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The Lead with Jake Tapper

Extreme Weather Grips The U.S.; FBI: Attacks on Law Enforcement Possible; Achocolypse: Chocolate Supply Shortage

Aired November 18, 2014 - 16:30   ET

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

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JAKE TAPPER, CNN: Welcome back to THE LEAD. I'm Jake Tapper. More now on our National Lead, a rare event happened today and many of you are still experiencing it, all 50 states, including Hawaii, had at least one spot at or below the freezing mark and that's why the weather is our National Lead today.

Let me show you upstate New York right now. This is Depew, New York just outside Buffalo. There is a homeowner's garage is buried underneath all of that. Check out this deer stuck in the show. The homeowner and the neighbor dug a trough for him to escape.

Western New York could get more than 5 feet of snow before tomorrow. CNN correspondent, Martin Savidge, posted this video on Instagram. Sure, it was near freezing when he left Atlanta this morning, but he saw runways covered in snow when he got to New York.

Martin is now live at the epicenter of the storm in Buffalo. Martin, how does it look there now?

MARTIN SAVIDGE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: You know, Jake, it's amazing because Buffalo is divided in two. Northern Buffalo, they've got hardly a trace of snow. Below where we are, they are being inundated with snow. Those are automobiles back there. They are buried in 4 to 5 feet of snow.

Now we're going to show you what is coming our way. Take a look down the street here. This is what happens with this lake-effect snow. It starts off nice and clear and then a few flakes come and then down the street there it is disappearing.

Whiteout conditions, it has been snowing in areas here 3 to 4 inches an hour, 4 to 5 inches an hour and that means, in some places, they are going upwards of maybe 6 feet of snow. In fact, in this area where we are now, road travel nearly impossible.

This is a firestation we're located right next door to. Even the fire trucks have been getting stuck so the first responders are relying on snowmobiles. Volunteers have been showing up with those. If there's an emergency run, they climb on the back of a snowmobile and head down the road.

Again, this is not the hardest-hit area. We're on the edge of this lake-effect snow. Anywhere beyond there is strictly a no-go zone. This is one for the record books in the middle of November in Buffalo -- Jake.

TAPPER: All right, Martin Savidge for us in Buffalo, New York. Stay warm. That rare event is creating thunder snow around the Great Lakes. Meteorologist Chad Myers is joining us. What is thunder snow and how long is this extreme weather going to last?

CHAD MYERS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Yes, it's going to last for a little while longer today, stop tomorrow and then restart on Thursday with new lake-effect snow warnings already posted for Thursday for the same area. Could you imagine 48 inches of snow, 48 in Elma, but only 3 inches of snow at the Buffalo Airport, a 45-inch difference in a matter of three or four miles depending on where you are.

What happens is the steam from the lake -- I know it's not hot, but it's still much warmer than the air. The air is in the teens. The water's in the 40s. The steam comes up and wants to rise. The rise almost creates convection, creates a thunderstorm, but it's so cold it doesn't rain. It just snows.

Those are the snow totals from this storm alone. Here's the Buffalo Airport. I used to park with my dad right there at a place called Twin Fair. People watch the planes take off as a kid and then down here where I lived, 42 inches of snow just 3 miles away.

There's lake effect along almost all of the lakes. Not on this side but on the windward side, that's where the snow happens. This is a firehouse moving into the south towns of Buffalo and the warnings are already posted for today they go down for tomorrow and then back up tomorrow night as more snow is coming in.

So if you go to Buffalo, Lancaster, that is West Seneca and Depew. Farther to the south this is blowing right into Buffalo, New York, itself especially South Buffalo and all the way across to Octavia and this is not going to stop.

Can you imagine 48 inches of snow on the ground in one day and how hard that is to shovel and then the wind is blowing 30 or 40 miles per hour. There will be snow blowing over some houses. The good news is the doors of the homes open inward. You open it up and all you see is a wall of snow right in front of you.

Everyone is basically trying to shovel out and this is heart attack heavy, heavy snow. Please be careful out there. Pets can get lost in this snow. Make sure you know where they are at all times.

TAPPER: Meteorologist, Chad Myers, thank you.

When we come back, the FBI warning that violence is expected as Ferguson, Missouri, braces for a decision from the grand jury in the shooting death of Michael Brown. We'll ask the St. Louis police chief what he's doing to prepare coming up next.

Plus, chocolate has now become so popular worldwide, there is literally not enough to go around. Why it could mean the rich flavor that you've come to love could disappear.

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TAPPER: Welcome back to THE LEAD. I'm Jake Tapper. In other national news, bracing for public protests in Ferguson, Missouri, we are learning today of an FBI bulletin warning that a tax against law enforcement are likely if the grand jury does not indict Officer Darren Wilson in the shooting death of unarmed teenager, Michael Brown.

Tensions are mounting as the grand jury continues to deliberate and the decision is expected really any moment. Missouri Governor Jay Nixon declared a state of emergency and called up the National Guard to help deal with any possible unrest. Moments ago, he addressed local residents and reporters.

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GOVERNOR JAY NIXON, MISSOURI: We have to plan for contingencies. I have a responsibility to the state that we maintain and keep safety and that we protect property and obviously, there were times before in which property was damaged and we're going to do our best to make sure that that doesn't happen.

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TAPPER: Well, he's not the only one taking precautions. Shop owners are boarding up their stores in preparation for the decision and community organizers have asked that police not use rubber bullets or armored vehicles or tear gas or the special riot gear.

With us now from St. Louis, Missouri is St. Louise Police Chief Sam Dotson, whose officers will be taking the lead in any official response to any protests.

Chief Dotson, good to see you as always. The FBI bulletin warns of attacks on your officers if Wilson is not indicted as the suggestion. What are you doing to prepare for that while also trying to avoid any possible overreaction by your forces?

CHIEF SAM DOTSON, ST. LOUIS POLICE: You're absolutely right. Public safety and the safety of our officers is the number one issue. Even in the protest in August, there was gun fire directed towards our officers, rocks and bottles. So we take those threats very seriously.

What our department, along with the county department and highway patrol, are ready to keep people safe, protect their property. But at the same time, allow them to have their voices heard, their constitutional rights.

Our intelligence is good. We've got resources on the ground and we're going to use -- well, the tactics that we need to keep people safe, which includes law enforcement.

TAPPER: What lessons did you learn from the protests this summer and the police response last time that you think will help you keep the peace even better this time? DOTSON: Well, we've had three months to prepare and Ron Johnson and Sam Dotson and John Belmore have sat down with organizers and tried to build bridges, develop lines of communications.

And what we found is that the vast majority of the people that are in St. Louis and will come to St. Louis are doing so just to have their voices heard. It might be a little loud, a little raucous, but they are coming to do it lawfully.

But a small percentage and you talk about it in that FBI bulletin, a small percentage are coming for acts of violence and the governors made it clear and law enforcement has made it clear, acts of violence will not be tolerated. Our intelligence is good, our tactics are good. We can protect lawful people at the same arrest criminals.

TAPPER: So Chief, when I was there over the summer, covering the protest, what seemed to work was when police were spread out all over and what seemed to exacerbate the crowd, to irritate the crowd was when the police were consolidated in one spot and guns drawn, in a standoff situation. I'm wondering if you agree.

DOTSON: And that's what we did see, too. If you put police officers intermingled in the crowd in their everyday uniforms, it creates a relaxed environment. We do festivals, music events in the city all the time and that's our approach.

But at some point, some point during the day, that crowd turned and rocks and bottles started to be thrown at officers and I was even close enough a couple of times to see the muzzle flashers from guns.

That's when we have to go into that protective mode to protect ourselves and to protect the lawful people that are there. That's the real challenge. The tactics that you saw were not directed towards the lawful protesters.

They were directed towards the criminals and that's what you're going to see again. Hopefully by having good lines of communication, building those bridges, the lawful protesters will help us identify the people that are here to break the law for violence.

TAPPER: So chief, when the community organizers ask that police not use rubber bullets, armored vehicles or tear gas and that officers wear their regular uniforms, not their riot gear, what was your response? Are any of these items up for discussion even?

DOTSON: It's great. And this is the message that is not getting out. Those 19 rules of engagement, codes of conduct, we actually agree on at least 12 of them and as recently as this morning, we are on a conference call trying to work through them.

So one of their issues, life safety, we can all agree on life safety. We're going to start out in our everyday uniforms, but if the situation dictates, putting on helmets, we're going to do that to protect our officers so they can protect the public.

And the other thing to remember, things like helmets never hurt anybody. They are there for protection. I know that they are a sign and agitate the protesters, but they keep people safe.

So out of those 19 issues, we agree on at least 12 and the conversations are continuing as recently as this morning.

TAPPER: Chief, how concerned are you by the threats coming from the clan about a lethal response to violent protesters?

DOTSON: I think the clan has survived through rhetoric. I don't see them as relevant in this conversation at all. They are doing the same thing that some of the other extremist groups are. They are trying to work up the crowd and create fear.

What I do know is that law enforcement has a good plan. I know we're going to keep people safe and protesters, demonstrators. We're going to do that. But also we're going to keep the public safe. If you dial 911, our plan with local law enforcement and National Guard will have resources to come to your neighborhood or home if you have a problem.

People are going to be safe. The rhetoric really causes problems, social media causes problems.

TAPPER: All right, St. Louise Police Chief Sam Dotson, thank you as always. Good to see you.

Some breaking news in our World Lead now, we are just learning that a police officer who sustained injuries in the attack in Jerusalem this morning has succumbed from his wounds and police have just issued that statement.

Wolf Blitzer is here with "THE SITUATION ROOM" preview. You're covering the terrorist attack in Jerusalem today. We have word that there were four rabbis and now a fifth person, an Israeli policeman killed?

WOLF BLITZER, CNN HOST, "THE SITUATION ROOM": Yes, one of the Israeli police officers that showed up very quickly, shot the two Palestinian terrorists who went inside that synagogue, killed those four rabbis and then unfortunately now one of those Israeli police officers who was injured seriously injured has now died.

So five people were killed by those two terrorists, the two terrorists who were shot and killed in the process as well, we're going to be covering that story obviously extensively.

Three of those rabbis were dual American-Israeli citizenships. One was a British-Israeli so there are ramifications because three of them were born in the United States, had U.S. citizenship, FBI is now investigating.

TAPPER: All right, we'll have much more on "THE SITUATION ROOM" coming up in 9 minutes. Thanks, Wolf.

Coming up, enjoy that rich chocolaty candy bar while you still can. Chocolate companies are now so worried about the worldwide shortage they say. They are coming up with ideas that could change the taste of chocolate that you've come to love.

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TAPPER: Welcome back to THE LEAD. I'm Jake Tapper. In our Money Lead, a race to save one of our most precious gifts, chocolate. For a lot of you the sweet treat is as good as gold. Once the good stuff runs out, the back-up option could leave a bitter taste in your mouth literally.

It's all about supply and demand and right now demand is winning out the deficit on something that we're calling the achocolpse.

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TAPPER (voice-over): Lucy and Ethel, spit those out! Agustus, climb out of that chocolate river. Johnny Depp, put back that choke late. We're in a cocoa crisis, nicknamed the achocolypse. One that Willy Wonka and his chocolate factory would never have imagined.

The world seems headed towards a chocolate shortage. The first problem is us. According to "The Washington Post," world citizens consumed all of the cocoa produced last year and then consumed an additional 70,000 metric tons. Yes, tons from our reserves.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I can eat about a million and a half of these.

TAPPER: No, Forest Gump, you can't, put it down. There a whole bunch of new chocoholics in India and China, who want to partake as well. Chocolate giant, Mars Incorporated, maker of M&M, Snickers and Three Muskateers is among the chocolate makers who have predicted that if we continue to gorge ourselves at the current rate, demand for chocolate will outpace supply by two million metric tons by 2030.

Now the International Cocoa Organization is downplaying these projections calling them very overstated.

MARK SCHATZKER, FOOD WRITER, "BLOOMBERG": Everyone else I talked to said good luck with that. There really are reasons to be concerned.

TAPPER: Mark Schatzker, a food writer from "Bloomberg," who has followed the trend disagrees.

SCHATZKER: As the world population gets bigger and emerging markets continue to grow and gain wealth, they are eating chocolate and we're running out.

TAPPER: But it's not all our fault or that of our appetites. The second threat to our beloved cocoa bean is nature. Drought and a crop-decimating disease called frosty pod rot have left supplies low. So what is a chocoholic consumer to expect? Well, higher prices and less flavor for starters.

SCHATZKER: As growers start to grow new, more productive variety, we're going to do to chocolate what we have done to tomatoes and chicken and strawberries. We're going to turn them into cardboard and that is the scariest thing of all. TAPPER: Even if your idea of a fine gourmet chocolate comes from the grocery store checkout line, you're likely to notice a change.

SCHATZKER: You're going to see things like more nougat, more nuts. You might see them get a little bit smaller. In the higher end, you'll see the single origin dark chocolates, the very expensive, well-loved products, are going to get more expensive.

TAPPER: So be sure to savor the chocolate that you have now because as Forest Gump warned us the future maybe questionable.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Life is like a box of chocolates. You never know what you're going to get.

TAPPER: That is, if you get a box of chocolates to begin with.

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TAPPER: That's it for THE LEAD. I'm Jake Tapper. I now turn you over to Wolf Blitzer. He's right next door in "THE SITUATION ROOM" -- Wolf.