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Obama Facing Pushback on U.S.-Cuba Relations; Tearful Optimism Erupts in Cuba; Sony Cancels Release of "The Interview"

Aired December 18, 2014 - 06:00   ET

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

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: These 50 years have shown that isolation has not worked.

CHRIS CUOMO, CNN ANCHOR: There's much ingrained doubt and anger.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This president is the single worst negotiator we have had in the White House in my lifetime.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Finally to have the freedom to resume a positive and constructive life.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Sony should fight fire with fire. I cannot think of another moment like this in modern movie history.

BRIAN STELTER, CNN SENIOR MEDIA CORRESPONDENT: I cannot think of another moment like this in modern movie history.

JAKE TAPPER, CNN HOST: All major movie chains are now giving in to fears.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Certainly the studio has bowed to the enemy.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The ruble losing half of its value to the U.S. dollar.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Russia's budget is squeezed and hurting.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CUOMO: Good morning, welcome to new day, it is Thursday, December 18th, just about 8:00 in the east, I'm Chris Cuomo, coming to you live in little Havana, Miami. The name could note a home away from home. This is a very complex generational and intense issue. We'll take you through it from here, Alisyn.

ALISYN CAMEROTA, CNN ANCHOR: Again, Chris, we're so happy to have you on the ground there taking the pulse of the people in Miami. I'm Alisyn Camerota along with Michaela Pereira in New York. We are tracking other big stories.

U.S. officials pointing a finger at North Korea in the hacking of Sony Studios. And Sony outright canceling the planned release of the controversial movie "The Interview." Also, we're monitoring Russian President Vladimir Putin. This is a

live press conference right here. This is -- he's speaking to his country amid the growing economic crisis in Russia.

So Michaela and I will have more on all of those stories in a moment. But first, Chris, we want to get to you with what's happening on the ground in Miami.

CUOMO: All right. Here's the big headline, guys. Things will change between the U.S. and Cuba. The president changing 50 plus years of isolation. That means easing travel, trade and economic restrictions on the island nation.

The surprise move has now set off a major political fight on Capitol Hill. But it extends far beyond. What will it mean and for whom is very much in doubt. Except for one thing: it means Alan Gross is coming home to the United States. He's a government contractor. He's freed by the Castro regime after five years in prison.

Now, this moving image, did you see this? It's Gross celebrating his freedom on a U.S. government plane after taking off from Cuba, obviously. Watching the news -- where else? -- on CNN, on NEW DAY.

So we've got this developing story covered from every angle. Let's begin with the White House, Michelle Kosinski, and this is a big day. This is all about the narrative now, what this means and how, Michelle.

MICHELLE KOSINSKI, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Right, Chris. And after 1840 days, more than five years, Alan Gross was released from a Cuban prison and flew back to America to hugs, popcorn, a corned beef sandwich and the biggest, most stunning change in U.S./Cuba relations in five decades.

A bold move, not exactly welcomed by everyone, though. Some members of Congress now vowing to aggressively thwart it.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: How does it feel to be a free man?

KOSINSKI (voice-over): The release of Alan Gross, much more than a happy reunion; now the sudden reestablishment of diplomatic relations with Cuba -- Fidel Castro's brother still at the helm -- has erupted into another political firestorm.

SEN. MARCO RUBIO (R), FLORIDA: This policy contradiction is absurd. And it's disgraceful for a president who claims to treasure human rights and human freedom.

KOSINSKI: Especially from Hispanic lawmakers, who felt left out of the discussion, some possibly running for president next round.

SEN. TED CRUZ (R), TEXAS: We've been consistently alienating and abandoning our friends and allies and, at the same time, appeasing and coddling our enemies. First it was Russia; then it was Iran. Today it's Cuba.

KOSINSKI: And not only Republicans.

SEN. ROBERT MENENDEZ (D), NEW JERSEY: It's a fallacy to believe that Cuba will reform because an American president opens his hands and the Castro brothers will suddenly unclench their fists.

KOSINSKI: President Obama spent a day explaining.

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We want to see greater freedom. Greater prosperity. Greater opportunity for ordinary Cubans.

KOSINSKI: This, the first time, an American president has reached out to Cuba since its revolution in the 1950s, will mean an embassy in Havana, removing Cuba from the list of state sponsors of terror, and opening some commerce, though not tourism for now, first steps lauded by U.S. business and agriculture.

OBAMA: It is the right thing to do. Today America chooses to cut loose the shackles of the past to reach for a better future.

KOSINSKI: Cuba has agreed to release dozens of political prisoners and open the Internet and connectivity to its people. Critics say, not nearly enough. Plus, a spy swap, including a Cuban convicted of conspiracy to murder, rankled many, for whom this subject is still raw.

The president knew it was coming, addressing that reaction before it even started.

OBAMA: Let me say that I respect your passion and share your commitment to liberty and democracy. The question is, how we uphold that commitment. I do not believe we can keep doing the same thing for over five decades and expect a different result.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KOSINSKI: The White House says, you know, we have relations with China, Vietnam, other countries that don't exactly have a stellar human rights record, and they see this as a path towards meeting those human rights goals eventually.

But some members of Congress are already threatening not to fund a new embassy in Cuba, not to confirm a new U.S. ambassador to Cuba. And even saying those words, U.S. ambassador to Cuba, pretty amazing, Chris.

CUOMO: You know, it's a good point, Michelle. And it does remain to be seen how much of this can get done by just the president alone. It was very interesting to see President Obama and the Cuban leader, Raul Castro, now delivering their contemporaneous speeches, almost, about this coordinated effort.

And it reminds us of what happened with their handshake at Nelson Mandela's funeral. Everybody said that shake may have been about more. It may have been about the talks and other things.

Let's get to Patrick Oppmann. He's in a place where there's definitely joy over this situation, and that is in Havana -- Patrick.

PATRICK OPPMANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, joy, disbelief, tears. Cubans had no sense that negotiations were going on. They had no sense that an easing of tensions between the U.S. and Cuba were in the works.

And you took a couple hours for Raul Castro to address the Cuban people here. So for a couple of hours, it was literally us, the foreign media, were telling people that this had happened yesterday morning. And they looked at us like we were crazy.

And then Raul Castro came on TV, and immediately you could hear cheering. People had tears in their eyes. There was stunned disbelief.

And what, really, this opens the way for now, of course, you know, the embargo isn't going anywhere. But the changes yesterday take away some of the teeth of the embargo. And yesterday, for the first time in the three years that I've lived here, Chris, I heard Cubans talk about how they expect things now to get better, that in their minds at least, the excuse the Cuban government always falls back on, that it's the embargo's fault -- it's the embargo's fault that the economy here never improves, that is somewhat lessened. And now the onus is on the Cuban government to improve the lives of its citizens -- Chris.

CUOMO: Patrick, there's no question there's hope now, but you know, hope is an appetite. And we have to see if it gets satisfied by the regime there. Back here in the U.S., the response has very strong and very divided, largely along generational lines.

I want to bring in Alina Machado now.

You know, this is your hometown. You know what the situation's like. This is where it happens, right? Right here.

ALINA MACHADO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: This is where it happens. Any time there's anything that comes out of Cuba, this is where Cubans come. They gather; they have very heated discussions, as you saw last night.

And in this particular instance, we saw generational divides as you mentioned. We tend to see the younger Cuban, to be a little more open about change on the island and also in terms of relations between the U.S. and Cuba.

Those older generations, the people who came here in the '50s and the '60s, the people who went through so much when they left the island, left everything behind, suffered tremendous hardship, they're very much opposed to any sort of change without seeing a political change on the island.

CUOMO: With good reason. It's personal, their pain and it's pragmatic. Because what has been the indication that, if you do something good for this regime, they'll do something good for anybody else? There's not a lot of proof there.

MACHADO: Right. They point out the fact that, you know, other countries have been going to Cuba for decades, and nothing has changed. So that's -- that's the big issue they have.

They tell me they feel betrayed by the U.S. government. They're angered by it, and you saw that here yesterday, Chris.

CUOMO: Yes. It wasn't as angry as I've seen it in the past.

MACHADO: Right.

CUOMO: I mean, this has been going on a long time. You do have now, probably, two more generations of people here who have a very different view about their connection back there and maybe a yearning that they're hoping can somehow be facilitated by this. It's a big wait-and-see, though.

MACHADO: Right. And you also have those younger Cubans who have been here maybe for five, ten years who have family in Cuba and who are concerned about them. So they might be a little more open to change.

CUOMO: Right. And inside just the one family, like the Machados, you've got to be indifferent on it; you know, you have to be unbiased. But you have your brother's generation and your generation and then your parents. And often different ideas in the same house.

MACHADO: And different experiences, which kind of shape those ideas.

CUOMO: But there's one thing for sure: Alina knows this better than I do. This matters probably more than anything else to people of Cuban descent here: what happens with policy, vis-a-vis that country.

So let's bring in Senator Tom Udall, a Democrat from New Mexico. He was certainly working hard to secure the release of Alan Gross. He met with him in Cuba a little over a month ago.

Senator, thank you very much for joining us.

SEN. TOM UDALL (D), NEW MEXICO: Thank you. It's great to be with you.

CUOMO: What was it like when you went back and saw Alan Gross there? What did you make of his situation?

UDALL: Well, he wasn't in a great situation, there's no doubt about it. He had lost some teeth; his health wasn't great. And he had said that he wasn't going to spend another year there. So we knew that we had to work very hard to try to get him out, and we maintained a lot of ties with the administration and talked with others.

And it was such a joyous day yesterday, to see him united with Judy, his wife, and the rest of his family.

So this is -- it's a big thing in the life of Alan Gross, but it's also a big, bold step forward in the right direction. We're turning our back on a failed policy and moving forward with engagement. And that's the way I think the United States works best, is engaging countries like Cuba and supporting the Cuban people.

Under this policy, all that I have seen from my several trips to Cuba and that I've studied, is that the leaders do better with this kind of policy, not the Cuban people. And so this -- this is a -- this engagement is going to empower them.

CUOMO: Well, how do you have confidence in that proposition because of what you just said before, Senator, which is every time something good happens to Cuba it seems to only happen for the regime, and not the people, who are living in conditions and with a lack of freedoms that many Americans are still not aware of. It is very bad for people in Cuba, economically and from a freedom perspective or lack thereof. So where does your confidence come from?

UDALL: Well, there's no doubt about that, that there's a problem in terms of the economics. And that's why opening up travel, opening us these other restrictions, allowing us to trade with Cuba, allowing our business people to consult with them, that's what's going to uplift the Cuban people And so put aside this failed policy, and let's move forward.

I think the key here is supporting what has been happening in Cuba. Over the last eight years or so there are 500,000 entrepreneurs in Cuba. We ought to be supporting them and supporting that private- sector effort. You can now own land in Cuba. That's something that's very important to a democracy.

So we need to be encouraging those kinds of things with engagement, rather than an isolation policy, which hasn't done any good for the Cuban people or for the American people. And I'm just tremendously encouraged to see the business community, the farm bureau, ranchers and farmers in the United States, enthusiastic about this and moving forward with engagement with Cuba.

CUOMO: You've got two obstacles to entry here, and you could argue you have little control over either. One is the one we're discussing now, the oversight over this regime and what they do. They've getting squeezed by Venezuela, squeezed by Russia, because money's tight with those two countries. They support Cuba, so they've been looking for a deep pocket. You could argue you just gave them one, with what President Obama wants to do. But you're going to have to see how that plays out.

The other obstacles is your brothers and sisters down in Washington, D.C. They're saying they won't fund any type of diplomatic mission in Cuba. And you as a Democrat are now losing leverage when the new Congress comes in. How do you think you get this done?

UDALL: Well, first of all, we have a top-notch person there on the ground. Jeffrey DeLaurentis is a first-class diplomat, and whatever his status, he's going to move forward with this policy. He's going to continue to engage with the Cuban government and continue to try to open up things down there. We have Cuban intersection, so we're going to have that debate. I

think it's very close in the foreign relations committee. We have many people that want to see this kind of engagement, full diplomatic relations. Senator Jeff Flake who travelled from Arizona, a Republican, traveled with me to Cuba. He's for dropping some of these restrictions. And so we have bipartisan support for lessening the hostile relations and trying to engage and trying to put this failed policy behind us.

CUOMO: Senator, thank you very much for your perspective on this. And certainly, having Alan Gross home is something that needs to be celebrated. We'll see how the rest plays out. Appreciate you being on NEW DAY.

UDALL: Thank you very much. Real pleasure.

CUOMO: All right. I'll send it back to you in New York. You know, the president mentioned a phrase that the Cuban culture holds called "no es facile." You know, that life isn't easy, and things take hard work and time. Certainly applies to this situation.

CAMEROTA: It certainly has taken time. And what an historic day. Chris, thanks so much.

There's other news to talk about.

MICHAELA PEREIRA, CNN ANCHOR: There sure are, and I'm conveniently located next to you.

CAMEROTA: I like that.

PEREIRA: All right. Let's take a look at those headlines right now, breaking this morning, sad to report another massacre and massive abduction by Boko Haram. Militants have kidnapped 185 women, killed 32 in a raid on a village in Nigeria Sunday. Gunmen in pickup trucks stormed the village from two directions, overcoming the vigilantes that were standing to fight against them. They burned homes, they shot men before herding those women and children into trucks. All of this happened in a village not far from Chibok, where over 200 girls were abducted in April. We'll keep an eye on that story for you.

Breaking overnight, as well: one person has been killed, several more, as many as a dozen, according to "The L.A. Times," have been injured after a car slammed into several pedestrians outside a southern California church. The group was exiting the church in Redondo Beach, where a Christmas pageant had just ended. The driver ran a red light and slammed into the crowd, hit another vehicle, as well. The driver of that original vehicle was arrested on suspicion of felony DUI and vehicular manslaughter.

Overnight the U.S. is set to announce North Korean leadership is, indeed, behind the cyberattack that has crippled Sony, forcing that company to pull the Christmas release of its film, "The Interview." Sony decided not to release the movie, even on demand, after major theater chains said they would not show it because of hackers' threats to another project with a focus on North Korea. That other project, a Steve Carrell thriller, "Pyongyang," has already been dropped.

At this hour, right now ongoing, Russian President Vladimir Putin is delivering his end-of-the-year news conference. In his comments, he addressed Russia's deep economic crisis, saying growth is inevitable, making it clear that Russia will diversify its economy.

Putin has also gone on to say that Moscow is aiming to restore political unity in Ukraine and called Russians killed during fighting in Ukraine volunteers, not part of the military.

Now to point out something that we know well: when he talks, he talks. Last year's news conference went on for four-plus hours. It is ongoing as we speak. We'll continue to monitor that and find out what else he has to say.

CAMEROTA: We'll bring you those headlines. But we also want to show you this incredible picture.

Chris, as you know, there was a picture taken on the plane...

PEREIRA: Look at you two.

CAMEROTA: ... when Alan Gross realizes that he is in U.S. air space, and he, of course, is listening there in the background to CNN reporting the coverage of his release. And it was just an incredible moment.

That's actually from a video that Jeff Flake, the congressman, shot. And he said, "U.S. air space," and Alan Gross takes a huge inhale of his freedom at that moment.

PEREIRA: Imagine that moment. Chris, what an image to be able to see, sort of capture the joy in this man who's feeling and experiencing freedom for the first time yesterday.

CUOMO: It's a huge, probably the biggest moment of his life, and it's also historic. You know, it's a big reason we do the job, right? Is to have a voice in these big moments like this one. And I'm sure we've never looked as good to anybody as we did to Alan Gross when the words coming out of our mouths were about his freedom. That's for sure.

CAMEROTA: It is so true, Chris, and it's just poignant, you know, for us to have been along on that ride, even via satellite. You know, that's just a great moment. So we'll show you more of that and tell you more of what happened after his release.

Moving on to another story, though, as you've just heard, Sony is in crisis mode. They've pulled the release of the film "The Interview." So what does that mean for the future of Hollywood?

PEREIRA: Plus, we're getting our very first look inside the school in Pakistan where Taliban fighters slaughtered more than 130 students. This morning the death toll rises. Our correspondent is on the ground. We're going to take you live to the scene of that brutal attacks as they search for the masterminds behind it. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CAMEROTA: Sony Pictures announcing it will not release its controversial new movie, "The Interview," following threats against theaters. Now U.S. officials preparing to announce that North Korea is behind the threats and cyberattack on Sony.

This as a defector who once worked as a computer expert for North Korea tells CNN that Pyongyang is running a vast network of hackers who cyberattack perceived enemies.

Here to discuss all this is Brian Stelter. He's CNN senior media correspondent and host of "RELIABLE SOURCES." Shawn Henry, former executive assistant director for the FBI and president of Crowd Stripe (ph) Services. And CNN correspondent Kyung Lah live for us in Seoul, South Korea.

Brian, let me start with you. Newt Gingrich called this America's first cyberwar. And if that's the case, has the U.S. just admitted defeat somehow?

BRIAN STELTER, CNN SENIOR MEDIC CORRESPONDENT/HOST, "RELIABLE SOURCES": Well Sony Pictures and the theater owners, if so, led that. You know, because these theater owners, one by one yesterday backed away from this movie. They were under tremendous pressure not to show it. They basically all said they wouldn't, and then Sony had little choice but to go ahead and cancel.

CAMEROTA: Shawn, you were with the FBI for 24, 26 years -- 24 years. What do you make of the U.S. in some form, or at least Sony, caving to this outside threat? Does it set a precedent for future cyberattacks?

SHAWN HENRY, FORMER EXECUTIVE ASSISTANT DIRECTOR, FBI: Well, I see this no different than any other type of terrorist attack, and we can't cave to terrorist demands. I think it's important for the U.S. government and the private sector to work collaboratively in terms of how do we respond to this.

But from a terrorist perspective, when you're using violence to enforce actions and to influence people, we can't cave to those types of demands.

STELTER: We can't cave, but we did cave. That's why so many in Hollywood are outraged by this.

CAMEROTA: I mean, but Sony is not the U.S. government. So can we equate what's happening here with the U.S. caving? Or Sony, which is just a big corporation and is watching its bottom line and doesn't want to have a threat on its hands is -- what would you -- would you have recommended that they pull the plug on this?

HENRY: So let me be clear. I don't want to criticize Sony. I'm certainly not saying that they caved. I'm saying that as -- as a citizenry, this type of attack has been going on for a long time. We're hearing about this one at Sony now. But it is not the first time we've seen attacks by nation states. We have to come up with a strong policy as a nation.

STELTER: Maybe the point here is that Sony was afraid that we, as Americans, would be afraid to go to the movies. And that's why the company caved and the theater owners caved. Maybe, you know, as a country we had to stand up more strongly with a backbone and say, "We're not going to let this dissuade us from going to the movies on Christmas."

CAMEROTA: Is that the answer, Shawn?

HENRY: You know, I don't know that that's exactly the answer. I think Brian's got a point there. I think that this calls for very strong U.S. policy and a very strong U.S. response.

Now, I think we need to talk softly and carry a big stick. The U.S. has some capabilities, but we've got to have discussions about this. Because I see this, really, as the next nuclear issue, where we've got to sit down, nation to nation, and have strong very discussions. Because all of our infrastructure is at risk.

CAMEROTA: Kyung Lah, what has been the reaction in South Korea, particularly to the announcement from the U.S. that North Korea is behind this?

KYUNG LAH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, there isn't necessarily surprise. Because as we're just hearing here in this discussion, this is something that has been ongoing. This is something that South Korea was rudely awoken to last year when there was a hack attack of the bank systems. Banks were frozen. People couldn't get access to their money out of ATMs nationally for days, and that was because the government said it came directly from North Korea.

This is a shot across the ocean to the United States. That's the interpretation here. It is a widening of a cyberwar that has been seen.

And Alisyn, we're learning more. You were talking about Bureau 121. We're learning more about the shadow agency out of North Korea. The government is confirming here in South Korea that it does exist. And we're hearing from experts who allude to something of 1,000 to 1,800 secret agents around the world, that it may be a much more organized attempt by North Korea to try to move into this parallel war of cyberwar.

CAMEROTA: Well, that's chilling. Brian, would the answer here have been for Sony just to release it online, take away the threat from the theaters, but still not be perceived as caving so much?

STELTER: One of the answers would have been to make this about a fictional dictator, and not Kim Jong-un. On the other hand, that would have been self-censorship.

CAMEROTA: Absolutely.

STELTER: That would have been less provocative. And we've got to stand up for freedom of expression here. I do think one answer could still be to put it online. They did come

out last night, Sony, and say we don't have any plans to put it online. Then again, I was told by a source, don't say never. Maybe once this quiets down, maybe someday we'll still see the movie. And I wouldn't -- I wouldn't assume it won't leak. It could still leak.

CAMEROTA: Part of it has leaked.

STELTER: Yes. Some of Sony's other movies already leaked online. And maybe this one will leak, too.

CAMEROTA: Shawn, what should the U.S. response be?

LAH: And Alisyn...

CAMEROTA: Go ahead, Kyung Lah?

LAH: Alisyn, I have to say, it just -- it is an important propaganda point here. The DVD, there are actual activists here in South Korea who are trying to get their hands on the DVD somehow, because they want to try to launch it across the border into North Korea. They actually want to get a copy of it, because they see it as being critical in trying to crumble the regime. That's how potent this movie is being seen here in the peninsula. So it has a significant amount of power. So there are a lot of people here hoping to get bootleg copies.

CAMEROTA: Yes. Who knew this comedy would become such a hot-button issue? Kyung, Brian Stelter, Shawn Henry, thanks so much.

Let us know what you think about all this. Should Sony have pulled the plug on the movie, "The Interview"? Tweet us, @NewDay or go to Facebook.com/NewDay. We'd love to hear your thoughts.

Let's go over to Michaela for more news.

PEREIRA: All right. Thanks so much, Alisyn.

Pakistan is in mourning, the nation reeling from a schoolhouse slaughter at the hands of the Taliban, nearly 150 people killed. Most of those victims were students. We are now getting a look, our first look inside that very school where so many innocent victims lost their lives. We'll give you a live report ahead.

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