crisis. So from regular folks, there is a great deal of concern. But at the same time they know really all they can do is batten down the hatches and try to move forward.

We went around Tehran yesterday, we spoke to hardliners and more moderate folks. Here's what we heard on the streets.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PLEITGEN (voice-over): The usual chants against America more forceful than usual. During hardline Friday prayers in Tehran.

A Revolutionary Guard general ripping into the U.S.

"We're encountering a real fight with our main enemy, America," he says, "and they're using all the resources they have and organizing a battle against us."

As the U.S. is set to hit Iran with new crippling sanctions, defiance from religious conservatives.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think these kind of sanctions make us more powerful about -- for the future. And I think this is an opportunity. PLEITGEN (voice-over): So far, Iran's rulers not buckling under U.S.

pressure.

PLEITGEN: If it was the Trump administration's intention to try and weaken the Iranian government, that certainly doesn't seem to be happening. In fact, it seems as though many Iranians are uniting behind the power structure of clergy, military and their government in anger over Washington's policies.

PLEITGEN (voice-over): President Trump has already hit Iran with a flurry of sanctions.

TRUMP: We're doing a big number on Iran.

PLEITGEN (voice-over): Sending Iran's economy and its currency into a tailspin. Now the U.S. will target Iran's important oil and gas sector, potentially a crushing blow to Iran's finances, causing concerns in this moderate area.

"The economy has started getting worse and worse," this woman says, "and everyday items are three to four times more expensive than before."

And some even calling for talks with D.C.

"You need real negotiations that both governments would be committed to," this woman says, "and they shouldn't leave the table again."

Defiance, anger but also deep concern as Iran's people once again brace for more economic hardship.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PLEITGEN: One of the things that Iranian officials are talking about is trying to make this economy more self-sufficient than it has in the past. We know that a lot of international investors have already left the country.

One of the things as far as the oil and gas sector is concerned, the Iranians are really hoping for, especially with these exemptions, is quite simply that Iranian oil on the international market will be very difficult to offset even by other major oil-producing countries.

Whether or not in the long run that's going to be the case is really up for grabs. It was quite interesting to see yesterday secretary of state Mike Pompeo come out and say, yes, the U.S. will grant the exemptions but that's with the understanding by the U.S. that the countries that get the exemptions will also massively scale down their importing of oil from Iran.

HOWELL: Our senior international correspondent Fred Pleitgen, following the story live for us in Tehran, Iran, Fred, thank you.

ALLEN: We have a breaking news story out of Florida. Police are investigating a deadly shooting at a yoga studio. At least two people are dead, five others were wounded, including one who police say was pistol whipped.

This happened in the capital, Tallahassee. Two of the wounded are listed in stable condition. The gunman took his own life before the police arrived. There's no information on why the business was targeted or what connection the gunman may have had to the victims.

HOWELL: It's the first Jewish Shabbat since the deadly shooting at a synagogue last week in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and thousands from around the world are coming together to remember, to honor and mourn the victims.

ALLEN: They're part of the Show Up for Shabbat social media campaign. Mourners are encouraged to attend services this weekend, such as here at New York's Central synagogue. There will be also a vigil in a couple of hours in Israel near Tel Aviv. The former U.S. ambassador and former Pittsburgh residents are expected to attend.

HOWELL: In London, Mayor Sadiq Khan says that he will be standing shoulder to shoulder with Jews in the United Kingdom. At one service in the U.S. state of Georgia here on Friday, 11 chairs were on display. You see them, the chairs were empty except for the flowers there and the names of those killed.

ALLEN: And in Pittsburgh, the last funeral for the victims was held. It was for Rose Mallinger.

[04:25:00]

ALLEN: She was 97, remembered as being vibrant and full of life.

HOWELL: On to London now, police there looking into allegations that Labour Party members committed anti-Semitic hate crimes.

ALLEN: Britain's opposition party has been plagued with accusations of anti-Semitism for several years. We get more about it from Phil Black in London.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PHIL BLACK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It was a London radio station that presented Cressida Dick, the head of London's Metropolitan Police with a folder full of documents, Labour Party documents, detailing 45 cases of alleged anti-Semitism by Labour Party members.

That was a couple of months ago. The police have look at those documents and have now said they're going to formally investigate some of those allegations. They're consulting prosecutors they say because they suspect there's possible crimes have been committed.

This is significant because Labour is the main opposition party in the U.K. It is the alternative government potentially and it's a party that's struggled to deal with anti-Semitism in recent years.

Among Britain's Jewish community, Labour now has an established reputation as a home for pervasive anti-Semitism. More than that, British Jews often believe that Labour simply isn't doing enough to deal with this, that it is tolerant of this sort of behavior, these sorts of ideas.

That's why they often describe the Labour Party as institutionally anti-Semitic. In response to the news that the police would be investigating this, the Labour Party released a statement in which it said this?

"The Labour Party has a robust system for investigating complaints of alleged breaches of Labour Party rules by its members. When someone feels they have been a victim of crime, they should report it to the police in the usual way."

Anti-Semitism allegations have gripped the Labour Party ever since Jeremy Corbyn was elected as its parliamentary leader. He's a proud left-winger with a long history of sharply criticizing Israel. And the party itself among the membership is really divided into two camps.

On the one hand, there are those largely Corbyn supporters, who believe many of these accusations are unfair, they're often designed to undermine his leadership and they believe that too often, too easily, criticism of Israel is being conflated with anti-Semitism.

On the other hand, there are certainly those within the party, high- ranking members and others, who believe this is a real issue and the party's very soul and heart is at stake, that it's being torn out by this very public debate. They also believe the formal involvement of police in investigating these allegations should settle the debate within the party once and for all -- Phil Black, CNN, London.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ALLEN: President Trump is targeting vulnerable Senate Democrats in the days leading up to the midterm elections. When we return, why he and his team think this is a winning strategy.

HOWELL: Plus a former Trump adviser, Roger Stone, could be in illegal hot water over text messages he's sent to a witness in the Mueller probe. We'll follow this story. More ahead as NEWSROOM pushes on.

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[04:30:00]

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ALLEN: Good morning. Welcome to CNN. I'm Natalie Allen.

HOWELL: And I'm George Howell.

(HEADLINES)

ALLEN: We are just three days away from the midterm elections as President Trump criss-crosses the country on behalf of his party's candidates. He appears to be targeting Senate Democrats. HOWELL: Our Jessica Dean has more on Trump's campaign strategy.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JESSICA DEAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): In the final days before the election, President Trump and his supporters have zeroed in on red state Senate Democrats with one message. They're not conservative enough.

In West Virginia, Senator Joe Manchin has been a prime target.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He's a liberal and he's Chuck Schumer's little pet.

DEAN (voice-over): Manchin has tried to walk the fine line of being a Democrat in Trump country, voting with the president more than any Senate Democrat, including to confirm Brett Kavanaugh and Neil Gorsuch.

Trump won West Virginia by more than 40 points in 2016 but Manchin remains a slight favorite against Republican Patrick Morrissey. In Indiana, a state the president carried by nearly 20 points, Senator Joe Donnelly cut an ad proudly touting his independence.

SEN. JOE DONNELLY (D), INDIANA: I split with my own party to support funding for Trump's border wall.

DEAN (voice-over): But during a recent debate he also left the door open for Trump's controversial proposal to end birthright citizenship.

DONNELLY: I'd want to see that legislation, make sure it was constitutional and review it first.

TRUMP: There's no such thing as a blue dog Democrat, a red state Democrat or a conservative Democrat because they are all Pelosi Democrats.

DEAN (voice-over): A similar message to the one President Trump delivered Thursday night in Missouri.

TRUMP: Claire McCaskill promised to represent the people of Missouri but she broke that promise and joined radical Democrats in Washington.

DEAN (voice-over): Like other red state Democrats, McCaskill is stressing her independence, even calling members of her own party "crazy."

SEN. CLAIRE MCCASKILL (D), MISSOURI: There may be people in this room that think I am not liberal enough to carry the banner of this party.

DEAN (voice-over): She's also using issues like border security to demonstrate how she's supported the president.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (voice-over): We endorse President Trump and Claire McCaskill because of her records on border security.

DEAN (voice-over): For Trump, that's not conservative enough.

TRUMP: The people of Missouri are going to retire far left --

[04:35:00]

TRUMP: -- Democrat Claire McCaskill who's been saying such nice things about me but you know what?

She'll never vote with me.

DEAN: And there are two states with tight Senate races that the president is not planning to visit before Election Day. That's Arizona and Nevada. Recent CNN polls show Democratic candidates in both those contests with a slight edge leading into Election Day -- Jessica Dean, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ALLEN: Former Trump adviser Roger Stone has seen numerous people around him called as witnesses in the investigation led by special counsel Robert Mueller. One of those people is Randi Credico, a political activist from New York.

ALLEN: Now text messages from Stone and Credico are being scrutinized by the Mueller team because they could be construed as threatening. CNN's Sara Murray has more for us.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SARA MURRAY, CNN NATIONAL POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Sources tell CNN special counsel Robert Mueller has copies of some vicious messages from Roger Stone directed at Randy Credico, a witness in the Mueller investigation.

Stone and Credico, a New York political activist, had been friends for years but that relationship deteriorating as Stone claimed Credico was his WikiLeaks back channel. That's a claim Credico denies.

In one message, Credico says he was subpoenaed by Mueller.

"Waste of your time. Tell him to go eff himself," Stone says.

In another message, Stone appears to threaten Credico's dog, Bianca. The pup actually went with Credico when he testified before the grand jury earlier this year.

"You back stab your friends, run your mouth, my lawyers are dying to rip you to shreds. I'm going to take that dog from you," Stone says in an email.

"You don't have a constitutional right to threaten me and especially threaten my dog. You crossed a red line," Credico replies.

"Rot in hell," Stone says.

The special counsel has been circling Stone, one of President Trump's long-time political advisers and the messages raise the possibility that Mueller could pursue obstruction of justice or witness tampering charges against him.

Stone's lawyer, Bruce Rogow, said his office has reviewed months of messages between Stone and Credico and nothing supports any notion of obstruction of justice or any improper activity. To think otherwise misunderstands their relationship.

Back to you guys.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ALLEN: Stone says the text messages were taken out of context and do not reflect the true nature of his relationship with Credico.

HOWELL: In fact, here's what he told our Chris Cuomo.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ROGER STONE, TRUMP ADVISER: To take three text messages out of thousands really shows no context. These aren't the late night rantings between two grumpy old men who have been friends for almost 20 years.

And, Chris, they are friendly, they're vulgar and they're vicious, they're nasty and they're ribald but they're not serious. And, therefore, they'd have to be seen in context.

So for example, you don't see the text where he tells me that I should be willing to go to jail rather than reveal his identity as my source. You don't see the text where he says my apartment is likely wired by the FBI. You don't see the text where I urged him repeatedly tell him to tell the truth.

You don't see the text where he said he's so heavily medicated he can't remember chronologically anything that happened --

CHRIS CUOMO, CNN HOST: Roger, please, offer up the text. I'm happy to --

(CROSSTALK)

CUOMO: -- I'm happy to have all --

STONE: -- you can cherry pick these -- well, you can cherry pick these but it creates a misimpression.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOWELL: Roger Stone speaking earlier with our colleague, Chris Cuomo.

Now to the war in Yemen. That war has taken a gruesome toll on millions of people there. Ahead, we will hear from the man behind an iconic photo and show those horrors to the world.

ALLEN: Also ahead, strong storms hammer Florida. We'll show you the severe weather damage coming ahead with Derek Van Dam.

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[04:40:00]

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HOWELL: Protests in Pakistan have been called off after the government reached a deal with Islamist leaders. The demonstrations started Wednesday after a top court acquitted a Christian woman over blasphemy charges.

ALLEN: Asia Bibi had been on death row for really eight years. The government pledged not to oppose an application to preventing her from leaving Pakistan. Her lawyer says she's currently in jail in an undisclosed location.

HOWELL: There has been new calls from the United States for a cease- fire in Yemen. The years-long war between Saudi Arabia and Houthi rebels in Yemen has created one of the world's worst humanitarian crises.

ALLEN: Millions of Yemenis are suffering from cholera and starvation. Many of them are children. "The New York Times" published a shocking photo in October, bringing the world's attention back to Yemen. We're going to show it to you but we warn, it's hard to look at but so important to see.

HOWELL: Take a look here. This is Amal, a 7-year-old girl being treated for severe malnutrition. Many readers were struck by this haunting stare you see here and wanted to know what happened to her. She died a week after this photo was published.

ALLEN: Earlier our colleague, Cyril Vanier, spoke with Tyler Hicks, the photographer who took that picture and he describes what it was like to meet Amal.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TYLER HICKS, PHOTOJOURNALIST: Amal was responsive, she was -- she was -- but very calm. She had such little energy. And to me, it just didn't seem like she would survive. We heard after we left that in fact she had been discharged from the hospital.

However that was not because she was doing better but because her family didn't have any money to take her to a better clinic and were forced to take her back to her village because new cases were coming in and there's virtually no space for her.

When you drive down any street in Yemen, whether it's a big city or out in the middle of nowhere in the countryside, you are absolutely -- that there are people coming up to the vehicle begging. People are absolutely desperate, they're laying in the street. It's not just like a small amount of people. It is everywhere you

look, the entire country is desperate, there's no jobs, no money. And that's leading to mass starvation.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOWELL: UNICEF says some 400,000 children just like Amal are suffering severe malnutrition in that country.

ALLEN: Coming up in the next hour, I'll talk with a doctor from Doctors without Borders and they'll talk about the scope of the problem and what's in their way of helping more people. We'll talk about that.

HOWELL: Indonesia's search and rescue agency says divers found Lion Air Flight 610's main fuselage.

[04:45:00]

HOWELL: They also say they can now hear pings from the cockpit's recorder. More than 100 have been searching the Java Sea since the plane crashed Monday morning that killed 189 people onboard. The search efforts have been dangerous.

ALLEN: On Friday, one diver died, according to officials he was found far from his official position. Investigators have had trouble with the damaged flight data recorder as well that they found earlier this week. Boeing and U.S. transportation officials are sending special equipment that could help pull data from the damaged recorder.

Our Ivan Watson has more now on recovery efforts.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

IVAN WATSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: More than four days after the crash of Lion Air 610, authorities here in Indonesia are quite literally picking up the pieces from this stricken airliner.

But in this case, they're picking them up from the seabed, some 35 meters, more than 100 feet below the surface of the Java Sea. There were Indonesian divers -- and you can see in this Navy footage that was released, teams of scores of them involved in this effort.

And in this video, they have located a piece of one of the engines from the brand-new Boeing 737 Max 8, which had been constructed less than a year ago, wrapping a rope around it and then it is being hauled to the surface by just one of the small fleet of ships. Dozens of them involved in this complicated salvage effort.

In another piece of video photography, we can see how part of the landing gear is hauled up. On Thursday, the divers were able to locate the flight data recorder, which will help in trying to figure out how this plane went down.

They're still searching for the cockpit voice recorder and they're collecting, day by day, remains of some 179 passengers and crew who are victims of this disaster. The authorities announcing that at least three of them have been identified.

That will bring some closure for this tragedy to some of the relatives and loved ones here, some of whom have told us that they desperately want to retrieve remains of their missing loved ones so they can bury them properly in a proper funeral -- Ivan Watson, CNN, Jakarta.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ALLEN: I want to take you back now to Central Florida, where powerful storms ripped through that region, causing major damage and power outages.

HOWELL: These strong winds produced a tornado near the city of Tampa. Cellphone video posted on social media captured the power of the wind gusts there.

ALLEN: The wind tore off roofs, uprooted trees in some neighborhoods and filled the streets with debris.

HOWELL: Let's talk about what happened in Florida, very strong storms.

(WEATHER REPORT)

[04:50:00]

ALLEN: We've got one for you. A cat takes to the catwalk. We'll show you how a feline crashed a fashion show in Istanbul.

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HOWELL: Istanbul is known as the city of roaming cats and you'll usually spot one.

ALLEN: And now that includes --

[04:00:00]

ALLEN: -- a fashion show. CNN's Jeanne Moos explains how one feline is giving new meaning to the word "catwalk."

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEANNE MOOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): What tends to steal the show at a fashion show is when a model -- or even two models -- completely wipe out.

But at this fashion show in Turkey, it was a cat that ruled the catwalk, doing its grooming on stage instead of behind it, to the delight of the crowd. The cat simply appeared at this Istanbul fashion school show. Models

had to step around it, as it playfully swiped at them.

Istanbul is known as the city of roaming cats, so much so there that was even a documentary about them. This one was said to have entered the show tent from a nearby garden, but strutting as if to the beat of the music.

The fashion editor who shot this video said the cat stayed seven or eight minutes, a longer turn on the catwalk than any of the actual models.

We don't know if the feline fashionista already has a name but if not, Cat Moss was our favorite suggestion, assuming Kate Moss doesn't mind. The cat greeted its fan, even sniffed an outstretched finger.

Hey, who said you can touch the models? -- Jeanne Moos, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ALLEN: And the cat matched the clothes, if you noticed that.

HOWELL: Right on.

ALLEN: We're back with the top news from the campaign trail, three days till polls open.

HOWELL: Stay with us.