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U.S. Democrats Prepare to Face Off in Las Vegas; Mounting Israeli-Palestinian Violence; Airlines Warned of Russian Missile Risks; Trump Takes Aim at Democratic Presidential Hopefuls; Democratic Candidates Make the Rounds; Firefighters Die in Kansas City Fire; Wildfire Forces Hundreds from their Homes; October Brings Triple-Digit Temps to California; CNN Goes Inside North Korea; Debates Can Make or Break Candidates. Aired 1-2a ET
Aired October 13, 2015 - 01:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[01:00:08] ISHA SESAY, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, and welcome to our viewers in the United States and around the world. I'm Isha Sesay in Los Angeles.
JOHN VAUSE, CNN ANCHOR: I'm John Vause in Las Vegas. Great to have you with us everybody and right here in Las Vegas we're now less than 18 hours away from the U.S. Democratic presidential primary debate. CNN is hosting the matchup of five candidates. All has eyes on the White House.
Frontrunner Hillary Clinton hit the strip, stopping unannounced at a rally of the Culinary Workers Union outside the hotel owned by Republican frontrunner Donald Trump. Now the union is trying to organize at the hotel and Clinton took the opportunity to take a jab at Mr. Trump.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HILLARY CLINTON (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: You have to say no to efforts to prevent you from organizing to prevent you from having the kind of working conditions you deserve, the kind of wages that are going to give you a living wage. And that means saying no to Donald Trump.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: The main opponent on Tuesday night will not be Donald Trump or any Republican candidate but Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders and maybe possibly Vice President Joe Biden who is not even in the running, at least not yet.
John Berman has a look at the Democratic contenders.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): He comes buoyed by big enthusiastic crowds, this the most recent 13,000 in Tucson. She comes backed by big new poll numbers in key early states.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And our next president, Hillary Clinton.
BERMAN: Tonight, CNN-ORC polls in Nevada and South Carolina show Hillary Clinton with sizable leads over Senator Bernie Sanders. A big difference from New Hampshire, where he has led since this summer.
High stakes as they prepare to take the stage for the very first Democratic debate of this campaign. High stakes, but today Senator Sanders suggested keeping the dialogue on a higher plane.
SEN. BERNIE SANDERS (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Let's treat each other civilly. Let's treat each other respectfully. And let's not try to demonize people who may have disagreements with us.
BERMAN: Civil? Maybe. But sharp, definitely. The 74-year-old self- proclaimed Democratic socialist has gone out of his way to draw contrasts with the frontrunner. Contrasts being a loaded word that means "vote for me, not her."
SANDERS: I know what I stand for. Hillary Clinton knows what she stands for. Let's have that debate.
BERMAN: Sanders has yet to do a mock debate, but today for the first time, he practiced hypothetical exchanges with the other candidates and moderator. Hillary Clinton has been practicing with heavyweight Washington lawyer Bob Barnett, playing the role of Bernie Sanders. She took a break to celebrate her 40th wedding anniversary, and --
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You never sweat, like, physically.
BERMAN: And have some fun with Buzzfeed podcasters.
CLINTON: You guys are the first to realize that I'm really not even a human being. I -- I was constructed in a garage in Palo Alto.
BERMAN: As for the man they all want to replace, President Obama gave his most complete answer yet on the lingering e-mail questions surrounding his former secretary of state.
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: She made a mistake. She's acknowledged it. I do think that the way it's been ginned up is in part because of politics.
BERMAN: And as for the elephant in the room, or more specifically the vice president not in the room, Vice President Joe Biden consulted with family over the weekend, but no leaks from the White House.
OBAMA: I'm going to let Joe make that decision. And I mean what I say. I think Joe will go down as one of the finest vice presidents in history.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: I'm joined now by CNN political commentator and former Obama administration official, Van Jones, with more on Tuesday's big debate.
So, Van, let's pick up on that point in John's package about Joe Biden. There is a deadline in this. That is not just the filing deadlines. How much longer, how much time does Joe Biden have to make it?
VAN JONES, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Yes. Well, I think he's probably got another week, two at the most. At a certain point it becomes disrespectful to the process. I mean, listen, everybody loves Joe Biden in this party. If he runs, people love him. If he doesn't, people are still going to love him. But at certain point you're just showing a lot of leg but not actually coming on over. Something is wrong.
VAUSE: I mean, does he have a luxury of sitting back, watching this debate, weighing it up, maybe waiting for the Benghazi committee to see how Hillary does -- Hillary Clinton does?
JONES: You know, I think that -- look, here's the reality. He is the best insurance policy that the Democrats have in case she blows up. She could be indicted. I think that's highly unlikely. But she -- you know, the FBI is looking into her so you want an insurance policy. I think he needs to go ahead. Get in. And then he can always get out. But I think to stay on the edge this long, he's starting to wear out his welcome on the edge.
[01:05:03] VAUSE: OK. Another man who will not be on the stage on Tuesday night. President Obama. And in areas of like trade, foreign policy, the environment, Hillary Clinton is putting a considerable amount of distance between herself and the president.
JONES: Yes. Yes.
VAUSE: Does that come with some potential problems when you at least consider how popular the president still is with minorities, African- Americans, Latinos?
JONES: Well, she's got to do a number of things at the same time. She can't alienate the president. But she can't run against Obama.
VAUSE: Yes.
JONES: She's got to run with Obama. But she can create some space. You know, for instance, he is more hawkish than she is. She would be dishonest if she said she wasn't. She could go there. What she can't do is come across as somebody who is going to run against the Obama coalition in particular which means African-Americans, Latinos, lesbians, gays, younger voters. She's got to be able to square the circle. Being herself but not losing his coalition.
VAUSE: I mean, we saw some poll numbers today that Mrs. Clinton is incredibly popular among Democrat African-Americans. Much more so than Bernie Sanders. Is this potentially an opening here maybe for Bernie Sanders, quite possibly for O'Malley? You know, this is a man who was a mayor of a predominantly black city, the governor of Maryland.
JONES: I think a lot of people don't understand the way that politics works in the United States. In order for a Democrat to win the White House, that candidate has to poll, not 50 percent of the black vote. Not 70 percent, not 80, no 90. 94 to 96 percent of the black vote. In other words, black people have to be unanimous in supporting a Democrat. So Bernie Sanders has a lot of room to grow with black voters. There's a huge amount of affection among black Democrats for the Clintons. But, you know, when you're as low as Bernie Sanders is, he's got a lot of room to grow and he may be able to grow.
VAUSE: Can they do any harm to Hillary Clinton during this debate when it comes to African-American voters?
JONES: I think that -- I think if you are an O'Malley or if you're a Bernie Sanders where you can dig in hard is on criminal justice reform. For Latinos, immigration has become the issue that they judge everybody by. For a while for women the was choice when it comes to abortion rights. For African-Americans this season it is criminal justice reform. If they push it hard on that, they may be able to pick up some steam.
But I am telling you. If you can break Hillary Clinton's lock on the black vote, Bill Clinton is right there to put another grip.
VAUSE: She's got a backup.
JONES: She got a backup.
VAUSE: And a pretty good one, too.
JONES: She's got a backup.
VAUSE: Finally, Hillary Clinton. She's a good debater. (INAUDIBLE) 2008. She wiped the floor with most of those debates back then. And she was up against some pretty good debaters. John Edwards is a trial lawyer, Joe Biden, President Obama. Was it tougher then than it is now?
JONES: Yes. I mean, listen. No disrespect to this field.
VAUSE: Yes.
JONES: But, you know, she is head and shoulders as a state's woman, as a global figure. And she's earned it.
VAUSE: OK. Van Jones, it is good to speak with you. Thank you very much for being with us.
CNN's live coverage of the first Democratic presidential debate starts tomorrow night at 5:00 right here on CNN. West Coast time that will be 8:00 on the East Coast. And for our international viewers, we will be replaying the entire debate, 8:00 in London, 9:00 in Berlin. Only here on CNN.
And we'll have much more from Las Vegas later this hour. But let's head back to Isha in Los Angeles for the rest of the day's news.
SESAY: John, appreciate it. Thank you. Some of your top stories now. Kurdish protesters clash with police in
Turkey Monday over the deadly bombings that took place over the weekend. Police used water cannon and tear gas against the protesters. Some of the demonstrators hailed stones at officers. At least 97 people were killed. And two bombs exploded at a peace rally in Ankara Saturday. Hundreds of others were wounded.
It is just after 8:00 a.m. Tuesday in Jerusalem. And some Palestinian groups are calling for a day of rage after a weekend of deadly violence. In one incident, Israeli police say they shot and killed a Palestinian involved in a stabbing attack. Police reported multiple stabbings in Jerusalem on Monday.
Well, Eric McLaughlin has been following all the rapidly changing developments for us and joins us now live from Jerusalem.
Erin, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed the Israeli parliament on Monday sounding defiant. But what exactly did he say about how he will overcome this wave of violence?
ERIN MCLAUGHLIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Isha. That's right. He gave really scathing remarks last night before the Israeli Knesset. I want you to take a listen to what he has to say about the current wave of violence, violence that Israelis call terrorism.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BENJAMIN NETANYAHU, ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER (Through Translator): It must be understood once and for all, terror does not stem from frustration due to the lack of progress in the diplomatic process. Terror stems from a wish to destroy us. This was the motive for terror in the first days of Zionism and it is the motive nowadays.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
[01:10:01] MCLAUGHLIN: This seemingly in response to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas' continuous calls for de-escalation. Now Palestinian officials saying that people on the streets aren't listening to that. They want to know what happens in the event of de- escalation if in their word the humiliation will continue. Palestinian officials saying that the only way to stop the violence is a two-state solution.
Now also, before the Knesset last night, prime minister introducing legislation that would impose two -- three-year minimum fines for Palestinians who throw stones or bottles. And this would be in addition to measures already being implemented last week, a prime minister announced a series of measures including the fast tracking of the demolition of Palestinian homes or homes of attackers in a -- that in addition to increasing security presence throughout Israel as wells Jerusalem and in the West Bank.
But it has the to be said that so far those measures are showing no signs of stopping this current wave of violence. Many Israeli authorities pointing to these attacks as being lone wolf attacks. Attacks carried out by perpetrators who aren't organized, who acting on their own initiative, very difficult to prevent. So it's unclear what else can be done to stop the violence.
SESAY: And all that being said, Erin, there are calls for this day of rage on Tuesday. What are the expectations for violence and how widespread will the disruption be? The day of rage, forgive me.
MCLAUGHLIN: That's right -- that's right, Isha. Palestinians calling for a general strike as well as protests in areas throughout the West Bank. So the concern there is that we're going to be seeing increased clashes between Palestinians and Israeli forces. So certainly that announcement not seeming to help what is already a volatile situation for stabbing attacks yesterday leaving at least five Israelis wounded.
SESAY: Erin McLaughlin joining us there from Jerusalem. Appreciate it. Thank you.
Well, turning now to the conflict in Syria. Russia's Defense Ministry says it has launched more than 100 airstrikes against ISIS targets in Syria. Observer groups said the airstrikes are mostly meant to bolster Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad's regime. Meanwhile the U.S. military airdropped 50 tons of ammunition and other supplies to Syrian rebels Monday.
Some airlines are making adjustments to their flight plans over Iran and Iraq due to concerns about Russian missiles headed for Syria.
CNN's Rene Marsh reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
RENE MARSH, CNN AVIATION CORRESPONDENT (on camera): Commercial airlines flying over the Middle East have been warned to beware of low-flying missiles. The risk is in airspace over Iraq and Iran as Russia fires missiles from the Caspian Sea into Syria.
The European Aviation Safety Agency alerted all European carriers after missiles were fired from Russian warships earlier this month. Now airlines like Air France said it would introduce temporary rules for flights over Iran and the Caspian Sea but it wouldn't give details about those new measures. And British Airways said it would adjust its flight plans based on advice from the British government.
Now some airlines are shifting routes while others are continuing to fly over the region. The agency has not prohibited flights and says the missiles were launched well below airspace where commercial planes usually fly. But the potential danger still exists.
The airspace includes busy routes connecting Europe to the Middle East and Asia and avoiding it altogether would be a logistical nightmare. It would essentially force airlines to take a less direct route.
Back to you.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SESAY: Our thanks to Rene Marsh for that reporting there. The Dutch Safety Board will release its report on the crash of
Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 which killed 298 people last year. An early draft indicates Russia-made missile brought down the plane over eastern Ukraine but it does not say who fired it. Many of the victims were Dutch citizens.
You're watching NEWSROOM L.A. Two firefighters are killed fighting a massive apartment fire in Kansas City, Missouri. Details on that story coming up.
Plus, Donald Trump could wind up with a bloody nose after tonight's first Democratic presidential debate. We are live in Las Vegas, just ahead.
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[01:18:37] SESAY: You're watching CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Isha Sesay in Los Angeles.
VAUSE: I'm John Vause live in Las Vegas. And on Tuesday night we are waiting to see if they're ready to rumble. Will the gloves come off in the first U.S. Democratic presidential debate? Many expect Donald Trump might be a punching bag. After all he is the Republican frontrunner and he's been taking swings across the aisles for months.
Here's Gary Tuchman with some of the highlights and lowlights.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
GARY TUCHMAN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): When it comes to insulting people running for president, Donald Trump is bipartisan. Democrats in the race are increasingly hearing the verbal invectives of the businessman from New York. There is Hillary Clinton.
DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Here's a woman cheating the United States government for years with her e-mails.
TUCHMAN: There's Bernie Sanders.
TRUMP: I don't want to run against Bernie. It's too easy, right? Bernie? Some people say communist, some people say socialist. I don't know. I've always wanted to run against the socialist-slash- perhaps communist, right?
TUCHMAN: There is Martin O'Malley.
TRUMP: I thought when O'Malley made the statement that black lives and he said white lives matter, all lives matter, he was --
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Then he apologized.
TRUMP: Then he apologized like a little baby, like a disgusting little -- weak, pathetic baby and that's the problem with the country. TUCHMAN: Donald Trump has never been a shy man, but his rhetoric
during his campaign while striking many as juvenile has also helped propel him to frontrunner status. In Georgia this past weekend,
[01:20:06] TRUMP: I can tell you this, if that were a Republican that did what she did with the e-mails, they would have been in jail 12 months ago.
TUCHMAN: Among the Democrats, Hillary Clinton by far has been his main rhetorical target.
TRUMP: Hillary Clinton, by the way, was the worst secretary of state. Easily, she's the worst secretary of state in the history of our country. She goes down as perhaps the worst secretary of state in history.
TUCHMAN: Sanders got some Trump vitriol after Black Lives Matter demonstrators came on stage at one of his rallies and took the microphone.
TRUMP: I would never give up my microphone. I thought that was disgusting. That showed such weakness, the way he was taken away by two young women. The microphone. They just took the whole place over.
TUCHMAN: Trump tweets his insults, too. "Hilary said such nasty things about me, but directly off a teleprompter, but there was no emotion, no truth, just can't read speeches." Trump has even made allegations against Hillary Clinton on a topic that he made famous.
TRUMP: You know that Hillary Clinton was a birther? She wanted those records and fought like hell.
TUCHMAN: Donald Trump keeps saying this.
TRUMP: I get along with Democrats, I get along with Hillary, I got along with Bill.
TUCHMAN: But that was then.
TRUMP: She's not doing so well. I mean, honestly, she shouldn't be allowed to run. No, she shouldn't be.
TUCHMAN: This is now.
TRUMP: No, she shouldn't be.
TUCHMAN: Gary Tuchman, CNN, Atlanta.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: As Gary just reported Donald Trump and his abrasive style have left their mark on the 2016 campaign for the White House. Even here in Vegas. The presence of the Republican frontrunner looms fast, yes, that is the Trump International Hotel. Although Republican debates have so far been filled with attacks and
insults from larger-than-life personalities, the Democratic debate looks to be absolutely nothing like that. And I spoke to our political analyst, Ron Brownstein, about that a short time ago.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: In terms of the debate here on Tuesday night, they could not be two different debates if you tried when you compare it to the GOP debate.
RON BROWNSTEIN, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: Yes. The Republican debate is really defined by the anger of the grassroots of the party. So there was a lot of Interparty sniping. You don't really have that dynamic in the Democratic race. In fact in the Democratic race, you have a lot of anxiety about the strength of the party in the general election. They've lost the House. They've lost the Senate. The White House is their last hold on power in Washington. There's enormous fear in the Democratic base about unified Republicans.
So this I think is really going to be more focused on Republicans than the internal and really more about auditioning who would be the strongest general election nominee for the Democrats.
VAUSE: And in some ways that's one of the big questions which is hanging over the debate. Does Bernie Sanders go on the attack against Hillary Clinton?
BROWNSTEIN: Right.
VAUSE: Does she come back and hit him hard? What about the other three candidates, some say.
BROWNSTEIN: Right. No, I think at the moment all of them are signaling that they're going to be restrained. And that may be the posture today. But eventually if you actually want to beat Hillary Clinton I don't think you're going to beat her by ideological compatibility alone. I think the only way one of these candidates truly rises to become a threat to her would be if a majority of Democratic primary voters are convinced that she has been fatally compromised as a general election nominee.
I don't think saying, I have been more consistent on trade or Iraq is going to do it. Given all the financial organization and demographic advantages that she has otherwise.
VAUSE: Can they go after her on Benghazi? Do they hit her with the e-mail scandal or do they just sort of leave that to one side?
BROWNSTEIN: Yes, I think it's going to be very difficult for them to go directly at the e-mail scandal because of the backdrop. And we've had a former aide of the Republican, you know, led committee, the Benghazi Special Committee, saying that the committee fired him because he would not focus on Hillary Clinton. Now you have Kevin McCarthy's comments about the impact of the committee on her poll numbers. Against that backdrop to raise it too aggressively I think would
appear to do the Republican's bidding. I think they're going to be more comfortable making the argument that she has not been ideologically consistent. Maybe getting a trust through issues rather than through e-mails.
VAUSE: We really have two debates on stage. We had Bernie Sanders and then we have the other three.
BROWNSTEIN: Yes.
VAUSE: Can those three other candidates, can they have a Carly Fiorina or a Ben Carson moment on the stage?
BROWNSTEIN: I think there's a big difference between Martin O'Malley and the other two, Jim Webb and Lincoln Chafee. Webb and Chafee are not really running campaigns in the conventional sense. O'Malley is. I mean, he's a former governor of a blue state who had a very credible record on things Democrats care about. He has put out a pretty aggressive agenda. He has campaigned a lot.
And I think he will try to do something that we saw in 1984 in the U.S. with Gary Hart. Try to make this a generational contrast against Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders, who are both much older than he is. I think you'll have him make arguments or outturning the page. Generational change. Looking toward the future. Don't know if he can get an audience. But he's got two big shadow over him. But I think of those other three he has the best chance of kind of stepping up and emerging.
VAUSE: Does Bernie Sanders in so many ways really got nothing to lose?
BROWNSTEIN: Yes. Bernie Sanders is playing with the house's money. Appropriately enough here in Vegas. I mean, he's already gone further than they probably could have hoped a year ago. And it may have a lot to do with Hillary Clinton's weaknesses and providing an opening.
[01:25:06] Bernie Sanders I think has one overwhelming question here. He has shown that he can excite white progressives. And that gets you pretty far in Iowa and New Hampshire. Unfortunately the list of states that it gets you far in after that is pretty limited. If he really is going to become a serious competitor for the nomination he has to show that he can break into the minority voters who cast about one third of all Democratic primary votes. African-Americans and Hispanics.
We saw today just in the CNN-ORC poll in South Carolina he's ahead among white voters, but still trailing badly because he is losing African-American voters, 15:1 with Biden in the race. And she moves past 80 percent without Biden in the race. I think the key question for him, yes, we know he can excite a lot of white, socially liberal, white-collar progressives, yes, and he can do all -- hit all of those notes again tonight.
But can he find a way to being talking to Hispanics and African- Americans? Because if he's not doing that, he still I think is not really emerging as a full credible challenger for the nomination.
VAUSE: And there will be a -- one last question, there will be a podium set aside for Joe Biden. He is not going to turn up.
BROWNSTEIN: But Joe Biden -- I think Joe Biden is not going to be here. Look, I think I would be surprised if Joe Biden makes a decision before Hillary Clinton appears before the Benghazi committee because I think the key question in this race for Biden is more about Clinton than about Biden. And the polling for Biden is really betwixt and between. It's not so weak that this looks hopeless.
But you can see even amid all of these discussions his numbers are not soaring forward either. I think it's a very difficult call for him. Does he want to take the risk of ending his career, losing a third time for the presidency to, you know, Hillary Clinton in this case? On the other hand, there is an opening. I mean, there are doubts among Democrats particularly on the issue that we talked about before. Has she been compromised as a general election nominee? I think that is the implicit backdrop for anyone else to get seriously considered in this race.
VAUSE: Ron, always good to speak to you. Thank you.
BROWNSTEIN: Thank you.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: Some good points there from our senior political analyst Ron Brownstein.
We have much more from Las Vegas including one misstep on that debate stage, Isha, can change everything for a White House wannabes. We will take a look back at some of the worst oops moments from the past.
SESAY: We certainly will. Plus, North Korea literally rolls out its big guns for a show of military might. We'll get an unusual look inside the secretive nation's biggest celebration of the year.
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[01:30:00]
VAUSE: Welcome back, everybody. Great to have you with us. You are watching CNN special coverage ahead of Tuesday night's Democratic debate. I'm John Vause live in Las Vegas. The time now, just 10: 30 on a Monday night.
SESAY: And I'm Isha Sesay in Los Angeles. We'll have much more from Vegas in just a moment. But first, here's a look at some of the top international headlines this hour.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SESAY (voice-over): Police in Turkey used water cannon and tear gas against Kurdish protesters Monday. Clashes erupted over a twin bomb attack that killed at least 97 people at a peace rally in Ankara over the weekend. Several people have been detained in connection to the blast. The government suspects ISIS is behind the attack.
Some Palestinian groups are calling for a day of rage and general strike after a wave of deadly violence. This comes as Israeli police report multiple stabbings in Jerusalem. In one incident, police say they shot and killed a Palestinian attacker.
The Dutch safety board will release its report on the crash of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17; 298 people were killed last year when that flight crashed in Eastern Ukraine. An early draft indicates a Russian-made missile brought down the plane. But it does not say who fired it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SESAY: Let's go back to John in Vegas for more on the Democratic debate -- John.
VAUSE: Isha, thank you. We are now coming up to Tuesday's Democrat debate. And many of the candidates are now turning up. We had the front-runner, Hillary Clinton, arriving here just a few hours ago. Before that debate she made an unannounced appearance at a rally for the Culinary Workers' Union outside a hotel. It was owned by the Republican front-runner, Donald Trump. We know that because his name is on the building. Likes to put his name on lots of things.
Senator Bernie Sanders was also in Las Vegas. But he appeared remotely at the so-called No Labels Convention that was in Manchester, New Hampshire. The bipartisan convention seeks to resolve a variety of issues. He wasn't the only speaker there. But he obviously was one of high interest.
And the wild card in the Democratic primary race: Vice President Joe Biden. He's back at home in Delaware. He talked with his family over the weekend. We still don't know if he has made up his mind to make a third bid for the White House.
So all of the Democrats set a place for Joe Biden, like Elijah at Passover. Hillary Clinton got a break on Benghazi. And we're learning more about Bernie Sanders and his debate strategy.
CNN politics reporter Eric Bradner joins us with more on this.
Let's talk about Hillary's surprise trip to the Trump Casino and International Emporium of All Things Trump.
This was a surprise visit, I guess, in many ways, not unexpected. She wasn't there to play blackjack. But she was there for very important reasons for her campaign.
ERIC BRADNER, CNN POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Right. Right. So she showed up in Las Vegas and figured why not have a little bit of fun with Donald Trump, her Republican front-runner, who's been her punching bag in recent weeks.
It wasn't just about hitting Donald Trump, although that was fun for her. She seems to relish doing that. There was a much more local reason for this. The culinary union was having a big rally. Now this is a critical union in Nevada. They have 55,000 members. Many of them work right here on the Strip.
And, their support in the 2016 Democratic primary could make or break Hillary Clinton's bid to win the Nevada caucuses, which are especially important because, with respect to caucuses rather than primaries, the organization is really, really big.
VAUSE: Yes. This is getting into the technical side of how this all works. A lot of people around the world just don't get it because it goes back about 200 years, when they used to hold caucuses and primaries in barns and people would go stand in the corner. And for some bizarre reason some states do it that way, right?
BRADNER: Yes, they do, yes, Iowa and Nevada.
VAUSE: OK. And that's why, you know, she needs all the support she can get.
Very quickly on the issue of Benghazi. Clinton has had good news over the last couple of days.
Does that now take that issue off the table as far as these debates are concerned?
BRADNER: Well, she's hoping so. She's hoping to use this debate to pivot away from this email thing that's been dogging her campaign since she entered it --
[01:35:00]
BRADNER: -- months ago. She's hoping to now be able to focus on policy, get her message out. She's been able to go on offense a little bit with this Benghazi issue. So, she is hoping that this is a turning point.
And with Joe Biden working around the corner, sort of watching how this plays out, she need to hope that it is.
VAUSE: OK. So that will be her strategy. Try and get above the noise. Try and, basically, start a new conversation if you like, move it away from the scandals towards really exciting (INAUDIBLE), how they were at the start of the campaign when her numbers were really good. That is her strategy.
Bernie Sanders, the cantankerous curmudgeon from Vermont, we know a little bit about how he plans to deal with Secretary Clinton during the campaign?
BRADNER: Right. So he is not planning to punch. He wants to counter punch. He's not going to bring up her name. He's not going to go after her directly.
Rather he is going to make this sort of implicit argument that she might have a lot of progressive policy positions in this campaign. But he has had them for decades on trade, on the Keystone Pipeline, on income inequality.
And so if Hillary Clinton goes after him, make no mistake, he is ready to hit back. But he wants to make a much more implicit argument, stick with the progressive fire and brimstone that we have seen from him.
VAUSE: It's one (INAUDIBLE) for this Democratic debate, which came from the Republican debate.
Is it to avoid the bickering?
Because in some ways the candidacy did best last time. Carson and Fiorina, they kind of bypassed the nastiness. They're the ones that had the big bumps in the polls. BRADNER: Yes, Carson is a great example. He's above 20 percent
nationally now. He didn't really directly engage with anyone in the last Republican debate.
Democrats aren't really in the same sort of situation because there are only five of them versus, 15, so there were two debates for the Republicans. They don't need to fight for the same oxygen. So most likely you won't see as many one-on-one sorts of attacks. Yes, absolutely that's been a lesson for the Republican primary.
VAUSE: If you like the policy, if you like the, you know, the debates and substance then this is going to be the debate for you, I guess.
Good to speak with you. Thank you.
We'll have a lot more from Las Vegas in a moment.
But first, let's head back to Isha and CNN in Los Angeles -- Isha.
SESAY: Thank you, John.
Well, still to come on CNN NEWSROOM, we're seeing record heat here across the Western United States. And this is leading to some dangerous conditions. Stay with us for details.
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[01:40:00]
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SESAY (voice-over): Two firefighters are dead and two others injured in an apartment fire in Kansas City, Missouri. Fire department officials tell our affiliate station, KSHB, the victims died Monday from injuries they received when part of the building collapsed.
PAUL BERARDI, KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI, FIRE DEPARTMENT CHIEF: They did not die in vain. They saved two civilians, carried them out of the second floor on ladders before the wall collapsed.
SESAY (voice-over): The cause of the fire is under investigation.
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SESAY: A large wildfire outside Casper, Wyoming, has forced evacuation of more than 500 homes. A Forestry official says the fire started Saturday at a local landfill. He said unusually high temperatures coupled with strong winds in region for this time of year may have ignited the fire.
We have been dealing with scorching temperatures here on the U.S. West Coast for days now. Meteorologist Allison Chinchar joins us with more on that.
Allison, how much longer is this going to go on for?
ALLISON CHINCHAR, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Well, in some areas it will go on for days until we finally get the next system that moves in before the weekend.
But let's take a look at this. You are not kidding, Los Angeles has been incredibly hot. Three of the last four days have made it back into triple digits. Certainly does not feel like October. But, at least for today, we are at least, on Monday, speaking, we made it to 93 degrees.
Now in terms of Tuesday, however, once we get later on into then temperatures are going to drop in some spots. Los Angeles should get back down to around 88. But it is not going to be the same in other places, Fresno topping out at 95 degrees; Vegas, 96. We'll make it up to 100 degrees, again, triple digits yet again in parts of Palm Springs.
Now we do have this little bit of a system trying to push some moisture up into California. Unfortunately it's just not enough moisture to really bring us rain. However, it is at least increasing the humidity. And that's helping with trying to combat some of the wildfires.
With that said, as we get later on into the week, we have this next system that will finally bring some rain to California and parts of the Upper Northwest. However it's not really going to bring that much rain to us.
Now as we take a look, the heat, we mentioned, it is not going away any time soon. And it is near records in a lot of these spots: Yuma, high temperature of 100, forecast, the record is 105. Vegas, where poor John is, 96 is the forecast high. The record is 95 degrees.
And very similar scenario up to the north. Yakima, 79 for the forecast high with a record of 77; Spokane also, not too far off from some of those temperatures.
Now here is a look at the forecast. Again, as we mention, Los Angeles finally will begin to cool by Thursday. But again as we mentioned, poor John, Isha, it's not going to cool down until after the debate. So for a lot of those people like John, it is going to stay warm and near record warmth for at least the next two to three days.
SESAY: He'll be fine, Allison. We have got someone there spritzing him down with water. He'll be fine.
Allison Chinchar joining us there from Atlanta, appreciate it. Thank you.
Now a U.S. dentist will not be charged for killing Zimbabwe's most prized lion. The country's environment minister said Walter Palmer had the legal paperwork to hunt the lion. Palmer shot Cecil with a bow and arrow in July during a hunting expedition.
He insists he had no idea he was targeting a prized lion and says he was simply following his local guides.
North Korea spent months preparing for its big weekend, marking the 70th anniversary of the founding of the ruling Workers Party. And it was a spectacle.
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SESAY (voice-over): Hundreds of troops marched in elaborate formations across Pyongyang's Kim Il-sung Square. Pyongyang also showed off its might, rolling out its military arsenal of trucks, armored vehicles and rockets.
In a televised speech, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un declared the country, quote, "fully ready to defend itself against any U.S. threat."
Well, our Will Ripley is one of the foreign journalists invited to the event, getting a rare view inside one of the most secretive nations in the world. Will joins me now from Pyongyang.
Will, the event was a lavish affair. And every single detail carefully orchestrated.
WILL RIPLEY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: You are right, Isha. This is the first official day back to work here in Pyongyang after the huge holiday. But over the weekend, tens of thousands of the citizens of the city were very much working. In fact, they had been practicing up to months and months ahead of this to make sure that everything went off perfectly.
Here's how North Korea made sure that the message that they sent was received --
[01:45:00]
RIPLEY: -- exactly the way they wanted.
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RIPLEY: It really is unusual to see this many news cameras from all over the world. Normally, when we come into this country, we are operating just our crew with our government representatives.
But you can see there are hundreds of news agencies here; all of these crews are working, each of them accompanied by a government representative, a minder, who will be with them as they report throughout the entire trip.
It's the morning of the parade, which we thought would be getting underway about 30 minutes ago. But as you can see, I'm standing across the river from Kim Il-sung Square. Nothing has happened yet. And so we are just hanging out here at our hotel, the Yanggakdo Hotel, which is home to us and the rest of the international press corps.
Even our minders are telling us they don't have any official information about the start time of this parade. These things are often kept secret up until the very last moment. And that's just the way things work here in North Korea.
We just found out the parade will be getting started shortly. So we are now in a security line at the hotel, along with all of the other media. No laptops. No cell phones. Only our equipment allowed in.
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RIPLEY (voice-over): By the time we got into Kim Il-sung Square, the weather was perfect, blue skies, sun was shining. And even when it was time for the torchlight parade, the weather was not so cooperative. It started raining really heavily.
It was freezing, it was cold. And all of these young people were lined up in the streets without rain jackets. But they didn't go back inside. They stayed in the streets. And instead, some of them started singing.
(MUSIC PLAYING)
RIPLEY (voice-over): The celebration weekend is ending with what I would call a marathon music history lesson. I say marathon because this show has been going for about two hours now. We haven't even hit intermission yet.
What is so remarkable about all of this is that the theme of the songs that they're singing, the themes of the movies that North Koreans watch, it is in reverence to their leadership.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
RIPLEY: There is a lot of talk and it's been something that has been ongoing for many years. We are talking about the North Korean regime, about it being on the verge of collapse or coming close to a regime change here.
But the image that was presented this weekend certainly paints a vastly different picture. Think about the fact that the supreme leader, Kim Jong-un, was on stage, holding hands and raising arms with Liu Yunshan, one of the highest-ranking members of China's Communist Party, a very public display of the friendship between North Korea and China.
And without a doubt, Isha, that was a message to the United States that this regime, they say they're strong. They say they are here to stay and ready to defend themselves militarily.
SESAY: Remarkable scenes playing out in North Korea this past weekend.
Will Ripley reporting from Pyongyang, appreciate it, Will. Thank you.
VAUSE: We'll have a lot more from Las Vegas after a short break, including the stakes are higher and they're not even here for the keynote. How would-be presidents can torpedo their campaigns with a just few stray words from the debate stage.
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[01:50:00]
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SESAY: Welcome back, everyone. This just in to us here at CNN.
Iranian state media is reporting that Iran's parliament has passed a bill approving Tehran's nuclear deal with the U.S. and other world powers. Now as we understand it, as we all know, this deal would substantially limit Iran's nuclear weapons program in exchange for various international sanctions on Iran being loosened.
We know that hardliners in Iran have fought over the last couple of days to thwart this deal and have been fighting in the Iranian parliament to torpedo the whole pact. But now we are hearing that Iran's parliament has indeed passed a bill to support the implementation of the nuclear deal.
But one interesting detail to bring you. According to Iran state media and according to other news outlets we are hearing that, according to this bill, they're still insisting that international inspectors would only have limited access to Iran's military sites.
So we understand that Iran's parliament has passed a bill to support the government's implementation of that nuclear deal struck between Iran and those world powers, the P5+1.
But we are hearing is that, as part of this, there is insistence that international inspectors only have limited access to Iran's nuclear sites -- sorry, to Iran's military sites.
Working to get more details on this and, of course, and we'll bring it to you here on CNN. So stay with us for more details.
Let's go back to John in Vegas for more on the Democratic debate -- John.
VAUSE: Well, Isha, a good performance here on Tuesday night could mean a big boost for a candidate, could, in fact, be a game-changer. But high reward brings high risk. And a couple of gaffes could end a presidential campaign. Sara Murray reports.
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DONALD TRUMP, ENTREPRENEUR: I want to build a wall.
SARA MURRAY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Immigration did not come up in 2016 because Mr. Trump brought it up.
TRUMP: More energy tonight. I like that.
JEB BUSH, FORMER GOVERNOR OF FLORIDA: As it relates to my brother, there's one thing I know for sure. He kept us safe.
DR. BEN CARSON, REPUBLICAN PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: He's an OK doctor.
MURRAY (voice-over): It's one of the highest stakes moments in presidential politics.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You guys nervous?
(LAUGHTER)
MURRAY (voice-over): A few minutes, seconds, even, on the debate stage, can define a candidacy, sending contenders soaring in the polls or struggling to find their footing.
This moment in the first Republican presidential debate...
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mr. Trump.
MURRAY (voice-over): -- solidifying Trump's standing as a candidate who doesn't play by the rules and boosting him even the higher in the polls.
In the second GOP debate, Carly Fiorina's cool-as-ice comeback to Trump's criticism of her appearance elevating her as a formidable contender.
CARLY FIORINA (R), CALIF.: I think women all over this country heard very clearly what Mr. Trump said.
(APPLAUSE)
TRUMP: I think she has got a beautiful face and I think she is a beautiful woman.
MURRAY (voice-over): Her polished performance rocketing her to second place in post-debate polls while the latest polls show her slipping slightly.
But a cringeworthy misstep -- [01:55:00]
MURRAY (voice-over): -- can deliver a crippling blow to an ailing campaign.
RICK PERRY (R), FORMER GOVERNOR OF TEXAS: The third agency of government, I would -- I would do away with Education, the Commerce -- I -- Commerce and, let's see...
I can't. The third one, I can't. Sorry. Oops.
MURRAY (voice-over): Two months later, Rick Perry dropped out of the 2012 presidential race.
This year his second bid never caught fire.
Hillary Clinton had her own "oops" moment in 2008.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What can you tell me about the man who's going to be Mr. Putin's successor?
HILLARY CLINTON, FORMER SECRETARY OF STATE: Well, I can tell you that he is a handpicked successor.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Who will it be, do you know his name?
CLINTON: Medvedev, whatever. Yes.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.
CLINTON: Yes.
MURRAY (voice-over): But her opponent proved not every awkward debate moment marks the end for a candidate after this chilly exchange in 2008.
CLINTON: I don't think I am that bad.
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: You are likable enough, Hillary.
(LAUGHTER)
MURRAY (voice-over): Voters delivered a win for Hillary Clinton in the New Hampshire primary, stalling Barack Obama's momentum after his stunning win in Iowa and setting off a long slog nomination fight.
In the end Obama turned it around, won the Democratic primary and went on to win the White House. But very few candidates manage to make it that far -- Sara Murray, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: "You're nice enough, Hillary."
I'm John Vause in Las Vegas. And I will be back with more on the Democratic debate coming in our next hour.
SESAY: And I'm Isha Sesay in Los Angeles.
Rosemary Church and Errol Barnett pick up our coverage from CNN Center right after this.
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