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Interview with Sen. Tim Kaine (D-VA), Discussing President Trump's Comments on the Mass Shooting in New Zealand; Death Toll Reaches 50 In New Zealand, 36 Hospitalized; Black Boxes From Ethiopian Airlines Crash Being Analyzed; Omar's Anti-Israel Comments Slammed By Jewish, Muslim Constituents. Aired 8-9p ET

Aired March 16, 2019 - 20:00   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ANA CABRERA, CNN ANCHOR, NEWSROOM: You are live in the CNN Newsroom. I'm Ana Cabrera in New York. And this weekend, the people of New Zealand are in mourning. Still deeply in shock just days after the worst-ever act of gun violence there.

The official death toll just went up a short time ago. Officials confirming now that 50 people are dead. Victims of a terrorist rampage Friday, while they prayed in two different mosques in Christchurch. Dozens more people were wounded by the gunfire. Some of them children. Some of them still in critical condition.

Today, we learned the accused gunman, a 28-year-old Australian, sent a long, hate-filled manifesto to the New Zealand prime minister's office just minutes before the deadly attack began.

This is his first court appearance. He is now charged with murder. Let's go live to Christchurch, New Zealand. And CNN's Martin Savidge. Martin, awful news just a couple of hours ago that the death toll went up by one. Tell us how the people there are bearing this unimaginable weight.

MARTIN SAVIDGE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It is, especially for the people of New Zealand, because they have always considered their nation to be so safe. And, in many ways, away from all the other violence that seems to have impacted other parts of the world. And now, of course, they can no longer say that.

We're standing in an area that I guess you could call the epicenter of emotion right now. It's the center of Christchurch. It's the botanical gardens. It has now become a place where people gather and try to come to grips with what has happened in this relatively small country.

And the news of the death toll going up, first and foremost. It's 50 people who have died and 50 people who are wounded. It is not the fact that somebody passed away that was in hospital. Apparently, there was a -- one individual who had gone unaccounted for in the system. So, that's the reason the death toll has gone up. It could go higher, unfortunately, because there are people still in critical condition; 38 people who remain hospitalized.

And then, this is also a day of not just mourning but also hearing about the heroes. And more and more, there are heroes that are brought out. There is one man who was inside the mosque of the second attack. And he decided to act. He acted in a number of ways, trying to draw the gunman's fire on himself. Trying to lure the gunman out of the mosque into the parking lot. And, at one point, he was even able to pick up one of the gunman's discarded guns and throw it through his wind shield. Here is some of what he said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ABDUL AZIZ WAHABZADAH: He dropped his gun. And because (INAUDIBLE) gun on me as well and he just ran. And because he thinks I had no gun on me. This guy tried to get more gun from his car. When he seen me chasing him with a gun, he sat on his car and I just got that gun and throw it at his window an arrow and blast his window. And he thought probably I shot him or something and the (INAUDIBLE) came back and just he drove off.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SAVIDGE: You just heard a really remarkable story of someone who decided rather than wait, he wanted to try and do something to stop the gunman. Let me show you, Ana, just some of the scene here. The botanical gardens here have now become, kind of, a new kind of garden that's springing up. People bringing all sort of floral displays. They're bringing signs. And, in many cases, they're bringing their children and their families. It's a garden of grief, I guess you could say.

But it's also a place where people are just coming together, as both a community and as a nation. You can probably see over here. Just it grows and grows and grows. People leave mostly flowers. But they leave notes. And, in some cases, they leave mementos. It's been a steady rain that's been falling here. But the crowd just continues to grow. It is a way of sharing. And it is a way of just trying to come to grips with what is still very much a nation in shock -- Ana.

CABRERA: Our hearts are with all of them tonight or I know it's in the afternoon there. Martin Savidge, thank you for that live report.

Joining us now to discuss the bigger picture, retired FBI supervisory special agent, James Gagliano, and the chairman for the Oregon Coalition Against Hate Crime, Randy Blazak. He is extensively studying hate crimes and racist extremist groups. So, thank you both for being here. James, first to the investigation. What do you think's happening right now at this stage? We learned this man, the attacker, I believe attacked one person, had been planning this for, potentially, two years.

JAMES GAGLIANO, CNN LAW ENFORCEMENT ANALYST: Yes, absolutely. No matter how many years you spend in law enforcement as a profession, no matter how numb you think you can come to these type of horrific, horrific scenarios, how calloused you are, the level of the inhumanity and depravity that took place there, it really is -- it's just soul shattering. Law enforcement has to separate that. And they have to get to the job at hand.

[20:05:00] And the most important thing right now, because we know that the shooter is in custody, were there any other accomplices? And, Ana, the way that terrorism works, it's like an iceberg. So, the tip of the iceberg is that shooter. That person. But underneath that are the sick offence (ph), the accomplices, the potential accomplices. The people that believe in that ideology.

No matter what the perversion of ideological issues are, we have to track those folks down. We have to monitor those folks. We have to monitor them in the darkest recesses of the webs. And, in this instance, we've got to make sure there are no follow-on plots that come along.

CABRERA: And we do know that there were three other people taken into custody in the hours after this horrific attack. One of them was released. No charges. Two other people are facing charges but we're told are unrelated to this attack. They do not believe those two other people who are facing charges were involved in any way. But, Randy, an 87-page manifesto sent to the --

RANDY BLAZAK, CHAIRMAN, OREGON COALITION AGAINST HATE CRIME: Yes.

CABRERA: -- prime minister's office, we're learned. The attacker also built social media into his plan, even streaming this attack live on Facebook. What does this tell you about the mindset of this alleged attacker?

BLAZAK: Well, I've been talking to these people for over 30 years now, in a way, more than that. I grew up in a Klan town in Georgia. And what we know is that this world attracts sociopaths. People with sociopathic personalities are drawn to the world of hate. It gives them a place to put all their anger. I mean, this is an individual who shot children. Who shot three and four-year-olds. He shot a four-year-old boy named Abdullah. He's the same age as my young daughter.

The -- this is a certain type of personality that's drawn to this world of hate. And so, we look at these manifestos and after the fact, but we can, sort of, do the diagnosis fairly easily and see how their psychology drove them to this world where they found a willing audience for their anger at the world.

CABRERA: The U.S. and its allies, we know, have spent years building a network, in order to share intel about international terrorists. But, James, does the same thing happen when it comes to domestic terrorism?

GAGLIANO: Absolutely. So, we know that New Zealand is part of the five eyes, right? So, you've got the U.K. You've got the U.S. You've got Canada, Australia and New Zealand. We share everything. We share military intelligence. We share signal intelligence. And this type of intelligence as well.

Right know, we know that the FBI has 5,000 open terrorism cases; 900 of those are domestic terrorism related. And the rest of them are international terrorism related. In that domestic terrorism, you've got KKK, white supremacists, black panthers, sovereign citizens. It's a whole panoply of different type of hateful ideologies.

The problem is, how do we find out who is serious online and who is not? And Facebook and some of these other social media platforms are trying to figure out a way to stop things like live streaming these events which is what happened here.

But the other part of it is, we cherish our civil liberties here. We cherish our First Amendment, and we cherish our privacy protections. How do we match that up? Because New Zealand is about the closest to our level of permissive gun society, meaning our Second Amendment here. Australia is much stricter. New Zealand, not so much. How do we make sure that we protect all those rights and civil liberties and not turn this into a police state but prevent something like this from happening again.

CABRERA: Well, and, also, tracking on the Web. Because you mentioned the impact of social media here.

But let me turn to just the impact of this actually attack here, Randy. How does this type of attack differ in the trauma people feel afterward?

BLAZAK: Yes, we know that hate crimes hurt more. We've got really good research that shows not only the immediate victims have longer- lasting trauma, but the members of those communities. And that spreads far and wide across the globe. I was at a memorial service yesterday here in Portland at a mosque, and you would have thought we were in Christchurch. It really affects community much more emotionally. People change their behavior. People become more full of fear and anxiety and that fear lasts a longer period of time.

So, people that have experienced hate crimes in the past will be retriggered by events like this. And that anxiety level comes up and it adds to the division within communities. That people cannot have, sort of, have the normal cohesive fabric that communities have because they're so full of fear over who is on their side. Who the next attacker is going to be. And it, really, just, sort of, undermines all the good work we do in communities.

CABRERA: Gentleman, I want to get to somebody who has been deeply impacted in that community in Christchurch. So, I have to wrap it there. Randy Blazak and James Gagliano, as always, it's really nice to talk to both of you. Thank you for sharing your expertise with us.

Aliya Danzeisen is a Muslim community leader and she is the lead coordinator for the Women's Organization of the Waikato Muslim Association. She's joining us now from Christchurch, New Zealand. Aliya, thank you for being here. My condolences to you, your entire community and all the people there in Christchurch. Give us a sense of how the Muslim community is coping with the aftermath of this tragedy.

ALIYA DANZEISEN, LEAD COORDINATOR, WOMEN'S ORGANIZATION OF THE WAIKATO MUSLIM ASSOCIATION: The Muslim community in Christchurch is surviving. We're taking a deep breath after getting the news last night of the list of the dead. And, this morning, we're coordinating to begin releasing the bodies to be prepared for burial.

[20:10:13] And so, there's been a breath this morning. People have been able to sleep a few hours. And now, we're preparing for what will be a very tough day.

CABRERA: I can imagine. We have seen leaders and, really, people from all around the world showing solidarity, condemning this attack and the anti-Muslim hate behind it. And, yet, you have some far-right leaders who have used this as an opportunity to attack Muslims. What's your reaction to that?

DANZEISEN: Our reaction is more asking the leaders, who are leading nations and are leading the communities, to stand up and be the examples of what quality leadership is. And to do the right thing. And to not -- condone and support -- and not support people like this. And -- but, also, to put some action to their words. It's good to say the right words, but it's more important to do the right thing.

And when you see somebody doing something wrong, whether it's on the street, whether it's in a classroom or whether it's in your own parliament, you need to stand up and say, no, it's unacceptable. And you need to tell everybody in your community how a good person behaves because this is not what a good person does.

CABRERA: I love what you just said. It's as simple as that, as standing for what is right, treating others how you want to be treated. Given that there this is anti-Muslim sentiment at it -- and attitudes out there, what do you think needs to happen? What do you want, beyond people standing up against this type of thing? How do you break this?

DANZEISEN: Well, you start recognizing that Muslims are no different than any other person. We love. We care. We work. We support. And there are 1.7 billion Muslims in the world who have been working very hard for many years with little support from other communities. And you need to start with recognizing we're your neighbors. We're your doctors. We're educated. We support you. And instead of creating us as an other, we are you.

And so, you should treat us just like your brothers and sisters. And look, again, at the good that we've been doing. And recognize, just like this person clearly had some mental problem, you know, we've been ostracized by a few in our community. And you wouldn't want that to happen here, and that's the same thing that we would ask that you haven't done to us. But it's occurred. And we are now becoming, in my opinion, what happened in the 1930s in Europe to the Jews. We are now that new hated community. And we shouldn't be.

CABRERA: Sorry you feel that way. Are you afraid?

DANZEISEN: No, I'm not afraid. Because New Zealand actually is -- has been one of the most peaceful countries in the whole world. It's the most transparent country in the world. And, ironically, the most Islamic country in the world. In 2010, going forward, research was done on how compliant New Zealand is to Islamic values.

We have been a very subtle Muslim community here, and I am very safe here. And you will see people walking by me. I just came to this spot for this interview, and people have been hugging me and tapping me on the shoulders supporting me. And that's New Zealand. And I'm not afraid of New Zealand. I am afraid of hatemongers who are in other places who are bringing that hate here.

CABRERA: Wow, we identify what's in your voices. It's powerful. It's important. And thank you for sharing your thoughts and your presence with us.

DANZEISEN: Kia Kaha (ph). Thank you.

CABRERA: Thank you. Here's how you can help the victims of New Zealand terror attacks. Go to CNN.com/impact. We'll be right back.

[20:14:44]

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CABRERA: Joe Biden, if he was good at the political tease before, he's really perfected it now. As speculation continues to swirl about whether he will jump into the race, he just wrapped up speaking at a Democratic Party fund-raiser dinner in Dover, Delaware, his home state. And the people who introduced Biden hyped up his run even before he took the stage. Watch this.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SONIA SCHORR SLOAN, DEMOCRATIC ACTIVIST: I've worked on every one of his campaigns and I told him a few weeks ago, I have one campaign left in me for him. So, pay attention.

SEN. CHRIS COONS (D), DELAWARE: I'm confident 598 days from now, we will, together, be celebrating a new president. Folks, I am praying for that man. And I am excited to hear from him just a few minutes from now. And I am confident. That's our Vice President Joe Biden.

GOV. JOHN CARNEY (D), DELAWARE: In my humble opinion, we have never needed Joe Biden more than we need him right now.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CABRERA: CNN Political Reporter Arlette Saenz is joining us now from Dover. She was there listening to it all. Clearly, she people want him to run. What is Biden saying?

ARLETTE SAENZ, CNN POLITICAL REPORTER: Well, Joe Biden really walked right up to the edge, almost announcing a presidential bid here in his home state of Delaware. You heard those other Delaware Democrats who were urging him that he should enter the 2020 race.

[20:20:09] But take a listen to what he had to tell the crowd when he almost let it slip that he's going to jump in the 2020 race.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE BIDEN (D), FORMER VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I'm told I get criticized by the new left. I have the most progressive record of anybody running for the United -- anybody who would run. Ah, I didn't mean it. Of anybody who would run.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SAENZ: So, you heard Joe Biden catch himself a little bit there, saying he was talking about anybody who would run. But the former vice president, really, offered a bit of a preview of a message he could bring to a presidential campaign, saying that the nation has currently engaged in mean and petty politics. And that Americans need rise above that and remember who they are as a country. He was saying that this is a battle for the soul of America. We'll see if he -- if this was just test-driving that. But we'll see if there's any further message in an announcement in a few weeks.

CABRERA: All right. Arlette Saenz, glad you were there. Glad you could bring that to us. The reaction of the people in that room was interesting.

All right, Robert Mueller might have new plans for one of Paul Manafort's former aides. We'll break it down for you with a former federal prosecutor who worked with Robert Mueller, when we come back. Live in the CNN Newsroom.

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[20:26:00] CABRERA: Special Counsel Robert Mueller made a key reveal on Friday about one of his star witnesses. Mueller is not done with Paul Manafort's long-time right-hand man, Rick Gates, who is still cooperating in several ongoing investigations, Mueller's team says.

Mueller's office says he's not ready for sentencing. They said check back in 60 days. Gates was Trump's deputy campaign manager. He was a senior official on the president's inaugural committee.

Let's discuss it with Michael Zeldin. He served as special assistant to Robert Mueller at the Justice Department and is also a former federal prosecutor. So, Michael, could this mean Gates is helping New York prosecutors investigating Trump's inaugural committee finances?

MICHAEL ZELDIN, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: Absolutely. The bad news for President Trump and those who wish him well are that the Gates' case is ongoing, and that includes several ongoing investigations. That could be the inauguration. He was, as you said, the deputy campaign chairman. So, it could be things related to the campaign. We just don't know whether it's Mueller, whether if it's the Southern District of New York, whether it's New York State prosecutors. But it's not good news for the president that this case is ongoing.

CABRERA: We do know one of Mueller's top prosecutors, Andrew Weissmann, is leaving the team.

ZELDIN: Right. CABRERA: Steve Bannon once referred to Weissmann as the Lebron James of money laundering in investigations. Michael, what does Weissmann's departure signal to you about the current focus of Mueller's investigation?

ZELDIN: So, Weissmann was the lead prosecutor on the Manafort case. He also appeared in the Gates case. It makes some sense that Weissmann would leave now that Manafort is done, federally. And that he would pass this over to Greg Andres, his deputy, to continue with the Gates part of the case. It could, therefore, mean just that Weissmann is leaving or it could signal that Mueller is indeed winding down. He's losing one of his key guys, because there's not much more to do.

CABRERA: But, yet, we were just discussing that Gates' case, obviously, has not wrapped up just yet. We also learned that Michael Flynn, the information he gave to prosecutors, is still being utilized in some way in other investigations. Although, they did say they'd be ready to move on, in terms of his sentencing, and done with his direct cooperation with Mueller's investigation.

Do you think Mueller has abandoned efforts to interview President Trump?

ZELDIN: Would it appear so. It would -- it would seem to me if, at this point in the case, all we have is written questions and answers and we see no indication that Mueller is moving toward a subpoena, you would think that Mueller has made a determination. Either he can't win a subpoena fight or doesn't want a subpoena fight. Or he feels he has all the evidence he needs because the president has been pretty cooperative in making others available for interviews and in turning over documents so that Mueller can feel that I have all I would have gotten if I had an interview. So, let's move on and close this down and let this be handled by the other U.S. Attorney's Offices that I've passed off the collateral cases to.

CABRERA: What's the chances we see more indictments?

ZELDIN: Well, we -- I think we will see more indictments for sure out of Southern District of New York, out of the Manhattan District Attorney's Office. We just saw one against Manafort the day after or the day of, actually, Manafort's sentencing. I think there's still stuff that is going to be investigated with respect to the Trump Organization in the financial crimes' investigation.

I just don't know, Ana, if we are completely done with the so-called collusion part of the investigation. That is Mueller's counter intelligence and coordination mandate. That seems like it's winding down but Mueller's been pretty tight lipped, as you know, and so we just are guessing.

CABRERA: You mentioned former Trump campaign chairman, Paul Manafort, who was hit with these new charges by New York prosecutors, moments after his final sentencing in federal court which adds up to seven and a half years in prison when combined with the first case, do you see any potential double jeopardy argument in the charges brought by New York State prosecutors?

[20:30:11]

ZELDIN: Possibly. Double jeopardy usually means you can't be tried by the same sovereign twice. Here, you've got two sovereigns. The federal government and the state government. Usually that does not violate double jeopardy.

But New York has a strange statute. A very strict statute. So if the evidence in the federal convictions was the basis for the state trial, then I think Manafort has a good double jeopardy case.

But remember Manafort was found guilty of a few things, but the jury hung on a lot of things. So if it's the hung jury counts that is going to be the basis for the evidence in the New York State case, then the state prosecutors have the better argument of it.

But we just don't know yet from the indictments in New York, what it is that is overlapping and what it is that is different.

CABRERA: All right. Michael Zeldin, thank you so much.

ZELDIN: Thanks, Ana.

CABRERA: Fifty people killed. Fifty others wounded. An update on the shocking mass shooting in New Zealand, next in the CNN NEWSROOM.

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[20:35:37] CABRERA: Thirty-six survivors of the New Zealand mosque shootings remain in the hospital this Saturday night. Two of them are in critical condition. A 5-year-old girl was shot in the face, abdomen and leg. She is in serious condition. The suspect remains in custody, charged with murder.

All this as New Zealand grieves for the 50 people dead from this rampage. A terrorist rampage, apparently fueled by hatred of Muslims and immigrants. Now, for his part, President Trump expressed sympathy for the victims of the massacre, but he also downplayed the threat posed by white nationalism. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: These scared places of worship were turned into scenes of evil killing. You've all been seeing what went on. It's a horrible, horrible thing. I told the prime minister that the United States is with them all the way, hundred percent. Whatever they need, we will be there.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Do you today white nationalism as a rising threat around the world?

TRUMP: I don't really. I think it's a small group of people that have very, very serious problems. I guess if you look at what happened in New Zealand, perhaps that's the case. I don't know enough about it yet. They're just learning about the person and the people involved. But it's certainly a terrible thing. A terrible thing.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CABRERA: Joining us now, democratic senator Tim Kaine of Virginia. He's a member of both Foreign Relations and Armed Services Committees. And he's with us from Colombia today where he's being briefed on humanitarian crisis in neighboring Venezuela. Senator, thank you for the taking time. I definitely want to get to

what you are doing there.

KAINE: Absolutely.

CABRERA: In just a moment. But first, we just heard from the president. Did he say what he needed to say in the wake of this tragedy?

KAINE: Ana, no, he didn't. He needs to call out white supremacy. What unified the shooter in the Charleston Church? What unified and motivated the shooter in the Pittsburgh synagogue? What unified and motivated the shooter in New Zealand? It was a white supremacist and bigoted ideology that's a threat.

And when he says he doesn't think it's a significant threat, that's what he said after Charlottesville. In my Virginia, when a paralegal was killed and two state troopers that I know lost their lives trying to bring order to a situation where white supremacists and neo-Nazis descended upon Charlottesville.

It is a major problem. He should call it out. But if he doesn't call it out, those of us who care about creating safer communities, we need to call it out.

CABRERA: But tragedy there in New Zealand has once again put the spotlight on the rhetoric around immigration. The attackers' manifesto was filled with anti-immigrant, anti-Muslim ideas. Talked about, quote, "invaders," for example.

And then yesterday, the president made this comment about many of the people trying to come into the United States.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: We're on track for a million illegal immigrants to rush our borders. People hate the word invasion, but that's what it is. It's an invasion of drugs and criminals and people.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CABRERA: Nothing is in a vacuum, Senator. So, what do you see as the impact of a statement like that?

KAINE: Well, Ana, when the president calls people coming to America's border invaders within the same few hours that the manifesto has been released by this horrific criminal in New Zealand talking about invaders. [20:40:03] I mean, this kind of language from a leader of the great nation in the world causes massive problems around the world. We need to tamp down that rhetoric. The president should know that he's got to call out white supremacy. He should be doing that. He should be expressing sympathy to the Muslim victims of these crimes. He didn't use those words as he reached out.

Clearly, these people were targeted because of their religion. We are a country that respects a diversity of religion. And my heart goes out not only to the victims and their families but to Muslims anywhere, or people who feel that they're persecuted because of their religion.

That was the cause of this crime. And again, leaders have to take seriously this white supremacy movement that sadly is in many nations. But leaders of good will have to fight back against it.

CABRERA: Back to the issue of immigration. You're on the border with Venezuela. A country that has been experiencing political violence as well as the blockade of humanitarian aid.

You've actually urged the White House to designate temporary protective status to Venezuelan nationals in the U.S., so they're not forced to return to Venezuela amid the chaos. Are you hopeful that will happen?

KAINE: I certainly hope that it happens, Ana. The situation in Venezuela is so challenging. I'm standing here in a warehouse. I can look at a garage door here in 300 yards and see a bridge. The bridge of unity over a river into Venezuela. All this aid that's here which is here, from the U.S. and other nations, from the Venezuelan people.

The dictator Nicolas Maduro has closed the bridge and so we can't get it across inside the country. People are coming to Cucuta, Colombia where I am right now to go to calling orders at soup kitchens and to get help a small scale. Help that's offered by NGOs with the help of the United States and many other nations.

But we should be delivering aide into that country. It is a -- it is a disaster and humanitarian catastrophe.

Thank goodness the national assembly of Venezuela has recognized that there's an absence of a legitimate president. Acting pursuant to the Venezuelan constitution. They have elevated to the status of interim president, the leader of the national assembly, Juan Guaido.

The U.S. and 55 other nations are supporting that use of the Venezuelan constitution and were looking for ways to not only support this new government with humanitarian aid, but support the people who are suffering from lack of medical care, lack of food, look of water.

Now, there's a blackout in Venezuela without electricity. We need to be providing all the help we can to the new government to get this aid across the bridge so that people can be helped.

CABRERA: Our thanks to Senator Tim Kaine in Colombia. Now, as we continue to cover the investigation into the Christchurch attack, I want to take a moment to remember the victims. The 50 people who were murdered as they gathered for Friday prayers.

This is Naeem Rashid. He was 50 years old. He have lived in New Zealand for seven years and he taught at a university. Both he and his 21-year-old son, Talha Rashid were killed in this attack.

Khaled Mustafa came to New Zealand last year as a refugee from Syria. He went to the mosque Friday with his two sons. One of them just underwent a six-hour operation in the hospital.

And Haji Daud Nabi. He was born in Afghanistan but moved to New Zealand more than 40 years ago. Seeking asylum. He had five children. Four sons and a daughter.

We have some information about how you can help the victims of the New Zealand terror attacks. Just log on to cnn.com/impact. We're back right after this.

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[20:45:20] CABRERA: A new clue today in the wake of the Ethiopian Arline's crash that killed 157 people. The New York Times reports there's evidence suggesting the pilot's battled the plane's automated system. And if that's true, it would represent a troubling link to another recent air disaster involving the same type of plane.

CNN's Oren Liebermann has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN JERUSALEM CORRESPONDENT: Work here is moving forward on the so-called black boxes from either Ethiopian Airlines flight 302. The flight data recorder and the cockpit voice recorder.

We've learned from the BEA spokesman that the work is progressing. And if all goes well, it may be done by the end of the weekend. Downloading all of that raw data and then begins the analysis. The understanding of what was happening not only with the pilot's on board the aircraft, but also with the aircraft itself, its systems and its mechanics.

Meanwhile, according to the New York Times, a piece of evidence found at the crash site in Ethiopia may very well link this crash to a Lion Air crash from back in October in Indonesia which used the same 737 Max 8 aircraft.

That piece, according to the Times, is a jackscrew. And it sets the position of the stabilizer on an aircraft. It was found in a position at the crash site that would have had the stabilizer put the plane in a nosedive position. That would force an airplane to go very fast and force an airplane to dive which right after takeoff is very unusual and very dangerous. The question, why was it in that position? It could be from pilot input. It could be from auto pilot. But it also could be from the MCAS system. An automated system designed to help a pilot avoid a stall that would put an airplane in danger. It is that MCAS system that's under investigation in the Lion Air crash.

If it's the same system here, that may indicate a wider problem across the 737 Max series of aircraft and certainly a big problem for Boeing.

[20:50:08] How will they find out if it was that system? Well, that's right here behind me and that's the information that's on those so- called black boxes. On the flight data recorder and on the cockpit voice recorder which is why the work happening here behind me at the BEA French aviation investigators is so crucial.

Oren Liebermann, CNN, Le Bourget.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CABRERA: Record flooding hitting parts of the Midwest and the water continues to rise. The worst flooding in 50 years is being fueled by the powerful bomb cyclone that just hit the center of the country. Its moisture is being added to the seasonal snow melt. And take a look at Nebraska. At least 37 people were rescued from flood waters.

Many communities across the regions still remain under flood warnings. The Missouri River is more than two feet above its flood stage and it's still rising. The Missouri highway patrol is tweeting road closures. This one is for the interstate north of Kansas City.

A breakthrough today in the execution style murder of a mob boss. New York police announced the arrest of 24-year-old Anthony Camello. No charges are filed yet. But police says finger prints left at the scene led to his arrest.

Reputed crime boss Francesco "Franky Boy" Cali was shot multiple times in front of his Staten Island home on Wednesday. He died at the hospital. Police are still working on a motive, but believe the shooting was not related to the mob.

Congressman Ilhan Omar made history when she became the first Somali- American sworn into Congress. She's also one of the first two Muslim women who are serving in Congress. But that groundbreaking moment is now being overshadowed by her comments on Israel. Many of her own constituents, Jewish and Muslim alike, are frustrated and angry.

CNN's Sara Sidner has this story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MOHAMED AHMED, AVERAGE MOHAMED ORGANIZATION: When David Duke of the Ku Klux Klan agrees with you, you're not doing something right.

SARA SIDNER, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Mohamed Ahmed voted for Minnesota House Representative Ilhan Omar. Omar Jamal campaigned for her. Like Representative Omar, they are Somali refugees who became American citizens in her Minnesota district.

Seeing her, the first Somali-American voted into the House of Representatives, was the epitome of the American dream realized.

OMAR JAMAL, SOMALI ACTIVIST: It was beyond imagination. History has been made.

SIDNER: But then came her stream of comments. February 10th when responding to a tweet about being chastised by politicians for comments about Israel, she tweeted, "It's all about the Benjamins, baby."

Inferring the criticism was because politicians are being influenced by American supporters of Israel. She later deleted the tweet.

On February 27th, she said something and later tweeted something which many took as questioning whether Jewish-Americans' loyalty was to America or Israel.

REP. ILHAN OMAR (D), MINNESOTA: I want to talk about the political influence in this country that says it is OK for people to push for allegiance to a foreign country.

SIDNER (on-camera): What do you make of her comments? Do you see them as divisive? Do you see them as anti-Semitic?

JAMAL: I think, yes, I see them as anti-Semitic.

AHMED: So this is anti-Semitic. There's no doubt about it. You can equate it for us Muslims with the Sharia Law issue.

SIDNER (voice-over): Ahmed says Muslim-Americans' loyalty is often questioned and she should know better. During all this, former Ku Klux Klan Grand Dragon, David Duke, sent a tweet with a heart-eyed emoji about Omar. Duke is referring to Israel by calling it ZOG. Initials for the Zionist Occupation Government.

STEVE HUNEGS, EXECTUVE DIRECTOR JCRC MINNESOTA & DAKOTAS: One can be critical of Israel without resorting to anti-Semitism.

SIDNER: Some of Omar's Jewish constituents say they are hurt and worried.

HUNEGS: It's consistent with things that anti-Semites say. The piece about allegiance to a foreign country. We use the word. I use the word appalling. And it's appalling on its face. The accusation, the canard of dual loyalty against Jews has a long and ugly history.

SIDNER: Steve Hunegs is with the Jewish community relations council. He says he met with Representative Omar the week before her allegiance comments. He showed her a photo of his cousin he says was killed fighting for America in World War II.

But after he and other Jewish leaders talked, she made the comment that worried them the most.

AVI OLITZKY, SENIOR RABBI, BETH EL SYNAGOGUE: It was really scary. It was really terrifying to see that these were the words of one of our potential elected officials representing us on the national level that it really drove to the heart of the fear for many of us.

SIDNER: At a local coffee shop in her district, her supporters say they do not think she's anti-Semitic.

ANDREA HALVERSON, MINNEAPOLIS RESIDENT: I think we're throwing baby out with the bath water here if we just tear her down as a really incredible political leader that she has been. And basically turn this into a smear campaign against her. I think that's a huge mistake.

SIDNER: Omar has apologized for some of her comments and explained herself.

OMAR: When I talk about places like Saudi Arabia or, you know, Israel or even now with Venezuela, I'm not criticizing the people. I'm not criticizing their faith. I'm not criticizing their way of life.

SIDNER: What has many worried is whether the controversy is distracting her from governing.

HALVERSON: I feel like we have basically bigger problems that we need to handle collectively.

SIDNER (on-camera): Do you think she's able to govern after these comments and after the controversy that is happening?

JAMAL: It's going to be very difficult. If anything else, this will do some disservice to the constituency.

AHMED: We're exhausted. She's only been in Congress for less than three months and we are exhausted.

SIDNER (voice-over): Exhausted by the controversy he believes is distracting from other pressing issues in her district.

Sara Sidner, CNN, Minneapolis.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CABRERA: And that does it for me and this hour of CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Ana Cabrera. Thank you for being here. Stay with us for "THE EIGHTIES" next here on CNN.

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