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Island Nation Declares State Of Emergency; U.S. Official: Operative In Attacks May Have ISIS Ties; Officials Admit They Failed To Act On Warnings; House Panel Subpoenas Ex-White House Counsel; Democrats Split on Pursuing Trump Impeachment; Trump: Nobody Disobeys My Orders; Terror in Sri Lanka; Harry and Meghan Could Be Moving to Africa; Lil Dicky Creates Star-Studded Climate Change Song. Aired 1-2a ET

Aired April 23, 2019 - 01:00   ET

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


[01:00:00] JOHN VAUSE, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: -- suicide bombings on Sunday. The I-word, the Democrats, should they impeach the U.S. President now or wait until 2020 and let voters decide his fate. And Harry and William, the once inseparable royal brothers may be inseparable no more. The so-called distance strategy could see Harry and Meghan move across the world once their new baby has arrived.

A little-known extremist group is suspected in Sri Lanka's Easter bombings but chances are they did not act alone. News officials have identified a key operative in the attacks who may have ties to global terrorism and ISIS. Three churches and four hotels were targeted on Easter Sunday and within the last few hours, the official death toll has risen now standing at least 310 confirmed dead.

And the government has announced Tuesday will be a day of national mourning, with dozens rounded up and arrested, a state of emergency has been declared, and the government has made an official apology for failing to act before the attacks even though it had multiple credible reports from intelligence officials in Sri Lank, India, and the U.S.

For the very latest, CNN's Will Ripley live in Colombo this hour. So, Will, it seems in terms of government screw-ups, this one is beyond colossal. The intelligence was right, the system totally failed.

WILL RIPLEY, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hey, John I'm having a little bit trouble hearing you because of the ambient noise out here and our signal, but I will tell you that it is a somewhat chaotic and busy scene here. I mean, look out on the streets compared to what we saw when we arrived here in Colombo last night when the streets were empty and that nationwide curfew was in effect.

That curfew was lifted within the past several hours. And now there is traffic in this neighborhood which is a short distance away from Saint Anthony's Shrine which is one of the churches that was targeted by the -- what the government calls suspects and these suicide bombings. They say they have identified six suicide bombers, and one of them a church not too far from where I'm standing right now.

Which is why it was surprising to us when we passed by this shrine here in a neighborhood near the church and despite warnings from the government to avoid you know, this kind of public gathering due to safety concerns and the possibility there could be other suspects out there even though they have already arrested dozens of members that they say could be tied to a terror organization possibly inspired by ISIS according to the U.S., but these people are unafraid.

They are here, they are praying for the more than 300 people who were killed in these horrific Easter bombing attacks. Attacks that sources say bear all the hallmarks of international terror.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RIPLEY: Tonight a state of emergency in Sri Lanka and a race to track down a terror network before it strikes again. In Colombo, the bomb squad performing this controlled detonation of a suspicious van near Saint Anthony's Church, one of the sanctuaries targeted in a wave of deadly bombings on Easter Sunday.

This new video shows a man state T.V. calls a suspect in the St. Sebastian's Church bombing. Church officials say a bomb in his backpack. One of six suspects wearing backpacks seen walking into churches and luxury hotels just before a series of eight explosions rocked this South Asian island nation.

U.S. and Indian intelligence agencies had warned Sri Lankan authorities for days. A local Islamist group was plotting an attack. The government apologizing for the massive intelligence failure promising to compensate victims' families.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is an attack on everyone, definitely. This aggression just doesn't have any explanation.

RIPLEY: Interpol and the FBI are now assisting as investigators uncover evidence of what could be a much larger terror plot. Police found 87 detonators at a Colombo bus station. They diffused a six- foot pipe bomb on the main road near the airport. A U.S. official tells CNN the attacks are ISIS-inspired.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Suddenly came a big sound, with a big noise and broken glasses, and dust. All the people are shouting, weeping, and we can't realize what happened.

RIPLEY: Bomb after bomb, city after city, it was a terrifying Easter Sunday across Sri Lanka. The primary targets, four hotels full of foreigners and three churches full of Christians. One blast rocked St. Sebastian's Church at the end of Easter Mass. A thousand worshipers ran from the horror.

Lifeless bodies, blood-stained pews, debris, and human remains propelled through the sanctuary into the streets.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: there were children, there were women and all close by and all were blown off almost. So we have more than 100 people who killed on the spot.

RIPLEY: The violence reminiscent of Sri Lanka's bloody 26-year civil war. The fighting ended ten years ago next month. Tonight a new threat putting this entire nation on lockdown. Normally busy streets empty, a nationwide curfew in effect and growing fears an international terror group may be silently plotting its next move.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

[01:05:17] RIPLEY: And that was the scene last night when the streets were empty which is what makes the scenes today so remarkable. I want to chat briefly with (INAUDIBLE) Fernando, one of the -- one of the folks who's out here. Is there any fear of being in public areas right now? There are so many people gathered together to pray and yet it was people who were praying on Easter Sunday who fell victims of the bombers.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Many people died on that day, on Sunday morning mass. So more than 220 people died --

RIPLEY: Are you afraid -- are you afraid to gather here in public.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.

RIPLEY: Are you fearful of gathering in public?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Gathering in public -- the people -- today is Tuesday, they are mourning the dead people. We praying for the --

RIPLEY: (INAUDIBLE) thank you very much. So obviously people out here, John, gathering despite the fact that they have been warned by the government that there might be more suspects out there. But they say they need to be here to show their faith and solidarity with those who were killed.

VAUSE: Will, think you. Will Ripley there live for the very latest from Colombo. Thank you, Will. To Washington now with Bob Baer, CNN's Intelligence and Security Analyst and former CIA Operative. So Bob, before this weekend, this local terror group, (INAUDIBLE), best sort of known for mouthing off and vandalizing Buddhist statues.

And now there's this new reporting from CNN's Barbara Starr amongst others, the U.S. believes it's identified a key terrorist operative in the attacks in Sri Lanka and has initially concluded that person has connections to international terrorism organizations including ISIS. This is according to two U.S. officials.

Is there any way these guys could have made this job from you know, amateur hour to the big leagues without the help of ISIS or al-Qaeda.

BOB BAER, CNN INTELLIGENCE AND SECURITY ANALYST: No, there's absolutely no way. They needed help. The group is too small. It was well coordinated. Six bombings and one of them involved two suicide bombers. All the detonators went off as far as we know. The explosives were full explosions and so forth. And it was just too well coordinated, too professional to be anything other than a group like al-Qaeda or the Islamic State. They could not have done this on their own. VAUSE: That leaves the question just how big is this threat from ISIS? You know, the Trump administration about a month ago was dancing on the grave of ISIS. U.S. backed forces liberated the last piece of territory controlled by the terror group. I want you to listen to the Secretary of State Mike Pompeo speaking on Monday. Here he is.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MIKE POMPEO, SECRETARY OF STATE, UNITED STATES: We've taken that threat down substantially. The destruction of the caliphate was important and it mattered, and that is -- and the takedown of these threats from other geographies as well. But sadly, this evil exists in the world.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: So I guess the issue here is what is your definition of substantial?

BAER: Well, he's misinformed. They're just propaganda. I mean, this group -- everybody -- anybody who knew the Islamic State or even al- Qaeda knew that they were going to strike out somewhere else at a soft target. They weren't going to die with the caliphate. Some of their franchises out there, it's an ideology, it continues on.

And as long as there's conflict in the Middle East, this groups going to be around and you can completely wipe them off the map in Syria and even Iraq and they'll still exist in various parts of the world.

VAUSE: We're hearing from the far right especially now that you know, these were Christians attacked you know, apparently with the help of ISIS or al-Qaeda or al-Qaeda rather. The leader of France's National Rally Party Marine LePen tweeted out, "My thoughts so once again with the persecuted Christians around the world." She adds, Those who died on Sunday were targeted for their faith.

Over at Fox News, the headline (INAUDIBLE) Sri Lanka Easter Massacre highlights how Christian persecution is on the rise across the world. But do the numbers actually support that claim? I mean, because overwhelmingly the number of terror victims are Muslims.

BAER: Oh absolutely, hundreds of thousands of them died in Iraq and Syria. And then -- and then you have Christchurch as well. So I mean, it's you know, very few churches have been attacked. Le Pen has forgotten Paris was just attacked on a concert, had nothing to do with Christianity, it had to do with the West.

But you know, going back to your point, so many more people have died in drone attacks with the war in Syria and even Iraq. It's silly to you know, Christianity against Islam. It's this you know, this clash of civilizations that the far right is pushing that you know, we have to defend ourselves against immigrants, against -- Islam is going to invade Europe if we don't do something which is just that's fascist propaganda. VAUSE: I guess more immediately the concern is how you know, despite

repeated warnings, the Sri Lankan government simply missed this unable to stop it. Listen to what one government minister tells CNN's Ivan Watson.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

[01:10:03] SAJITH PREMADASA, HOUSING MINISTER, SRI LANKA: It's a shock to the whole country. But we will also apply shock therapy to ensure that terrorism will be eradicated.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: You know, he said it was a shot of the whole country, but here's the thing, it didn't come as a shock to everyone, not even close. Intelligence services in India and the U.S. told Sri Lanka of the threat in early April, officials said. One memo compiled by Sri Lankan security officials was so specific that it even gave a list of suspects in the run-up to the holiest day of the Christian calendar. The warnings actually increased in frequency and urgency.

Take a look at the April memo. It details the house number and the cross street where the group's recruiter could be found, and the times he would be there. I also have a reporting from the York Times that there was evidence of a growing Islamist threat way back in January. Police uncovered a huge stockpile of weapons. How can such precise information be out there and not acted on?

BAER: Well, it's going back to the Sri Lankan government is still suffering from the Civil War and there's still ethnic divisions there and you know, it's been on the verge of the civil war breaking open again and the police services aren't sharing information. I mean, it's -- that's why the Islamic state if in fact, they were behind it picked Sri Lanka knowing that they could move a lot of people in and recruit a lot of suicide bombers and it wouldn't come to the attention of the government.

VAUSE: Harsha de Silva who serves as a Minister within the Sri Lankan government told CNN this attack was not the result of bad intelligence but rather what we have here is a failure to communicate.

HARSHA DE SILVA, ECONOMIC REFORMS MINISTER, SRI LANKA: It was not a failure of the intelligence apparatus, it was a failure of implementing what had to be implemented. So the question is why was it not done? And also the Prime Minister was unaware. He was kept in the dark. The acting or rather the state minister for defense was not aware, and the president was on a private visit overseas.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: It's incredible when the President is overseas so he didn't tell the Prime Minister what was going on.

BAER: Well, the country has got problems. But yes, you know, stovepiping existed before 9/11 when the CIA failed to tell the FBI about two hijackers, potential hijackers in San Diego. So let's be fair about that. You know, it's -- intelligence services often don't coordinate. But this is especially egregious when they've identified suicide bombers by address and apparently by name. It's just -- it's egregious. And I'd -- you know, I'm not sure how you cure it there but it's clearly a very dangerous country and there are more bombs out there that are still missing, I understand and you know, it's not a good place to hang out in hotel lobbies.

VAUSE: Very, very quickly. If you fail to implement the intelligence, then the intelligence is failed, right?

BAER: Well, the people collecting it, you know, you got to -- you know, they're doing just fine. It's just they don't have a way to transmit it through the government. And we don't understand the political divisions in Sri Lanka which would prevent this. But clearly they better reform themselves or they're going to be in a lot more trouble.

VAUSE: Yes, absolutely. Bob, thank you. Good to see you. Thank you. While investigators try to work out what happened, families are mourning at this hour and the Sri Lankan city Negombo, a memorial service underway for victims at St. Sebastian's Church. Dozens of worshipers attending Easter services were killed at that church in all the series of bombings have left at least 310 people dead.

And we are learning more details about those who died in Sunday's attack. Shantha Mayadunne was a popular T.V. chef in Sri Lanka. Her daughter posted a picture on Facebook from the Shangri-La Hotel there on an Easter breakfast when a blast struck moments later killing them both.

A British family is also caught up in that Shangri-La attack -- hotel attack. Anita Nicholson died along with her two children Alex and Annabelle. Her husband Ben survived. He says his wife and two children could light up any room bringing joy to the lives of all.

A Danish billionaire also lost members of his family. Anders Holch Povlsen owns a clothing company Best Seller. The company says three of his children died in the attacks. Several Americans were also killed in this coordinated suicide bombing attack. Dieter Kowalski was from Colorado. He worked for a publishing company. Just arrived to the hotel when the attacks began. His mother confirmed his death on social media. And there will be many more stories to come.

Still come here though, the question that will not go away for Democrats running for president. Should Donald Trump be impeached? One leading candidate just made a big move towards the yes camp. We'll tell you who. It wasn't her. After the break, she's already there.

[01:15:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(WORLD SPORT HEADLINES)

VAUSE: Democrats in the U.S. Congress are picking up the Russia investigation where Special Counsel Robert Mueller left off. The Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee has subpoenaed former White House Counsel, Don McGahn, as part of their obstruction investigation.

McGahn told investigators he refused to follow Trump's directives to fire the Special Counsel Robert Mueller, will any of these will lead to impeachment, remains an open question. During a series of CNN Town Halls on Monday, Democrats running for 2020 appeared to remain divided.

Let's head to Los Angeles. And Former L.A. City Councilwoman Wendy Greuel, and Conservative Commentator and Podcast Host, DeAnna Lorraine, so great to have you with us. It's been awhile, so thank you for coming in.

WENDY GREUEL, FORMER COUNCILWOMAN, LOS ANGELES CITY: Nice to see you.

DEANNA LORRAINE, CONSERVATIVE COMMENTATOR: Thanks, John.

VAUSE: OK, so for Democrats running for president, this is a question which is not going away. A few hours ago, we had the CNN Town Hall palooza, when asked if the House should begin impeachment, there was, you know, a variety of answers, there was a yes, but, there was an outright and frantic yes, and a dodge.

Our first here is, California Senator Kamala Harris, now in favor of impeachment when it came to the but.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. KAMALA HARRIS (D-CA), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I believe Congress should take the steps towards impeachment. I'm also a realist, and I have not seen any evidence, since I have been in the United States Senate, that the United States Senate and the Republicans hold the majority.

I've not seen any evidence to suggest that they will weigh on the facts instead of on partisan adherence to being protective of this president.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: Harris joins Senator Elizabeth Warren who was one of the first Democrats, in fact, the first Democrat running for 2020, to call for impeachment. Here she is.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. ELIZABETH WARREN (D-MA), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: This is not about politics. This is about principle. This is about what kind of a democracy we have.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[01:20:12] VAUSE: No ifs and buts from her, stark contrast to Senator Amy Klobuchar, who dodged. Here she is.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) SEN. AMY KLOBUCHAR (D-MN), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: The impeachment proceedings are up to the House. They're going to have to make that decision. I am in the Senate, and I believe that we are the jury.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: So, Wendy, first to you, has the problem been for the Democrats, that they are working out the politics first, and then deciding what is the right thing to do? Shouldn't they first decide on what is right and then worry about the politics?

GREUEL: Well, I think they are waiting to have that kind of testimony from Bob Mueller directly, that they are seeing about the possibility of whether it could actually pass, and determining what is the best step forward.

Many of the candidates are talking about the fact that individuals want to hear about healthcare, their, you know, climate change, so many other issues that are impacting their daily lives, and are trying to balance that with how they feel from a moral and ethical perspective, related to the Mueller report and President Trump.

VAUSE: But Diana, there is this, sort of, wing of the Democrats who desperately, you know, really, they vehemently want to impeach President Trump, and that seems a challenge for, you know, not just these Democrats running for 2020, but also for the Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi.

GREUEL: You mean, Speaker Pelosi --

VAUSE: Sorry, Diana.

LORRAINE: The Democrats should write a book called mastering the art of moving the goalpost, because all they want to do is just cling to this unproven theory, this unproven conspiracy theory, really, at this point, that they feel that Trump should be impeached.

He has done some impeachable crime, and that he colluded with the Russians in order to get elected. And so, therefore, this just undermines the millions of people who actually voted for President Trump and his policies, and it undermines the President. They've been doing this from day one. I don't think it's a smart platform to run on.

Let's impeach President Trump when we have zero evidence of any kind of high crimes and misdemeanors. He has defended himself from a manufactured crime that he never committed, and now that they are saying that that is obstruction of justice, that's what they're trying to get him on.

You know, they are so desperate. They just want to throw anything against the wall.

VAUSE: I want to give you --

LORRAINE: But it's not going to work. VAUSE: I want to give Wendy a chance to reply to that. Wendy?

GREUEL: Well, look, the Mueller report was over 400 pages, two years of investigation, there are clearly instances of potential of obstruction of justice. So they want to have a true conversation out in the public, not redacted, out in the public and transparent.

And so, that is part of the process that they will go through. Does that mean that all of these candidates are going to talk every day about impeachment? No, they're going to talk about the most important things that are focused on people's lives, every day.

VAUSE: Meanwhile, over at the --

LORRAINE: I sure hope so.

VAUSE: -- Easter Egg Roll at the White House, Senior Trump Aide, Kellyanne Conway, found another reason why the President could not be impeached. It's good. Listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KELLYANNE CONWAY, SENIOR AIDE OF DONALD TRUMP: You can't impeach a Republican president or something the Democrats started, which is this ridiculous investigation that has cost us $25 million dollars, over 2,800 subpoenas, 500 witnesses, million plus pieces of paper having been produced.

And, of course, let's get through the process very quickly. The Special Counsel provides a report to the Attorney General, who, in (INAUDIBLE) with the Deputy Attorney General, offers legal counsel, decided there was no obstructive conduct. They could not bring obstruction charges. They made that decision.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: OK. DeAnna, you speak Republican, so what is she talking about?

LORRAINE: Well, she's talking about the fact that we already had a Special Counsel investigating President Trump and all of his aides, for the last two years, 500 search warrants, over 2,800 subpoenas. So, somehow, the Democrats feel that they can do a better job of investigating Trump for this supposed Russia collusion than Bob Mueller and his whole team have been doing for two years.

And the other thing is that, Robert Mueller was their hero for the last two years. You know, William Barr was also their hero, up until the point where they pointed out the truth, the facts that they did not find any obstruction of justice and they did not find that he colluded with the Russians.

VAUSE: Wendy --

GREUEL: I don't think William Barr was ever their hero.

LORRAINE: -- they're willing to throw him under the bus here. Now, they don't like the answer that they were told --

VAUSE: Wendy (INAUDIBLE) the answer to every question, though, at the end of the Mueller's report?

LORRAINE: Somehow, they can do a better job of investigating President Trump. I don't think so. And I think it's a dumb platform to run on.

VAUSE: Wendy?

GREUEL: Well, look --

LORRAINE: The Americans want to move on.

GREUEL: William Barr was never their hero, and also, you might want to listen also to what President Trump said about Mueller, which is one day, he's his best friend and he's the greatest thing since sliced bread, and the other day, he doesn't like what he is saying.

Look, the role of Congress is oversight by the Senate and the House, a very important role that they are taking seriously. And, in fact, if you look, what Mueller has done over the last two years, how many people were indicted and pleaded guilty for many of the crimes.

[01:25:06] So, I think it is important to note that this was not a waste of time. It is focusing on the fact that Russia was involved in the election and that there needs to be further discussion to ensure that that does not happen again.

VAUSE: You know, one narrative which is emerging from the Mueller report, is that this is a President who would be in a lot more trouble if those around him did as they --as he told them to do.

This is one of the Mueller report, the President's efforts to influence the investigation were mostly unsuccessful, but that is largely because the persons who surrounded the President declined to carry out orders or accede to his requests. Not so, says President Trump.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TEXT: Are you worried that your staff is ignoring your orders, as the Mueller report portrays?

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Nobody disobeys my orders.

TEXT: Are you worried about impeachment, Mr. President?

TRUMP: Not even a little bit.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: DeAnna, there are documents out there -- documented examples, rather, under oath, his aides, saying they refuse to follow his directives, everything from, you know, assassinating Syria's dictator, to firing Robert Mueller, and it raises the question, who's running the country, the President or his senior aides?

LORRAINE: I believe that the President is definitely running the country, but I think that sometimes, he gets compromised, you know? I think there are things that he wants to do, policies he wants to enact, and he can't seem to move forward with them in Congress. He can't seem to get his wall, built. He can't seem to enact intelligent immigration policies.

There are a lot of things that he wants to be doing that Congress is not cooperating with him for. So, that, I believe, was -- is what the blockades are. They're preventing him from really bringing forth his America first policies, and the platform that he ran on, the policies that he promised that he would run on.

But I definitely believe that he's doing everything in his power to steer the country in the right direction.

VAUSE: We're almost out of time. Wendy, I've got one more question for you, and this is a tweet from the President saying he's not worried about being impeached because only high crimes and misdemeanors can lead to impeachment.

There were no crimes by me, no collusion, no obstruction, so you can't impeach. It was the Democrats that committed the crimes, not your Republican President. Tables are finally turning on the witch hunt.

And I want to pick up on the last line, about the Democrats, and we'll head over to the twilight zone, otherwise known as Justice with Judge Jeanine on FOX News, and an interview with the Head of Judicial Watch Tom Fitton. He explains how the Democrats are guilty here and it's the President, who is the victim.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

THOMAS FITTON, HEAD OF JUDICIAL WATCH: They all knew there was never Russia collusion, and they concocted pre-textual intelligence reports, working also with the Clinton campaign, as part of that, to go after President Trump with an elicit and unprecedented, unprecedented spying campaign, you know.

It's not just a DOJ, FBI scandal, Judge, as you point out the CIA, the NSA, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence --

JEANINE PIRRO, HOST, FOX NEWS: Yes, DNI.

FITTON: -- and the State Department, were all part of this.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: We've got only a minute left, so, Wendy, first to you, then DeAnna to finish up. That is quite the conspiracy! I mean --

GREUEL: That is quite the conspiracy there. Now, the one thing that all of those entities agreed on, is that Russia was involved and engaged in our election. And they had, you know, had credible information about that, and similarly, when Trump fired Comey. That was another instance of people saying wait a minute, so, you know, it just is beyond the pale of the fact that he would suggest that they colluded, so to speak, together, to go against President Trump.

VAUSE: And DeAnna, the President is angry at Don McGahn, his former, you know, White House Counsel. He's angry with a lot of people but he's not angry at the Russians. Why is that?

LORRAINE: Well, because I don't believe that the Russians had people, like myself, walk into a voting booth and somehow elect Donald Trump. I don't believe that he believes that the Russians were responsible for having these millions of people, or holding them hostage, somehow, to change votes. They didn't.

And every time that they say that the Russia collusion, it sounds like you are undermining the voices of those millions of Americans, and that didn't change. Those votes were not changed, right? So the people that he does need to be upset about, is the government, the powers that be that have colluded.

We have seen so many people from these different modules that said that they have an insurance policy against President Trump, you know? And they're going on T.V., writing books about President Trump and how anti-president -- I mean, the bias is so clear that there was collusion with the Democrats and not with President Trump.

VAUSE: I'm going to give you the last word, DeAnna, because we haven't seen you for a while, so we'll that. We're out of time.

LORRAINE: Good to be here.

VAUSE: Thank you so much. And also Wendy Greuel, good to see you as well, thanks guys, appreciate it.

GREUEL: Thank you so much, John.

VAUSE: With that, we will take a short break. Next up on CNN NEWSROOM, a country on edge, Sri Lankans struggle with the aftermath of the Easter attack, even a controlled explosion by police was enough to send many, into panic.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[01:33:11] JOHN VAUSE, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome back to our viewers in the United States and around the world.

I'm John Vause with the top stories this hour.

The U.S. House Judiciary Committee has issued a subpoena to former White House counsel Don McGahn. The panel is investigating whether President Trump obstructed justice during the Russia investigation.

Meantime House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is trying to tamp down talk of impeachment. She says lawmakers should investigate first before jumping to impeachment. The Easter Sunday attacks in Sri Lanka were likely inspired by ISIS,

according to at least one U.S. official. The U.S. believes it has identified a key operative in the blast who may have ties to ISIS and global terrorism.

The death toll has now officially risen to 310 -- all victims when bombers targeted churches and hotels. Sri Lankan police say they have arrested at least 40 people in connection with the suicide bombing wave.

Sunday was one of the deadliest terrorist attacks since 9/11. And Sri Lanka has not violence like this since the end of the civil war. And the nation is now in shock. So much so that even a controlled detonation by police was enough to cause panic.

Ivan Watson was there.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

IVAN WATSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice over): After Easter Sunday's deadly wave of suicide bomb attacks, Sri Lankan police aren't taking any chances.

(on camera): Nerves are still very much on edge here in the Sri Lankan capital. Security forces are investigating a suspicious vehicle down there, treating it as if it could be booby-trapped.

(voice over): Moments later, the bomb squad carries out a controlled detonation. The powerful blast surprises nearly everyone, triggering panic in the neighborhood.

Later, police say the suspect vehicle had indeed been rigged with explosives. It was parked a stone's throw away from one of Colombo's Catholic churches.

[01:35:04] (on camera): This is St. Anthony's Shrine. It is one of several Catholic churches to have been attacked on Easter Sunday. The mood here the day after is somber.

Sri Lanka has extensive experience with deadly acts of political violence. And yet a top official tells me the scale of these terror attacks is something entirely new for this country.

SAJITH PREMADASA, MINISTER OF HOUSING, CONSTRUCTION, CULTURAL AFFAIRS: We need to talk to the whole country. But we will also apply shock therapy to ensure that terrorism will be eradicated.

WATSON (voice over): But while talking tough, the government issued a public apology on Monday. A government minister published excerpts of this memo earlier between security chiefs. citing an unnamed foreign intelligence service, it warns that a homegrown Islamist extremist group was planning suicide attacks against Catholic churches. Senior government officials asking why the warning was apparently ignored.

PREMADASA: There has been a breach of security, and there has been some negligence and incompetence. WATSON: The vicious attacks frightening members of Sri Lanka's small

Christian community.

Sister Ramoshini Fernando (ph) says her father was wounded in the blast.

SISTER RAMOSHINI FERNANDO, SRI LANKAN NUN: If they kill me, it is ok. I do not have family. I offered my whole life for them for love of god. But killing these innocent people, those who have families, it is really painful to see.

WATSON: The church clock at St. Anthony's shrine, now appears to be frozen to the hour when the suicide bombers struck.

Ivan Watson, CNN -- Colombo.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VAUSE: Russia says it's too early to congratulate Ukraine's president-elect, too early to talk about closer relations. This comes after the stunning win by political novice Volodymyr Zelenskiy.

Exit polls show he won about 73 percent of the vote, easily defeating the current president Petro Poroshenko. It was Poroshenko who played hardball with Russia. Moscow had been at odds with Kiev since the Kremlin-backed regime there was kicked out of Ukraine in 2014. And that led to Russia's annexation of Crimea.

Still to come, a royal baby is on the way, and the birth could be followed by yet another major move. We will tell you more when we get back.

[01:37:27] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

VAUSE: Royal watchers are eagerly -- eager -- eagerly waiting the arrival of baby number one for Prince Harry and Meghan Markle. But that life-changing experience might trigger another. The couple may reportedly move to Africa, or Australia, or Canada some time next year.

Notably (ph), Buckingham palace has not confirmed the news reports, but has not denied them either.

For more, journalist Josh Boswell is with us from Los Angeles. So Josh -- here's the statement from Buckingham palace about Harry and Meghan and their plans post-baby.

"Any future plans of the Duke and Duchess are speculative at this stage. No decisions have been taken about future roles."

Here's the problem. It's speculative because there's no denial from Buckingham Palace. If it was total fiction then surely they would've issued some kind of statement to say as much.

And so it just keeps the story alive, as does this statement we have from a royal source to CNN. "The Duke of Cambridge will be supportive of his brother, the Duke of Sussex, in whatever project he undertakes, as he has always been."

So "whatever project he undertakes", put all this together, and where are you at?

JOSH BOSWELL, JOURNALIST: Well, if it was me who has come up with this story and, reported this in the "Sunday Times" which is the one that broke it, two former colleagues of mine -- absolutely formidable, brilliant journalists -- I would be jumping for joy with those two statements.

I'd say bingo, that's confirmed it. Because the palace, you're right, would have come out very strongly and said no, this is not true. They often will do that with significant stories, you know, at least they want to put out into the media saying that it isn't true.

But it's very interesting to see that Africa is among those areas that have been talked about as, you know, a destination for the couple. There's a real strong connection that Harry has, Prince Harry, with Africa, dating right back to after his mother died. That was, you know, the first safari he went on.

His father Prince Charles took him and his older brother to a safari in Africa to kind of take them away from it all. And right after that happened and then his kind of his love affair with the continent. And especially with Botswana. It kind of grew from there.

Of course, his third dates with Meghan, they'd only -- ostensibly only met twice before, and then third time they met they decided to go on a five-day camping trip in Botswana, and that's where it's thought that they fell in love.

So there's, you know, a lot of talk that Botswana will be the location for this -- supposed planned trip away for them.

There is some discussion, though, over the details of it. Now, of course, the palace may well be telling the truth there in their statement. They said that nothing has been decided yet, essentially.

VAUSE: Right.

BOSWELL: And the "Sunday Times" reported that it was I think two to three years that they were looking at, and that will be kind of traditional. If you look back to the Queen and Prince Philip, they want to Malta in 1949 for a couple of years.

VAUSE: Right. I'm looking at the "Sunday Times" because you mentioned. Because this is where it all began. So here's part of their reporting.

"Courtiers have drawn up plans to hand the Duke and Duchess of Sussex a major international job that could see them moving abroad after the birth of their child. Prince Harry's advisers are working on a 'bespoke' role for the royal 'rock stars', probably in Africa," as you say. The other countries which are being mentioned -- Australia as a possibility, maybe Canada. The reaction in Australia though has been (INAUDIBLE) "not on your life, you limey, we don't want you here", even though the royal family is very popular there. Canada also seems to be a no. The problem though, and there's so many times (INAUDIBLE), wherever they go, they will end up being the king and queen of whatever that country is.

BOSWELL: That's right. There is this push and pull there that I'm sure the palace is trying to deal with. I think part of the political strategy of this move is to maintain some kind of control over Harry and Meghan whilst also giving them their own perceived freedom.

At the moment, they have been pursuing kind of unconventional projects for royals. For example, a TV show with Oprah Winfrey that's going to focus on mental health that they're helping organize. That's something pretty unusual for a royal couple to do, a senior royal couple.

And then when they go abroad, you know, they're going to have more of a traditional royal family role, I think even though they have more freedom. It's a move for the royal family to get some more control there.

VAUSE: It's also this rumored split between, you know, the brothers William and Harry, which is the sort of the bigger context in all of this.

[01:45:01] The "Daily Beast" sums it up this way. "Amid rumored fears by palace staff that Meghan and Harry could be bigger than Diana, the brothers who were once inseparable appear to be doing everything they could to keep out of each others way as they shuffled awkwardly into church for an Easter service."

And here is the photo. Harry on the left of the screen, and then to the right we can see there is Kate and William by William's side. And the headline in "People Magazine" describes it as a distance strategy.

And if it was just this one photo, it might be considered to be a little think but this isn't the first time they've been seen at arm's length.

And very quickly -- adding to the speculation is an Instagram post from Prince William. It was to celebrate his grandmother's 93rd birthday on Sunday, the Queen. It was taken in 2016 to the "Tribute and Color Parade" (ph), not the official birthday of Britain's monarch.

But many have noticed that Meghan is nowhere to be seen in that photograph. Harry can barely be seen. Some of the comments are, "Interesting choice of photo, almost like you're looking for trouble. Is there not enough room with speculation going around, why fuel the fire?"

Oh dear, me thinks someone is missing from the photo, #RoyalPassiveAggressive. It's interesting especially that Instagram photo. There are a thousand different photos which William could've posted. And it does seem like he's throwing some royal shade. BOSWELL: It's possible. I would not read too much into these photos.

However, you're right. He, you know -- and the people running his Instagram account. I'm not sure exactly how much involvement he has in every single post. I'm sure he has some ultimate sign off but yes. They would've thought how people are going to react to these photos. And posting something that doesn't have Meghan Markle and barely has Harry in it.

Of course, some of those comments are right. That might fan the flames. But also, you know, maybe it's just an oversight.

VAUSE: Yes.

BOSWELL: It's hard to tell at this stage. However, it is pretty clear that there have been some divisions or some kind of friction between the two brothers and their spouses.

VAUSE: Josh, there's no such thing as a coincidence. Come on, we all know that.

Good to see you. Thank you for coming in.

BOSWELL: You too, John. Thanks

VAUSE: Be well.

A short break and when we come back it seems after almost 50 years, earth day getting a little tired, losing some of its buzz. But then came rapper Lil Dicky, and his new music video, like the Lion King but still with profanity and stuff. Lil Dicky joins us after the break.

[01:47:15] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

VAUSE: Well for anyone who noticed Monday April 2nd was Lenin's birthday. The leader of Russia's October Revolution was born 149 years ago. Happy birthday, Vlad.

And Monday to anyone who noticed as well was earth day. The one day of the year set aside to honor the earth. And despite almost 50 years of organized environmental events from beach cleanup to entire countries dimming their lights, the reality is the degradation of the planet not only continues but seems to have quickened to a pace which now means we're facing an environmental apocalypse brought on from global warming, probably about 12 years from now.

But in the spirit of "We are the World" with celebrities coming together using their star power for good and not evil, climate change now has its own anthem, "A Call to Action".

(MUSIC)

VAUSE: In case you didn't pick the baboon's voice there, it was Justin Bieber, one of more than 30 A-list stars enlisted by rapper and comedian Lil Dicky to make that music video which has gone viral in just days. Lil Dicky also known as David Burd joins us now from New York. Thanks for coming in.

DAVID BURD, RAPPER AND COMEDIAN: Sure.

VAUSE: I know you shy away from these comparisons with "We are the World", but you know, there are so many big names on this project, we're just going to start scrolling through them because we can't possibly name all of them.

We also have on that list Ariana Grande who plays a zebra, and also (INAUDIBLE) who is the lion cub. Here we go. Listen to this.

(MUSIC)

VAUSE: It does have that kind of "We are the World" feel to it. So why aren't you sort of took keen with that association?

BURD: Well, it's just so surreal, you know what I mean. I'm thinking about like Quincy Jones, like probably the best producer of all time, like to orchestrate that whole thing. I don't know. It feels surreal to me.

I understand because it's a lot of artist in one song coming together for a cause. So I mean I guess I am just humbled by the comparison.

VAUSE: Well, were they pretty eager volunteers to sign up for this?

BURD: Yes. Honestly, yes. like you know, I started reaching out to my best friends that were artists, you know what I mean? And like once you enlist five to seven of your friends, it's easier to go to an artist who is more of an acquaintance who you don't know as well and say hey I have got this song with Ed Sheeran, Charlie Puth, Justin Bieber. You know, you start listing the names that are on and then they're more inclined to say yes, and then it just snowballs.

But honestly, really no one said no, everyone was really into the idea.

VAUSE: It's amazing how once you get a few numbers it picks up speed it's like a snowball and sort of ends up being unstoppable.

BURD: Yes.

VAUSE: The video has some sort of Disney Lion King feelish to it. That is until you hear the words. Then it kind of sounds sort of more like a Weird Al Yankovic song which is almost, you know, almost a parody. I mean the language in the adult version is quite explicit. Why use such explicit language in it?

BURD: Well, you know, I'm not sure if you are familiar with my work, but it's like sometimes, you know, I am kind of comedic.

VAUSE: Yes.

BURD: And I tend to push boundaries every now and then. I thought if I made too watered down of a product it really wouldn't be -- I hate to go third person -- it really wouldn't be a Lil Dicky song. So I kind of felt compelled to really keep it the way my songs normally are. But I did put out a kid's version for children because I feel like they need to see this.

VAUSE: Yes. And it's very -- for moms and dads, it's safe to watch. It's safe for the kids. And already you've had, you know, 26 million hits on YouTube. It's top five on iTunes. It's moving up the streaming charts. And according to the "Chicago Tribune", you just made earth day cool.

[01:54:59] I guess that's the last point. We've had, you know, decades of environmental awareness because of events like earth day. And yet knowing the consequences seem to have little impact on our action.

BURD: Sure.

VAUSE: So how can this one song change that?

BURD: You know, what I was trying to achieve with the song is just, kind of get everyone on a base level understanding of knowing the facts at hand and just like -- or at least being interested in looking into the facts at hand, you know what I mean.

Like this song itself is kind of the journey, it was a discovery process for me. Like three years ago I knew that there was this vague, vaguely I knew that there was a big environmental issue on earth. I didn't know the details of it.

As I made the song, I really felt compelled to investigate the facts. And I was just blown away by the urgency and the immediacy of the issue. I think a lot of people kind of assume that, sure, we are doing bad things of the earth, but it's going to come into play 10,000 years from now, a million years from now.

I don't think people realize that it's well within our lifetimes that massive things are going to start to occur. So I think I just wanted people to really, just I believe in humanity. I feel like people just aren't really embracing the facts at hand. So I hope this song compels people to understand the facts.

VAUSE: And that I think is probably, you know, one of the great benefits to all this is that, you know, people tune out. So if you can make people listen, then that's awesome.

BURD: Yes.

VAUSE: So thanks for being with us. Appreciate it -- David.

BURD: Thank you for having me. I appreciate it.

VAUSE: And thank you for watching CNN NEWSROOM. I'm John Vause.

Please stay with us. I have a lot of news after a very short break.

You're watching CNN.

[01:56:23] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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