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Third GOP Debate Examined; US, Chinese Navy Chiefs to Meet; More FIFA Controversy; Brazil Moves to Protect Some Rainforest; Turkish Police Raid Television Stations. Aired 3-4a ET

Aired October 29, 2015 - 03:00   ET

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

[03:00:00] ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN NEWSROOM SHOW HOST: Republicans duke it out with each other, and the media in their third presidential debate. A look at who won big and who may have to pack it in.

Unchartered waters, the U.S. and Chinese Navy chiefs set to meet amid rising tensions in the South China Sea.

And World Cup controversy, the suspended head of FIFA says the 2018 World Cup bid was decided in advance.

Hello and welcome. I'm Rosemary Church. And this is CNN Newsroom.

And we begin this hour with U.S. politics and a spirited republican presidential debate in Boulder, Colorado.

The economy, the theme of the event Wednesday night. The candidates didn't always stay on message. Instead, they spent some of their time taking swings at each other and the media. Here are some of the highlights.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JEB BUSH, (R) U.S. PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: You should be showing up to work. I mean, literally the Senate, what is it like a French workweek. You've get like three days where you have to show up. You can campaign or just resign and let someone take the job.

MARCO RUBIO, (R) U.S. PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: The only reason why you're doing it now is because we're running for the same position. And someone has convinced you that attacking me is going to help you.

DONALD TRUMP, (R) U.S. PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: He was so nice. Such a nice guy. And he said, oh, I'm never going to attack. But then his poll numbers tanked. He's get vetted, that's why he is on the end. And he got nasty. He got nasty.

TED CRUZ, (R) U.S. PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: For six and a half years, we have had a gigantic party. If you want someone to grab a beer with, I may not be that guy. But if you want someone to drive you home, I will get the job done, and I will get you home.

JOHN HARWOOD, CNBC REPUBLICAN DEBATE MODERATOR: Is this a comic book version of a presidential campaign?

TRUMP: It's not a comic book. And it's not a very nicely asked question the way you say that.

HARWOOD: When you look at him do see someone with the moral authority to unite the country.

CRUZ: I like Donald Trump. He is a good man. I'm wearing a Trump tie tonight. Get over that one.

BEN CARSON, (R) U.S. PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: That is total propaganda and this is what happens in our society. Total propaganda.

RUBIO: I know the democrats have the ultimate super PAC as told by the mainstream media.

CRUZ: The questions that have been asked so far in this debate illustrate why the American people don't trust the media.

This is not a cage match. And if you look at the questions, Donald Trump, are you a comic book villain, Ben Carson, can you do math, John Kasich, will you insult two people over here. Marco Rubio, why don't you resign. Jeb Bush why have your numbers fallen? How about talking about the substantive issues that people...

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: And earlier I spoke with Larry Sabato about what effect this debate could have on the republican candidates in this ways.

Joining me now via Skype to talk more about the republican presidential debate is Larry Sabato, he is the director at the University of Virginia Center for Politics. Thank you, sir, for being with us.

Now, this was an opportunity of course, for the lower polling candidates to make a name for themselves and try to push Trump and Carson from the top positions. So, who were the winners and who were the losers this time around?

LARRY SABATO, UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA CENTER FOR POLITICS DIRECTOR: You always look first to the front-runners. And the front-runners, the co-front-runners are of course, Ben Carson and Donald Trump. I saw nothing that would dislodge them from these positions.

I thought that they handled the questions well from a republican perspective. And remember, if we are thinking about this debate in terms of how the republicans who will actually vote in the primaries and caucuses are interpreting what they're seeing.

CHURCH: And of course, Trump and Carson didn't get as much time as the others. We saw the moderators concentrate more on those lower polling candidates. What were the make or break moments do you think of this GOP debate?

SABATO: This was a very confrontational debate. Not just between the candidates. But, between the candidates and the moderators. Notice how the crowd responded in that auditorium. They cheered every time one of the republicans attacked the media for a negative question. I suspect because of that, Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz probably improved their evaluations among GOP voters.

CHURCH: Yes, interesting. And you mention that, because we saw Donald Trump going on the attack from the very start. Didn't we? Challenging the moderators about the tone and substance of their questions. Ted Cruz did the same.

But of course, you know, there were republican people in the crowd. They're going to be very excited by that. How does it play out when it comes to the vote, the big vote, but also, did they have a point about some of those questions?

SABATO: We need to remember that it is still very early. The voting doesn't even start until February 1. This debate will be long forgotten as will the others by that time. So, let's not exaggerate the impact. But on the whole, if you are looking for an impact, I actually thought it was a negative one for Jeb Bush.

[03:05:01] Jeb Bush, more than any other candidate needed some breakout moments in this debate and he never got them. He was not especially effective. I thought he lost the confrontation with Marco Rubio. And that's bad news for him. And it's bad news for his donors who have been very nervous about how he would still.

CHURCH: And it's been interesting because Jeb Bush has even voiced some frustration, hasn't he? Almost indicating that he might bail out. He's got a whole lot of other more important things to do.

Do you think that he might be one of the, the candidates that might, might actually step away from the main stage. Who else do you think might do that? And who really comes out, do you think it's Trump and Carson again who continue on as the big winners here?

SABATO: I don't believe Bush will drop out any time soon. For one thing he's got too much money in his super PAC. As we say always say, candidates don't really quit the campaigns. The money just runs out.

So, I think Bush will be in it for a while. There are some minor candidates who really are running out of money or who have other pressures on them.

An example, Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky. He is running for re- election to the Senate also in 2016. He is getting a lot of pressure from his own party. To drop out of the presidential race and start focusing on his re-election race to the Senate.

CHURCH: All right. We'll see what happens. We'll be watching this very closely of course. Larry Sabato, thank you so much for talking with us. I appreciate it.

SABATO: Thank you.

CHURCH: And some of the candidates made questionable claims during that debate. We took a look at one particular denial Donald Trump made. And we will have the results of that fact check a little later this hour. Well, the U.S. Secretary of State is convening an international

meeting in Vienna to discuss ending the Civil War in Syria. Senior State Department officials say, Washington is trying to build on momentum since Russia became militarily involved.

Kerry said the talks won't result in an immediate political solution, but they offered the best hope for one.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOHN KERRY, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: This is a human catastrophe unfolding before our eyes in the 21st century. My friends, the challenge we face in Syria today, is nothing less than to chart a course out of hell.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: And Iran is confirming it will attend Friday's talks as well as Archrival, Saudi Arabia. It's the first time Tehran will be represented in international discussions on Syria.

Elise Labott explains the importance of Iran's attendance.

ELISE LABOTT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: At first the Iranians were hinting it could be a deputy minister, but the foreign minister will be there. We're not sure how much influence he has over Iran-Syria policy. You know, he was the key architect of the Iranian nuclear deal.

But the revolutionary guards are believed to have a lot more sway on the Syria policy. So, we have to see. But it's very significant that Iran is willing to start cooperating on issues outside the nuclear deal. And also the fact that other countries like Saudi Arabia who had balked at Iran coming will be willing to sit with them at the table.

CHURCH: Now this comes as amateur video is appearing online, purportedly showing Syrian regime helicopters dropping barrel bombs on a suburb of Damascus. The authenticity of the video could not be verified.

Separately, Russia said it struck 118 targets in Syria in the past 24 hours. The defense ministry said it focused on areas controlled by Islamist militants in six provinces.

Of course, as a result of the fighting in Syria, there have been a lot of refugees, moving into Europe and Austria says it plans to build a wall at its main border crossing with Slovenia to slow the influx of migrants.

Earlier, Germany accused Austria of dropping migrants off at its border in the middle of the night. Germany's interior minister calls Austria's handling of the refugees recently out of order.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

THOMAS DE MAIZIERE, GERMAN INTERIOR MINISTER: We observe the refugees without warning and after dark were being driven to the German border without any provisions or forethoughts. There were intensive contacts. Austria agreed yesterday to return to an orderly process. I expect this to occur immediately.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: Austria says, more than 300,000 people have crossed through its country since the start of September, and that it can't handle much more.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HEINZ FISCHER, AUSTRIAN PRESIDENT: We estimate that we have had around 80,000 applications for asylum in Austria. And until now, we did the best we could. But now we see that we have reached the limit of our capacity.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: The Greek Coast Guard rescued more than 240 people after a boat filled with migrants sank off the Greek Island of Lesbos. At least three people, including two small boys died in the sinking on Wednesday.

[03:10:07] More than 500,000 refugees and migrants have arrived in Greece since January. And more than 3,000 have died on their journeys.

On Thursday, top naval officials from the U.S. and China were reportedly discussed the recent tensions in the South China Sea. China claims a U.S. warship illegally entered its territory around a manmade island on Tuesday. But the U.S. doesn't recognize China's territory claim as legal as CNN's Jim Sciutto reports. China is not backing down.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JIM SCIUTTO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Tonight, Beijing is firing a rhetorical shot across the bow, after a U.S. Destroyer sailed right through waters claimed by China.

A newspaper closely tied to the Chinese Communist Party encouraging the government to convince Washington that China is "Not frightened to fight a war with the U.S. in the region."

Spokesman for the Chinese Defense Ministry demanded the transits stopped.

YANG YUJUN, CHINA DEFENSE MINISTRY SPOKESMAN: The United States should take concrete measures to correct the wrongdoing. And prevent such incidents from happening again.

SCIUTTO: U.S. officials insist that the transits by U.S. Navy ships are not incidents at all, but legal even routine navigation in waters no nation can claim as their own.

JOHN KIRBY, U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT SPOKESMAN: To sail a ship through international waters is not a provocative act in any way or whatsoever and it should not be taken as a provocative act.

SCIUTTO: Not backing down, the U.S. military says such passes near disputed artificial Chinese island in the South China Sea will continue.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Fly, sail, and operate where international law permits. And whatever -- whenever our operation need is required.

SCIUTTO: China is now threatening to expand military activities in the area. To ward away U.S. vessels and aircraft as we saw during an exclusive flight on a U.S. surveillance plane over the same island. State department urged China to avoid further escalating tensions.

KIRBY: We want to see those tensions de-escalate and calm down. We don't believe it's in anybody's benefit for there to be any militarization of these reclaimed features.

CHURCH: Jim Sciutto reporting there. All right. Let's turn now to CNN's Steven Jiang. He is in Beijing with more on this developing story. Steven, what's likely to be achieved at this meeting Thursday?

STEVEN JIANG, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Rosemary you mentioned that video conference in the coming hours between the two countries, navy commanders, Admiral General Richardson and Commander Wu Xiang Li. But there are also reports about other commanders from the U.S. Pacific command and Pacific fleets coming here to Beijing for previously scheduled visits.

So, these are largely viewed as a positive sign. That the two militaries have not cut off their communication after the most recent episode. Now, neither side is likely to budge as you heard in Jim's package. That is the U.S. is going to insist it is sailing international waters.

Hence, do not need anyone's permission. And China, would insist that they have sovereignty over those man-made islands, as well as waters surrounding them. So, those positions will be maintained by both side.

But the good thing here is they're talking. They're keeping the conservation and dialogue going, which many see as a good thing. Because it is making it less likely for there to be a miscalculation or misjudgment on either side, which could turn a war of word into a real arm of conflict. Rosemary.

CHURCH: Well, right. Good that they're still communicating both sides here. But what's the reality when it comes to finding some sort of compromise. Some sort of solution to this problem?

JIANG: It's very unlikely at this stage, Rosemary, because both side are really holding firm. Holding their ground. This very contentious issue. But also remember, there is politics to consider. For China, it's been telling its own people that they have owned these island and waters for centuries.

So, already you hear many people asking online if China's territory has been violated, why has the government or military response so far been so weak. Why is there no military response to the U.S. passage, U.S. -- USS Lassen's passage?

So, there is a lot of nationalistic patriotic fervor on line that a Chinese government needs to manage for the U.S. side of course. It also need to show its allies that it is here to protect their interest, as well as its own commercial interest.

So, politics on both sides. So, probably a bit of posturing on both side as well. But the good thing again is they're talking. Rosemary.

CHURCH: Delicate diplomatic steps. No doubt. Steven Jiang there reporting there live from Beijing. Many thanks to you.

[03:15:02] The U.S. military blimp that broke free from its tethers in Maryland is now back on the ground. It flew over the Northeastern U.S. for several hours Wednesday. It took down some power lines and eventually landed in neighboring Pennsylvania.

Now in large, unmanned, this large unmanned blimp is made to protect against airborne threats. But then became a threat itself.

CNN's Boris Sanchez has more.

BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: A high tech military blimp tethered to the ground at an air base in Maryland broke free from its moorings today, drifting away uncontrolled.

NORAD's JLEN is a highly sophisticated defensive aircraft. Almost 250- feet long. The helium fills blimp uses on board radar that can track cruise missiles and aircraft from up to 340 miles away in any direction.

That JLEN slipped from its moorings at the Aberdeen Proving Ground at Maryland, north of Washington, D.C. just before noon. And began a slow drift North over Pennsylvania. Two F-16 Fighter Jets from a National Guard Station in New Jersey scrambled to track the blimp and clear the way for commercial aircraft.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, my God. It's going down.

SANCHEZ: The biggest worry the 6700-foot cable that kept the blimp tied down was dragging along the ground, taking down power lines and causing massive power outages.

At one point, as many as 30,000 people were without power. The blimp has an automatic deflation system. But it's unclear whether or not it worked. After a little more than three and a half hours, the badly damaged blimp finally came down in the woods near Central Pennsylvania.

Boris Sanchez, CNN, Muncy, Pennsylvania.

CHURCH: Coming up here on CNN Newsroom. A sheriff's deputy is fired for slamming a teenager to the floor in a school classroom. We will tell you why his boss says his actions were partially lawful.

Plus, current FIFA president, Sepp Blatter has reportedly led it out what he claims was planned when selecting the World Cup hosts. That is next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KATE RILEY, CNN WORLD SPORTS REPORTER: I'm Kate Riley with your CNN World Sport headlines.

Sepp Blatter may well be serving a provisional 90-day suspension. But that doesn't mean he still doesn't have plenty to say. The 79-year-old will officially lead his post as head of football's world governing body, FIFA, when his successor is elected early next year.

And on Wednesday with an interview with the Russian News Agency, asked Blatter blamed the also suspended UEFA president, Michel Platini. England and the United States for igniting and escalating the current corruption scandal.

[03:20:04] Liverpool (Inaudible) with Jurgen Klopp and in search of his first win in charge of the Red, and making his debut on the night with (Inaudible). He had a great effort that was cleared off the line. But Nathaniel Clyne was there to finish things off and score the winner off to after 17 minutes.

Liverpool and their first victory undercard at the fourth attempt. (Inaudible) Miller ended another Red off through to the quarterfinals. So, 35 miles away from Anfield you'll find that great rivals, (Inaudible) Manchester united.

The Red Devils are trophy-less in two years since Ferguson's departure. This one ended nil-nil director time who met with hold of after united misses. Ashley Young had to score partly saved by the key (Inaudible).

His effort was saved by the deeper. Middlesbrough will celebrate. Advancing to the quarterfinals. And that's a look at all of your sports headlines. I'm Kate Riley.

CHURCH: In the United States, a school resource officer has lost his job and could face charges. After he violently dragged a female student out of her desk and tossed her across the floor.

Miguel Marquez has more.

MIGUEL MARQUEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: This single violent jolt ended the career of school resource officer, Ben Fields.

LEON LOTT, RICHLAND COUNTY SHERIFF: Approximately 20 minutes ago, school resource officer, Ben Fields was terminated from the Richland Sheriff's Department.

MARQUEZ: The confrontation started over a cell phone, the 16-year-old was using it in class, said by the sheriff, and became rude and disrespectful when asked to stop.

LOTT: She was disruptive. She was very disrespectful. And she started this incidence with her actions. MARQUEZ: The student refused to leave the class as ordered by the

teacher an African-American administrator as well as well as the sheriff's deputy. When Ben Fields was asked to remove her, the sheriff said everything he did was within policy until this.

LOTT: When I see that video, is the fact that he picked the student up, and he threw the student across the room. That is not a proper technique and it should not be used in law enforcement.

MARQUEZ: Fields could still face criminal charges based on the ongoing independent FBI investigation. In a statement, his attorney says his actions were carried out professionally. And that he was performing his duties within the legal threshold.

The sheriff's swift action meant to quell any possible concerns about a racial motivation behind the student's arrest in this majority African-American county. Even involved members of the community here did not see race as a factor.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If everything that happens is not race related. I think you have to be sure before you cite race as a problem. Just because somebody disobeyed the police officer, the administrator and teacher doesn't make it racially related.

Miguel Marquez, CNN, Columbia, South Carolina.

CHURCH: The Kansas City Royals are now leading baseball's World Series, two games to none. After defeating the New York Mets Wednesday night.

Several of the nine Kansas City starters had at least one hit in the game. The final score, 7 to 1. Now the series shifts to New York for game three on Friday.

Suspended FIFA president, Sepp Blatter has reportedly spilled the beans. Russian news outlet TASS quotes him saying that "Some World Cup hosts were planned before the votes took place."

Our Patrick Snell has more.

PATRICK SNELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Sepp Blatter may be serving a provisional 90-day suspension but that doesn't mean he still doesn't have plenty to say. The 79-year-old will officially lead his post as head of World Football governing body, FIFA when his successor is elected February 26 next year.

On Wednesday, in an interview with the Russian news agency, TASS, Blatter blamed the also suspended president UEFA president, Michel Platini, England and the United States for igniting and escalating the corruption scandal.

What's more? Blatter claims there was an agreement in place for the 2018 World Cup to go to Russia even before the vote took place. He said in 2010, we have a discussion of the World Cup. And then we want to a double decision. For the World Cup, it was agreed that we go to Russia because it's never been in Russia, Eastern Europe. And for 2022, we go back to America. Now it is not clear who had

agreed for Russia to host. Nor is it clear if this agreement had any bearing on the eventual vote, which did in fact award Russia the World Cup.

Now the awarding of both that tournament in Qatar, 2022, is currently the subject of a separate Swiss criminal investigation.

Meantime, the chairman of England's Football Association, Greg Dyke said his association which also bid to the 2018 tournament would investigate Blatter's claims on Wednesday. Dyke spoke before the British Parliament in London.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

[03:25:10] GREG DYKE, ENGLAND FOOTBALL ASSOCIATION CHAIRMAN: He told it is a criticism of Mr. Platini because he said Mr. Platini function both to vote for Qatar. But he basically says we wanted Russia and then we wanted Qatar. It does look like he is suggesting that it was all fixed anyway.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SNELL: Meantime, it's being confirmed seven candidates will contest the presidential race early next year. Platini who denies any wrongdoing is among them despite his current ban from all football related activity over a $2 million payment received from Blatter on behalf of FIFA back in 2011.

The Frenchman is joined by Jordan's Prince Ali, Liberian FA president, Musa Bility, Jerome Champagne of France, UEFA General Secretary, Gianni Infantino, Asian Football Confederation president, Salman Bin Ibrahim Al-Khalifa, and South Africa's Tokyo Sexwale, the former footballer from Trinidad, David Nakhid was not listed after reportedly not receiving the five required football nominations.

Patrick Snell, CNN, Atlanta.

CHURCH: During the debate a moderator asked Donald Trump about an attack on another candidate over immigration. We will fact check Trump's response. That's after the break.

Plus, locals in Brazil caught stealing from a restricted rain forest. Our reporter was there during an eco-police raid. Back in a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[03:29:57] A warm welcome back to CNN Newsroom. I'm Rosemary Church. We do want to check the headlines for you this hour.

The gloves came off during the third U.S. republican presidential debate. Candidates sparred with each other and the moderators during Wednesday night's event in Boulder, Colorado.

The Republican National Committee chairman slammed the network hosting the debate calling it a hostile environment. Iran is confirming it will attend Friday's talks on ending the

conflict in Syria. The U.S. called the meeting in Vienna. Iran says the Syrian President Al Assad should be part of the process. But Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Turkey want Assad out of office as a precondition for peace.

On Thursday, top naval officials from the U.S. and China will reportedly discuss the recent tensions in the South China Sea. China claims a U.S. warship illegally entered its territory around a manmade island on Tuesday. The U.S. says, it was sailing in international waters.

Well, during the U.S. presidential debate several candidates made questionable claims, including Donald Trump who denied attacking a candidate over his stance on immigration.

CNN's Tom Foreman did a fact check to see if he was telling the truth.

TOM FOREMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: What happened in this moment in this whole -- whole debate was that the Trump issued a couple of denials of some statements that were made by Becky Quick, the moderator.

She asked him, specifically, abut his attacks on Marco Rubio over these special visas for immigrants to come in and work. And he denied ever attacking Rubio. Not once, but twice. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REBECCA QUICK, CNBC REPUBLICAN DEBATE MODERATOR: You have been very critical of Mark Zuckerberg of Facebook who wanted to increase the number of h1 base.

TRUMP: I was not at all critical of him. I was not at all. In fact, frankly, he's complaining about the fact that we're losing some of the most talented people. They go to Harvard, they go to Yale, they go to Princeton, they come from another country and they are immediately sent out. I am all in favor of keeping these talented people here so they can go to work in Silicon Valley.

(CROSSTALK)

QUICK: So, you're in favor of increasing that.

TRUMP: Oh, I have nothing at all critical of him.

QUICK: Where did I read this and come up with this that you were...

TRUMP: Probably -- I don't know, you people write this stuff. I don't know where you...

QUICK: You had talked a little bit about, Marco Rubio, I think you called him, Mark Zuckerberg's personal senator because he was in favor of the H1 visa.

TRUMP: I never said that. I Never said that.

QUICK: So, this was an erroneous article. The whole I ran?

TRUMP: He's got a another gentleman in Florida who happens to be a very nice guy but not...

QUICK: My apologies. I'm sorry.

TRUMP: No, really. I mean, he's been doing some bad fact.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FOREMAN: Really do some bad fact checking. Twice here. He is saying, no. I didn't attack Rubio. I didn't attack Mark Zuckerberg. I never said anything about this. So, where on earth did she get this idea? Funny enough.

You know where she got it? She got it from Donald Trump's web site, where he says Mark Zuckerberg's personal Senator Marco Rubio has a bill to triple H1B visas, those were the visas we're talking about that would decimate women and minorities.

The bottom line is, Trump tried to bluff her, he tried to do it twice, she called him on the bluff. And she was right. His claim was false.

Tom Foreman reporting there. And for more on the U.S. presidential election, head over to the CNN politics web site. From there, you can read the latest on all of the candidates.

U.S. republican lawmakers are choosing Paul Ryan to be the next Speaker of the House. Ryan fell short of the needed votes to secure the nomination in a closed door contest.

But supporters of his opponent, Daniel Webster, said they would switch their votes to Ryan. He's on track to replace John Boehner who is expected to retire Friday.

Well, the House approved a budget and debt limit measure that clears the way for Ryan to avoid a fiscal battle at the start of his leadership. The deal raises the nation's debt ceiling through 2017. And increases spending on defense and domestic programs.

Though, Rand Paul its threatening to hold it up with a filibuster in the Senate. That chamber's republicans say they are confident they can push the measure through.

Burning rain forests account for up to 20 percent of global Green House gas emissions per year. Since, 2004, Brazil has reigned that in by designating some rainforests as national parks.

But some loggers, ranchers and miners are ignoring the rules.

CNN's Shasta Darlington joined eco police as they tried to stop them in this exclusive report.

SHASTA DARLINGTON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Flying low over the Amazon rainforest, with agents from Brazil's IBAMA environmental police. We zero in on the target. The turquoise waters of an illegal gold mine carved into the heart of the jungle.

[03:35:06] First chopper down. Now, the hunt is on. We follow as IBAMA agents search the camp. Prepared for retaliation. They arrest the leader of the mine and seize weapons. The first helicopter came down with a number of men armed. They came out, secured the area and make sure nobody else here had any weapons that they were pointing at the helicopter. Something that has happened in the past.

Now it seems to be fairly under control. The man in charge, shows us the precarious tent they all share.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I know we're destroying the trees here, says, but unfortunately, it's the only way for those of us who live here and don't have jobs or studies.

DARLINGTON: He says the gold they have mined is barely enough to survive on. But the excavator he bought is worth over $100,000. IBAMA agents say it's big business. Tearing off the rainforest, contaminating rivers for generations to come.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're fighting a war, he says. A war to protect the environment in Brazil. They destroy the camp. Although the workers were set free.

DARLINGTON: And we head back to the base to gear up for a night raid on illegal loggers. Led by a 32-year-old known by her many enemies as the 'blond devil.'

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They're hauling out 19 trucks a day from indigenous territory, she says. They're stealing from the country and it's our job to stop them.

DARLINGTON: The first truck takes them by surprise. State agents shoot at the engine to stop it. Then the first arrest of the night. Agents now hunker down and wait.

We're waiting for a second logging truck. But in the meantime. We heard on the radio that the order has been given to run over anybody who gets in their way. But the next series of trucks are halted at the barricade without confrontation. More arrests follow.

The operation has just come to an end. They manage to get five trucks. If you can come along here with me. I know it's really hard to see because it's dark. But these are absolutely enormous logs. They've come from an indigenous territory about 15 kilometers away.

And they go for thousands on the retail market. Overwhelmed and underfunded. The eco police then use one of the few effective tools they have. They torch it all. The illegal logs, trucks included. And take a few minutes to savor their small victory in a very long ecological war.

Sasha Darlington, CNN, Novo Progresso, Brazil.

CHURCH: And we travel to Indonesia now where the navy says anyone who wants to evacuate the country and its devastating smog can do so. The military there has three ships available that can carry more than

2,000 people in all. Indonesia's social minister says at least 19 people have died so far from this smog. More than half a million others are sick with respiratory related illnesses.

And humans are not the only ones being affected. Wildlife workers are racing to rescue endangered orangutans. In Borneo, the toxic smoke blanketing the region is causing, annually is caused annually by illegal slashing and burning to clear fields for new crops.

We want to get more on the impact here. Of course we have talked extensively about the impact on humans.

DEREK VAN DAM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes.

CHURCH: Now we're looking at problems for endangered species. And which ones particularly.

DAM: Orangutans. In fact the Sumatra orangutan, their habitat is turned in into this charred wasteland. All because of this illegal practice known as slash and burn.

I'm going to tug on the heart strings a little bit. Because I got to show you these photos. They help tell the story.

Think about this, just over a century ago, we had roughly 3,000 orangutans. Now to this dates, there are only 6,000 of them in Sumatra. And roughly 54,000 just in the Island of Borneo. So, we are reducing our numbers of these endangered species dramatically.

And we can't just tie it directly to this -- particular event. However, the effects of the smog and pollution far reaching. Here is an orangutan reintroduction site. They're having difficulty getting reintroduced into the nature, into the wild, all because of the ongoing fires across the region.

[03:39:59] Take a look at this, NASA satellite image of the Island of Borneo. A very dense haze from roughly over 100,000 active fires burning over 1.7 million helicopters of acreage already. That's 4.2 million acres, by the way.

You can see little fires dot along the southern portions of Borneo creating that dense smog. And think about the impacts of what this smog has across Indonesia. Not only the health hazards that we've been reporting on. Over 500,000 with respiratory problems.

But the carbon footprint had this releases. Over 1.6 giga tons. of C02 equivalent, which is worse in the fire season which was record setting back in 1997.

And if you recall that was when we had a very equal el Nino season. Remember, el Nino is a typical warming of the Eastern Pacific Ocean waters and that impacts all locations across the world. But specifically, across Indonesia.

That means dry conditions and also above average temperatures across this part of the world. So, that means ongoing fires are still a possibility. There has been a little bit of rain in the area but not enough to offset the extreme drought conditions that we're feeling across Sumatra, and in to Borneo.

Look at this, this is rainfall anomalies where nearly 100 percent below average where we should be this time of year.

I'm going quickly take you to Australia, Rosie. Take a look at the damage coming out of the region. We had strong storms. Look at that flipping over trampolines. A very strong wind gust. This is coming out of the Queensland, Australia area, just outside of Brisbane.

Yes, unbelievable stuff from some of these storms. Storms are starting to reduce and intensity and frequency across that area of conditions should start to improve shortly. But scary stuff.

CHURCH: Must definitely. And you know, it is the problem that part of Australia.

DAM: It is.

CHURCH: Derek Van Dam, thank you so much for bringing us to date on the weather situation across the globe. I appreciate it.

Well, authorities may be getting close to catching the world's most dangerous drug lord. Up next. See what officials are doing to track him down.

[03:45:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHURCH: Turkish police storm the offices of two opposition television channels in Istanbul on Wednesday. They fired pepper spray and water cannon to disperse the crowd of about 500 protesters.

Welcome back. Those raids targeted companies linked to the Islamic cleric, Fethullah Gulen. Turkey's President have labeled him a terrorist. Right groups call the raid censorship days ahead of an election.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It is very clear, I mean, this is, Imam sentenced, this is a coup against opposition, against the media, against our existing Constitution, and against freedom of enterprise.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: Gulen has been living in self-imposed exile in the United States since 1999.

We are following new developments in the search for one of the world's most wanted fugitives. A Mexican drug lord who escaped from prison in July.

As CNN's Brian Todd reports the U.S. and Mexico are working closely together to capture Joaquin el Chapo Guzman. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The forces may be getting closer to finding the world's most dangerous drug lord, Joaquin el Chapo Guzman. Mexican officials tell CNN, they've searched several homes belonging to the cartel in three Mexican states, including his home State of Sinaloa.

Police say they've confiscated vehicles, weapons. More than 450 packages of drugs, like cocaine, heroin and methamphetamine. And surprisingly, 11 airplanes used by the cartel.

MICHAEL BRAUN, FORMER DEA CHIOF OF OPERATIONS: They seized a number of his small aircraft, which tells me they're cutting off his means of escape by air.

TODD: Former DEA operations chief, Michael Braun says there is now a full court press to capture el Chapo, who recently slipped through a dragnet, by either jumping or falling off a cliff in a scenes trade out of movie "The Fugitive."

Now CNN has learned the DEA and other U.S. agencies are providing intelligence while Mexican special forces make intense ground sweeps searching for the notorious criminal. If they isolate el Chapo at one of his houses it's not necessarily game over.

El Chapo has twice escaped police through tunnels. Most recently, through a shower inside a prison. And previously through an escape hatch built under his bathtub.

Now a Mexican official tells CNN, shortly before he was captured last year. Mexican marines were tipped off he was at one of his houses in Mexico. But when they tried to break down the door, the battering ram cracked. One official says, el Chapo's door was custom made of steel with water inside the skin.

It took marines 10 minutes to get inside. Enough for el Chapo to get away. An even bigger issue may be his network of supporters especially in the mountains of Sinaloa where he's based.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If you go in with military force, people will say very quickly, now the cartel has spies on the roads who can watch.

TODD: Making things more complicated, the fear el Chapo may also have help in the United States. CNN has learned authorities are now tracking his wife, the former beauty queen Emma Coronel, who is an American citizen, believed to be seen in these pictures posted online.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She is certainly a suspect of interest on steroids. She's a direct family member. She, you know, has lived and been with him for a few years now and knows the intimate details of his operations, his tactics, techniques, and procedures.

TODD: If there is a confrontation looming with el Chapo it could get messy. Michael Braun says the drug lord sometimes travels with as many as 300 bodyguards with him who carry weapons ranging from machine guns to grenade launchers.

Braun says at one point, recently, when Mexican Special Forces were pursuing el Chapo near one of his ranches their helicopters came under heavy automatic weapon's fire.

Brian Todd, CNN, Washington.

CHURCH: We'll take a very short break here. But coming up, a British entrepreneur is giving part of his profits to help underprivileged students around the world.

He says traveling and working in Asia helped inspire him. His story, next.

[03:50:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PEDRAM JAVAHERI, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Bit of a drying trend returning towards the Eastern U.S. after some heavy rainfall in the past of couple of days. There are some portions of the mid-Atlantic states and the mid-West as well showers begin to scoot offshore.

In the Southwest portion of the U.S still getting rain showers. But we're in New York City points North into Northeastern in New England. Still could see some rain from residual moisture left with the storm system. You notice plenty of moisture in the mid and upper levels of the atmosphere as indicated on water vapor imagery.

That's exiting wash out (ph) front across Rocky Mountain States where snow showers a possibility in the higher elevations in that region. The rain begins to come down. And of course, when you're knocking on the doorsteps there of November.

Certainly going to see cool enough temperatures. Up aloft in the higher elevations to see some snow showers. Denver not too bad around 17 degrees. Dallas about 25. Chicago, gusty wind will make it feel like in the single digits there with 10 degrees, as your high temperature.

In Montreal, 14 degrees, that is wet, but still warm for late October across portions of Montreal.

I bring you down of the south from Havana to NASA. The temperatures around 31 degrees. Belize, same score there in Aragua. Look at some thunderstorms generally in the afternoon with the convection in place there at 43 before high tide.

And Para ram on the dry side looking at some thunderstorms in the Amanas region. La Paz, under cooler end there about 16 degrees, between rain showers also in the forecast.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHURCH: Welcome back, everyone. We are exploring what some call 'ah- ha' moments. As part of our weekly series the trip that changed my life.

And we meet a British architect who was inspired by travel and trash, to start a business that gives back to the less fortunate.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JAMES MUNRO BOON, ELEPHANT BRANDED FOUNDER: When I grew up. I thought the best thing in life would be to be working as an architect in London. But going to South Africa really opened my eyes to the world. And I think if you learn a lot about yourself as well as learning a lot about the world around you.

Hi, I'm James Munro Boon I'm based in Hong Kong. I'm the founder of Elephant Branded.

We make products out of recycled materials in Cambodia, South Africa and Colombia. Each is handmade and we sell them in places like Europe and also in the U.S. And use some of the money off the sales to donate to school kids back to the children in these places that we make the bags.

I started architecture in university which a space not really the normal route to being an entrepreneur. We had the choice of doing a fancy project in the U.K. or to go out and build a school in South Africa.

We spent six months designing the school. And then we went out for four and half, five months to the township called Jouberton actually. About an hour and a half to South of Johannesburg. And it look good if you invested (Inaudible) Look good PR. But the bit that made a school a school was kind of missing. You know, a school kit that just made me rethink a little bit about what I thought about, you know, the word and my aspirations and stuff.

[03:55:02] I graduated from University. Got offered a job with a British company in Shenzhen, in China. I lived there for a year. Got off for a job in barren Tokyo and that's what brought me to Hong Kong.

And in the gap between the sort of the two jobs, I had a chance to go a couple of friends, and we traveled there through Southeast Asia. I was fortunate to meet an amazing family in Cambodia. And we sort of got working together and thought why can't we find some stuff that is lying around and try to make it into a bag.

Now we cut cases, laptop cases. And then it slowly started growing. In 2012, we won Google's world's competition for business which gave us sort of the opportunity to meet the life of Bill Clinton and those sort of people.

Actually I make 50 bags and I sell 50 bags to my friends and donate 50 to school kids. This little school I helped build in South Africa. And now we donate thousands of bags across not just in Cambodia but, you know, Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania.

I want to show that, you know, you can do some good, but also make a profit. You know, if I hadn't ever gone to South Africa I would never agree to go to China. If I didn't go to China or probably if I hadn't gone to the bar in Tokyo, and if I would never been to Cambodia.

While you're young, why not go see the world a bit. Living different places, you know. Maybe I will move to Cape town next, who knows.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: I love stories like that. So inspiring. And that does it for me. I'm Rosemary Church. Thanks for your company. Max Foster is up next with another hour of CNN Newsroom. Have a great day.

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