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Five Dead In Plane Crash Near Louisiana Airport; Trump Showing Increasing Signs Of Frustration As He Slams Pelosi, Re-tweets Bots And QAnon Fan Accounts; Up To 30 Percent Of Koalas May Have Been Killed In Australia Bushfires; Trump Jokes "Movie Will Never Be The Same" After Cameo Cut From "Home Alone 2" In Canada; 2019 A Bumpy Year For British Royals; Top Nine Sports Stories Of 2019. Aired 3-4p ET
Aired December 28, 2019 - 15:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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JESSICA DEAN, CNN NEWSROOM: You are live in the CNN NEWSROOM and I'm Jessica Dean in for Ana Cabrera in New York this afternoon.
Breaking news right now on CNN, a terrifying plane crash, at least five people are dead, several others hurt.
This is in Lafayette, Louisiana, a twin engine private plane had just taken off from Lafayette's Airport when it crashed and caught fire. And officials now confirming all except one person onboard the plane is dead, the one survivor and three people who were on the ground nearby were taken to the hospital.
Now, the woman who shot the video you're looking at was just a short distance away when that plane hit the ground. Alexis West is joining me now by phone from Lafayette, Louisiana.
Alexis, hi and good afternoon to you. Thanks for being with us. Tell us what happened. What did you see?
ALEXIS WEST, WITNESSED PLANE CRASH: Hi, yes. So what happened was I was just outside, and I saw this plane coming in, and it was really low to the ground. And I was shaking, and I didn't really -- you know, it looked like it was coming to land. And then it just skidded through the parking lot at the post office. And then it floated. There was like a big wave of fire that just pummeled down the yard.
DEAN: Wow.
WEST: And it was just horrible.
DEAN: Yes, it had to be just like incredible to see and probably just so jarring to see. What did you notice about the plane as it was crashing? Did you see where the wheels were? Was it trying to fly level or did you hear engines?
WEST: It looked like it was coming down to land because it looked like it was having a little bit of trouble. I think it was really shaky. But it looked like it was just really coming down to land, to try to make like a safe landing.
DEAN: So it looks a plane would normally when it was going to land, like it was coming down level. And then when did it -- when it crashed, when it came on impact there?
WEST: Whenever it hit the concrete, it just skidded and then it was just a big explosion.
DEAN: Okay. And tell us a little bit about that area where you were, where this plane crash happened? What does it look like there? Are you seeing homes, businesses, a lot of cars? What's it like there?
WEST: It was a lot of cars. And then I just noted they took one guy from the plane and took him out from the fire and like saved him, and he was burnt really bad, like his clothes and everything was ripped. And it was just a horrible sight to see. I've never seen something like that. And it was just the fire and cars and people trying to save the people that were in the fire.
DEAN: Yes. And it must -- I mean, obviously just a horrible thing to see, heartbreaking for the families of those victims, but also for you. Listen, it's not normal to see something like that happen. How are you feeling after kind of witnessing all of this? Is it replaying in your mind?
WEST: Yes, very much so. It was just -- it was a lot of anxiety and it just freaked me out. I was shaking so bad. Like I didn't know -- it was kind of like you watching a movie but in real life.
DEAN: Yes, very, very jarring.
WEST: It was scary.
DEAN: So scary. All right, Alexis West from Lafayette, Louisiana, we really appreciate you being with us. You take care of yourself.
WEST: Okay. Thank you.
DEAN: All right. Thanks, Alexis.
And joining me now, CNN Aviation Analyst and former NTSB Managing Director Peter Goelz. And, Peter, given the few details, we don't know a lot right now about all of this, but the type of plane, the weather conditions at the time of the crash, the proximity to the airport, what's coming to your mind as you're getting the small details we have and where do you think investigators are going to focus on first?
PETER GOELZ, CNN AVIATION ANALYST: Well, the NTSB and the FAA have a standard investigative procedure. They're going to look at the pilot, and he appeared to be a very experience the, certified pilot. They're going to look at the company.
It looked to be, you know, a well-known and well-thought-of charter company, they're going to look at the aircraft, whether there's been maintenance on it, what kind of maintenance has been performed over the past year, whether all of the air worthiness directives that govern special maintenance were followed. The weather looked like it was a little over cast but nothing too challenging, if the pilot was IFR certified, which I understand he was. And then they're going to look at the engine and see how the engine performed.
There was an eyewitness report that said one of the engines was smoking, and this was a turbocharged Piper, about almost 30 years old, they'll look carefully at the engine.
[15:05:05]
30 years old is not old for one of these types of planes, but they're going to look carefully at the maintenance on those engines.
DEAN: And tell me, you mentioned it's the Piper Cheyenne is the plane that crashed here, what do you know about that particular type of plane? Do we know anything about its safety record for that specifically for that model?
GOELZ: Yes, it's part of a family of two-engine planes, the broader family Piper probably made 5,000 of them of this specific type, maybe 450. They're considered workhorses but they have had problems with engines over the years. That will be looked at carefully. But it's a good, solid aircraft and it's a workhorse in the charter industry.
DEAN: And the visibility at the airport this morning was less than a mile, because you mentioned there was dense fog there. In those conditions, who makes the call, go or no go? Is that the pilot, is that air traffic control? Who says it's good enough, we can do this?
GOELZ: Well, it's the pilot's call first and foremost. And charter pilots understand that one of the gray things you've got to avoid is get their (INAUDIBLE), that the people who have chartered the plane want you to make the mission. And their responsibility is to weigh everything to see whether it's appropriate to take off.
And this guy was an experienced pilot. And it looked to me from the videotape that the visibility looked to be upwards of three-quarters of a mile to a mile. So, I mean, it was not particularly challenging. And I'm sure they waited for awhile until it was appropriate to take off.
DEAN: All right. Peter Goelz, thanks for giving us that context, that background. We appreciate your analysis there.
GOELZ: Thank you, Jessica.
DEAN: Let's go now to politics, and new signs today. President Trump is growing frustrated with the uncertainty surrounding his Senate impeachment trial. Limbo it seems not to his liking. Check out his Twitter page. The president has now spent every single day of his vacation tweeting about impeachment, how unfair it is.
He's been mocking the speaker of the House 20-plus times, re-tweeting bots and fan accounts of the conspiracy group, QAnon. He also re- tweeted and then have removed an attack that included the name of the purported whistleblower.
And for more on all of this, we go to CNN's Kristen Holmes. She's in West Palm Beach near the president's Mar-a-Lago estate. Kristen, I'm curious what else we're learning about the president's state of mind on this Saturday.
KRISTEN HOLMES, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, Jessica, the president might physically be here in Florida but it is clear his mind is back home in Washington D.C. and on impeachment. In addition to golfing nearly every day, as you said, he has been tweeting every single day, slamming Democrats, impeachment, Nancy Pelosi.
And while we know that he has spent most evenings at Mar-a-Lago, mixing, mingling with members and guests, he's also been picking their brains. President Trump asking allies on the resort who exactly should be part of his defense team when it comes to impeachment and what his defense strategy should be.
And I want to note here, we have had a lot of rumors as to who exactly would play a role here. Members of the House of Representatives, some of President Trump's staunchest defenders, including Jim Jordan or Mark Meadows, are all in the mix. But the only thing that is certain is that it's going to be led, the White House defense team is going to be led by the White House lawyer, Pat Cipollone.
Now, at one point, he was expected to come down here and work with the president. But as of now, that seems to be up in the air. But it's clear the president cannot put this out of his mind. And despite the fact that he's on his golf course, he's at his resort, he's surrounded by people who support him, he's clearly elsewhere.
DEAN: His mind is still there in Washington. Do we know, Kristen, if any White House officials have been down there with him over the holiday yet?
HOLMES: Yes. It's been really a rotating cast of characters. The first couple of nights we saw the national security adviser, Robert O'Brien, we saw his acting chief of staff, Mick Mulvaney, we actually saw his former press secretary, Sarah Sanders was there as well as his current press secretary. And half of them are leaving, more of them are coming in. And they are expected to really rotate in and out here.
We know that one of the biggest concerns of his White House aides was that a long time here, numerous hours, numerous days, which is what he's slated to be here for, could lead him to be more open to outside influence. They wanted to make sure that he had people around him who kept him focused on certainly parts of the trial that Republicans agree with, like the idea of having a shorter trial and less witnesses. Jessica?
DEAN: Yes, reinforcing that White House strategy. All right, Kristen Holmes, thanks so much for your reporting there.
Let's open this up to some conversation. Joining me now is CNN Senior Political Analyst and Senior Editor for The Atlantic, Ron Brownstein, and CNN Political Commentator and former RNC Communications Director, Doug Heye.
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Gentlemen, nice to have both of you. Thanks for being with us this afternoon.
Doug, I want to read you how one Vox reporter has summed this all up, quote, the president of the United States has today alone re-tweeted two QAnon fan accounts, a Pizzagate account, an account that compared his following to a cult and an account that described Obama as Satan's Muslim Scum. And this insanity isn't even a blip on the news radar.
Doug, remember those famous accounts of Nixon talking to the paintings on the wall, that's what I think. Is this Trump's version of that? And it is a good point. I mean, it's almost like this has come to be expected from the President of the United States at this point.
DOUG HEYE, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Yes. I'm a bit reminded of George Costanza, the sea was angry that day, my friends.
DEAN: Yes.
HEYE: And we see Trump do this so often where he goes down into a tweet mode where that's all he does, sending some disturbing messages, that ultimately, as a Republican, I would say, don't help the president best make his case. It allows for a lot of re-tweets, it may be distracts from conversations he doesn't like, but shows him potentially as being unstable at a time where he needs to not only be stable but project stability and put forth the best case that he can as this process hopefully moves to the Senate.
DEAN: Right, that he's in control of what's going on and moving forward in a meaningful way.
Ron, for a man downplaying the process, the president talks about impeachment a lot. Do you think there should be somebody in his orbit or do you think there are people in his orbit that plead with him to focus on the economy, the focus on the Nasdaq soaring past 9,000, some of these things that he could go to the broader Republican Party out there, not just his core base, and say, look at all these great things the economy is doing?
RON BROWNSTEIN, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: Look, I think we're long past the point where anyone can plausibly say that there's really any force within the administration over that matter within the Republican Party that is willing to truly try to constrain Trump's behavior.
And you point to the economy and it really does kind of encapsulate why this political situation and this election is so on the nice edge. On the one hand, the president does have this enormous tailwind. I mean, in the CNN poll, the Quinnipiac poll this week, three-quarters of Americans call the economy excellent or good. And yet , despite that, there's this enormous headwind, which is these widespread doubts about his behavior and his values and the way he comports himself as president. I mean, the thought that his approval rating is somewhere around 43, 45 percent at a time when three-quarters of Americans say the economy is excellent or is good is really unprecedented. And as I said before on the air, I mean, if you want to know the cost of Trump's behavior, look at the way he is viewed by people who are satisfied with the economy.
People who call it excellent or good in 2004, 90 percent of them voted for Bush, the incumbent president. 2012, same thing, roughly 90 percent of the people who have called the economy excellent or good went for Obama. Today in our latest CNN poll, Trump is polling only 55 percent against Biden among people who the economy excellent or good.
And that really is the delta, that is the price of his behavior, and it is why we are kind of on this knife's edge between this powerful tailwind of the economy and this headwind, the doubts about the way he has conducted himself as president.
DEAN: Yes, it's such an important point because to your broader point there, if this was any other president, they would be headed toward a massive re-election with these sort of economic numbers.
Doug, we're still at an impasse over what the looming Senate trial is going to look like. It's not clear what Pelosi, Schumer, McConnell are willing to budge on. In the end, who do you think is going to blink here? What's the way forward?
HEYE: I think we've learned one thing over the past decades. Is that when Mitch McConnell has a plan of action, he executes it, it's successful, he does not blink. So as this process, if it moves to the Senate, ultimately, it may not. If it moves to the Senate, it is in Mitch McConnell's hands and he'll proceed as I think we all expect, which is there's not going to be the -- there won't be the votes to convict Donald Trump.
So we will have a trial, however it all shakes out, whatever the subpoenas may be, and I would say that Joe Biden made a strategic mistake by not saying, of course, I'm going to show up because subpoenas aren't optional and really put it back on the Trump administration and Trump officials who denied subpoenas. But, ultimately, Mitch McConnell, when he holds the cards, he plays them well.
DEAN: Okay. So that's an interesting point you make. I want to talk about Joe Biden and the subpoena for just a second, because he did have to clarify a comment that he made to the Des Moines Register that he wouldn't comply with a Senate subpoena during Trump's impeachment trial. But today and just a few minutes ago this is what he said. Take a listen.
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JOE BIDEN (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Anyone subpoenaed relating to this investigation of a president has to be able to have some knowledge to shed on whether or not he committed the offenses he is accused of committing. I have no firsthand knowledge. There's no basis for that. So my point was there would be no basis upon which to call me as a witness.
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DEAN: He went on to say that he will do whatever is legally asked of him, but his whole point that he was trying to get to there is that he doesn't think it's going to get to that. Ron, what is your reaction to his clarification?
BROWNSTEIN: Well, I mean, I think as a reasonable argument he's making. But like Doug, I also think he should have waited to see whether in fact there would be 51 votes to subpoena him before ruling it out, complying with a subpoena.
I mean, the idea that we would go through something as momentous as a Senate trial on whether to remove the president, something we've never done, we've never removed a president, we've had two previous trials, without hearing from John Bolton, Mike Pompeo, Mick Mulvaney, officials that would be -- the people who were directly involved in this.
It's still astounding. I mean, the Republicans in the House uniformly were willing to support the administration's complete stonewall of the investigative process, Senate Republicans may be equally willing to do that. I mean, they are establishing precedents that will come back to haunt them unquestionably.
There will be another Democratic president someday and maybe as soon as 2021. And Republicans m Congress are going to warrant to do oversight if they have a majority. They are essentially saying hear that they are willing to put their partisan loyalty over their institutional obligations and responsibility. And I think they are laying down some examples that will come back to haunt them in the years ahead.
DEAN: The pendulum swings back and forth. Doug, going fully into 2020 here, there was an encouraging for the Biden campaign in The New York Times recently, the, But I Would Vote for Joe Biden, Republicans. It included several Republicans who were formerly in office all acknowledging his appeal.
Former GOP Congressman Carlos Curbelo says Biden is one of the few candidates who could attract disaffected and centrist Republicans. Obama defense secretary, former Republican Senator Chuck Hagel, saying other Republicans have actively told him, quote, if Biden is the nominee, I'll vote for him.
What's your reaction to that? Do you think that's a real thing? Because back in present 2016 too, Hillary Clinton had some centrist Republican support, and we see how that worked out.
HEYE: Yes, I think it's real, not just for Republicans but also for independents. We're talking about very small slivers of independents and very small slivers, excuse me, of Republicans. But why it's significant is if you look at some of those states that Trump flipped, he flipped them by small margins.
And so if you're able to peel off a thousand votes here or 2,000 votes there from Republicans or independents who switch from Trump to Biden, well, then you get to a win maybe in Wisconsin or Michigan and that's how you beat Trump if Biden is the nominee.
DEAN: Yes, I mean, when you break it down like that.
And, Ron, Biden has been the consistent frontrunner and Bloomberg is going to have his billions and he has money forever. But for Buttigieg, Warren, Standers, is it must-win out of the gate for their survival or do you think that some of them can hang on? How does that work for them financially moving forward, Biden for that matter?
BROWNSTEIN: Right. I mean, that's a really good point. I mean, the ability to raise money online and the existence of all of us on cable and the internet covering these primaries has changed the dynamics of the primaries. It used -- used to be campaigns expire because they ran out of money and they ran out of attention. Now, if you're a reasonably plausible candidate, you have almost an infinite supply of both. So it's going to be harder to drive people from the race.
What hasn't changed though, Jessica, is that voters don't like to waste their votes. And if you -- by definition, someone is going to come in fourth in Iowa, someone is going to come in fourth in New Hampshire. Biden probably has a second bite of the apple because he has a very strong base of African-American support that doesn't weigh in until South Carolina.
But I think for other candidates, there is going to be a winnowing process. Bernie Sanders similarly has a strong base particularly among young people. But for Buttigieg and Warren, it's hard for me to see both of them being seen as fully viable after Iowa and New Hampshire unless they finish 1-2 in those states.
So we have the potential for a longer race than in the past but it's not clear to me that all four will be viable by Super Tuesday.
DEAN: We will see what 2020 brings us. Ron Brownstein and Doug Heye, thanks to both of you. I appreciate it.
BROWNSTEIN: Thank you.
HEYE: Thank you.
DEAN: Coming up, a jaw-dropping crash as emergency crews run for their lives as a semi-truck barrels out of control there in Texas.
Plus, tragedy in paradise, search teams find that wreckage of a helicopter that crashed with tourists onboard, a recovery mission now underway.
And that's 12 feet long, almost a thousand pounds, and hanging near South Florida? That would be ironbound, the great white shark. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
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DEAN: Some terrifying moments caught on camera on a Texas highway as an 18-wheel tractor trailer slammed into a multicar pileup. The accident started as a two-car crash on Highway 84 in Lubbock County, Friday. That area, as you see, under a dense fog advisory when the big rig jackknifed to avoid another car, swerving off the road and rolling onto its side.
A photographer for CNN affiliate KCBC describes that horrific.
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CALEB HOLDER, PHOTOGRAPHER, KCBD: I couldn't remember if I was recording at the time or how the camera was framed. I just saw that trailer coming and --
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DEAN: So scary. The truck hit a Texas State Trooper and pinned another driver inside a pickup truck, but both are expected to survive.
On the Hawaiian island of Kauai, investigators have recovered bodies of six people who were on board a tourist helicopter. At this hour, the search continues for a seventh victim still unaccounted for.
For the latest on that crash, we go now to CNN's Josh Campbell who's in Kauai. And, Josh, are investigators saying anything about what might have caused this crash?
JOSH CAMPBELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Jessica. The cause very much remains under investigation at this hour. We're told that a team from the NTSB and the Federal Aviation Administration has launched to this location here in the northern section of the island of Kauai to begin that investigation to try to determine what occurred.
We're told by officials that early indications point to possible weather issues, especially inclement weather at the time of the crash Involving high winds. You can tell right now it's raining. That is actually hindering their search efforts as they continue to search for that seventh person, as you mentioned.
Now, we're told by officials that the wreckage has been located just behind us in a remote area inside a state park here on the northern section of Kauai. Officials launching that investigation Thursday afternoon after this tourism helicopter failed to report back to base at its scheduled hour. Officials working throughout the night, some 16 hours, officials from the Coast Guard, the Navy, fire and rescue crews, trying to determine where the aircraft was and whether there were survivors.
Jessica, a local fire department official tells us at this hour that they believe that there were likely no survivors in this crash. However, they continue to work diligently to try to find the remains of the seventh person.
DEAN: So heartbreaking to hear that. All right, Josh Campbell, thanks so much for the update this afternoon.
Still to come here on CNN NEWSROOM this afternoon, devastating news about the koala population in Australia as bushfires wreak havoc on the country.
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DEAN: Just in to CNN, one of the Thai Navy SEALs who took part in a famous cave rescue in Thailand has died from a blood infection he contracted during the mission. Petty Officer Beirut Pakbara was a member of the rescue team that saved 12 boys and their soccer coach from a flooded cave in July 2018. The infection he contracted got into his bloodstream and he died on Friday.
Now to Australia where officials say one-third of the koala population in the state of New South Wales may have been killed in the bushfires that have ravaged the country for the past two months. Firefighters and volunteers have been working around the clock to battle those fires and rescue koalas from danger, including this now famous video of a woman risking her own life by running into a fire to carry badly burned koala away from the flames. Sadly, that animal later died.
CNN's Natalie Allen has more on the fight to save the Australia's beloved koalas.
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NATALIE ALLEN, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: A koala hospital in Australia overwhelmed with patience with wildfire injuries.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Sorry, he seems to be quite dehydrated and probably quite hungry.
ALLEN: Not all were lucky like this little one.
Animal experts estimates hundreds of koalas have died in deadly bushfires raging in Eastern Australia since September. Australia's environment minister saying on Friday, up to 30 percent of koalas in the country's New South Wales region may have been killed in the ongoing fires.
The region's Port Macquarie Koala Hospital has admitted for than 300 of these adorable animals so far this year. But the hospital's director says the support from the public has been equally overwhelming. The hospital has received forever $2 million in donations on a GoFundMe page site.
CHEYNE FLANAGA, CLINICAL DIRECTOR, PORT MACQUARIE KOALA HOSPITAL: The amount of visitors that are here at the koala hospital over the last five or six weeks has been phenomenal. Everyone is so afraid we're going to lose koalas, that they want to come and see them. [15:30:02]
That's the power of the koala worldwide.
ALLEN: The government says it's working with koala experts and $6 million has been set aside to help save and rehab them.
A new heat wave is expected to hit parts of the country over the weekend and into next week, raising fears that high temperatures and dry winds could further intensify the raging infernos.
That's all bad news for the already vulnerable koala community.
TERRY HILL, FIREFIGHTER: Very little would actually survive in there unscathed. Wallabies, kangaroos, deer would get out because they can run but koalas just really can't.
ALLEN: The Australian Koala Foundation says the numbers are dwindling and the species is at risk of extinction if the population continues to shrink.
Rising temperatures, which dry out their habitats, deforestation and disease are taking a toll.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I know.
ALLEN: The staff here hope his fate will be different in a time when the death of even one koala could be one too many.
Natalie Allen, CNN, Atlanta.
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DEAN: Thanks, Natalie.
Check this out, a research group has tracked a 12-foot great white shark from Nova Scotia to the Miami area. That shark, named Ironbound, because of its feisty nature, was located by Key Biscayne, Florida, two days before Christmas. Researchers had been tracking the shark as part of a study on migration patterns. They remind everyone shark attacks are very rare and there's no increased concern for beachgoers in Florida.
Coming up, blame Canada? "Home Alone 2" now the subject of an international incident after a Canadian broadcaster cut President Trump's cameo.
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DEAN: Seven seconds and three lines from 1992 are suddenly a major talking point. The president's cameo in "Home Alone 2," where he gives directions to Kevin McCallister, was cut from a TV version of the Christmas movie airing in Canada. The Canadian Broadcast Corporation says it was part of a routine edit made in 2014.
But as CNN's Pamela Brown reports from the White House, the facts aren't stopping the president's supporters from claiming a case of anti-Trump bias.
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MACAULAY CULKIN, ACTOR: Excuse me, where is the lobby?
PAMELA BROWN, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): For a ratings-obsessed president conscious of every television appearance no matter how small, these seven seconds are now putting "Home Alone 2" at the center of a Christmas conspiracy controversy involving President Trump.
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Down the hall and to the left.
BROWN: After the president said he was honored to make a cameo appearance in the movie during a video conference with U.S. troops just before Christmas --
TRUMP: It has been a good movie. And I was a little bit younger, to put it mildly. It was -- it was an honor to do it. And it turned out to be a big hit, obviously. It is a big Christmas hit, one of the biggest.
[15:35:10]
BROWN: The movie aired on the CBC later that day without that seven- second scene, something Trump supporters quickly took notice of, with Fox News even claiming anti-Trump censorship was the reason the scene was edited out.
(CROSSTALK)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: How bad for Trump derangement syndrome for you to cut that out after a happy movie.
BROWN: And after that segment aired on the president's favorite channel, he pounced on Twitter, claiming it was edited out as revenge by Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, tweeting: "I guess Justin T. doesn't like me making him pay up on NATO or the trade."
But here are the facts. Even before Trump launched his presidential bid, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation made the edits to "Home Alone 2, Lost in New York" to get the movie under two hours. In 2014, multiple scenes were edited out, including then-private citizen Donald Trump's seven-second cameo, according to a statement from the CBC.
Justin Trudeau wasn't even prime minister in 2014 and doesn't control how the CBC would edit a movie, but President Trump didn't miss an opportunity to get in on the joke.
From his winter White House in Florida, Mar-a-Lago, for the holidays, he seemed to make light of the missing cameo, tweeting, "The movie will never be the same. Just kidding."
(on camera): CNN reached out to Trudeau's office about the president's claims. Trudeau's spokesperson declined to comment. Pamela Brown, CNN, the White House.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
DEAN: From a royal sex scandal to tabloid lawsuits to a rift between brothers, how 2019 proved to be an especially bumpy year for the British royals.
Plus, two best friends, one epic night. Ring in the new year with Anderson Cooper and Andy Cohen. "NEW YEAR'S EVE LIVE," begins at 8:00 p.m., on CNN.
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DEAN: Breaking news now that we are going to get to in just a moment.
[15:40:00]
But first, candid words from the British queen during her annual Christmas message. Queen Elizabeth taking the extraordinary step of acknowledging that 2019 had been bumpy for the family.
But as CNN's Max Foster explains, that admission only scratches the surface.
CNN's Max Foster has more.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MAX FOSTER, CNN ROYAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It's been a tumultuous and unsettling year for the British Royal Family with three senior members stepping back from public life.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex did so voluntarily and only temporarily after a series of run-ins with the media.
In March, CNN revealed the palace staff had to beef up their social media operation amid a rise in racist abuse targeting the Duchess.
Then in October, the couple revealed in a documentary with ITV how difficult they were finding life in the spotlight.
"I never thought that this would be easy, but I thought that it will be fair," the Duchess said.
They also went on the offensive over what Harry described as a tabloid campaign against Meghan that mirrored the treatment meted out to his mother, Princess Diana.
The Duchess sued "The Mail on Sunday," alleging that it illegally published a private letter to her father. The Duke launched his own legal proceedings against "The Daily Mirror" and "The Sun" over alleged phone hacking.
All the publications deny all the charges and have vowed to fight them vigorously. The Queen's second son, Prince Andrew, also retreated from public life
at the end of the year, but this may be longer term.
It followed an interview he did with the BBC and the media backlash that followed it, in which he talked about his association with the convicted pedophile, Jeffrey Epstein.
Epstein had allegedly trafficked Virginia Giuffre when she was 17 years old and forced her to have sex with the Duke of York and others.
He said he had no recollection of ever meeting her but failed to express sympathy for Epstein's victims in the interview or any regret that his relationship with the disgrace financier.
He only did so in a follow up statement, in which he said, "I continue to unequivocally regret my ill-judged association with Jeffrey Epstein. His suicide has left many unanswered questions, particularly for his victims and I deeply sympathize with everyone who has been affected and wants some form of closure."
CNN understands that Andrew decided to step back from his public roles after a meeting with his mother.
The Queen remains firmly in charge of the family, we're told, and has no intention of stepping back from public life herself, despite heading into her 94th year.
Max Foster, CNN, London.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
DEAN: Max, thank you.
With me now is Royal Commentator, Richard Fitzwilliams.
Richard, thanks for being with us.
I want to start with Prince Andrew there. He's kept a low profile since he stepped away from royal duties last month over the Epstein scandal.
He did attend a private Christmas service with other members of the royal family. What do you know about his standing within the royal family right now?
RICHARD FITZWILLIAMS, ROYAL COMMENTATOR & FILM CRITIC: I think it couldn't be worse, quite frankly. I mean, we've had, as Max pointed this out, an interview so ghastly that I don't even know the adjectives in the English language with which to adequately describe it.
His step back from public duties, surely. And I think that that will be permanent. Remember, also that 230 charities and personages some of which are distancing themselves from him.
There's also the problem of a lot of scrutiny, these allegations in the British press, about the lifestyle that he and his ex, Sarah Ferguson, who wouldn't know the meaning of the word "restraint" or "dignity," have carried on for years.
And there's his daughter, Princess Beatrice, marrying next year. That ought to be a very low-key ceremony, quite frankly, because the British public and press will scrutinize how this is handled. It's really very serious.
DEAN: Yes, they're under a spotlight, no question about it.
The duke and duchess of Sussex had a private Christmas in Canada after making clear all the public scrutiny has been getting to them. Do you anticipate that in 2020 we'll see fewer public appearances from them or will they have to come back and get the stiff upper lip and move forward?
FITZWILLIAMS: This is precisely what no one is absolutely sure about. We do know that their foundation is due for some form of spectacular launch.
I suspect also that since they take money from the British taxpayer for their residence at Frogmore House -- it's over $4 million the last year -- and since they would appear to indicate they wish to be based in Britain.
[15:45:02]
Again, they said there's a question mark there. In the documentary, they were unhappy with loyal life, their scrutiny is so intense. It has -- as Max mentioned, there's been some abominable abuse.
Also, there is difficulty with Harry is haunted by what happened to his mother and very, very protective. But there is a problem. How can you be charitable activists and not have the media to some extent involved, including, a fear, the tabloids.
DEAN: That back and forth tension, those two things.
And some people were quick to notice the queen did not have a picture of them, Harry and Meghan, on her desk or next to her when she did her Christmas message. But she changes those every year. Do you think people are reading too much into that?
FITZWILLIAMS: Far too much. Because there was a picture of Harry and Meghan last year.
DEAN: Right.
FITZWILLIAMS: And in fact, if you looked at those photographs, it was the line of succession dating back to a photograph of her father, in fact.
DEAN: There's always kind of a theme for whatever she puts out there. To your point, this year, the line of succession.
The "Washington Post" in the U.S. out with a new piece that explores whether the popular Netflix show "The Crown" could help or hurt public perception of the royals. Let's watch a quick clip here.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR: The postmaster general himself commented that the two images, the young and the slightly older queen, are almost identical.
UNIDENTIFIED ACTRESS: Postmaster Bevins is very kind. He's also a bare-faced liar.
UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR: Just the tiniest changes in the hair --
UNIDENTIFIED ACTRESS: A great many changes. But there we are. Age is rarely kind to anyone. Nothing one can do about it. One just has to get on with it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
DEAN: That clip and, indeed, much of the series seems to humanize the queen. What is your assessment of the impact the series has had?
FITZWILLIAMS: I think "The Crown" has a vast global audience which is absolutely fascinated by it. Also extra fascination when it comes to the political aspects, which one has to say are extremely well done.
And Peter Morgan, it's creator, is excellent.
DEAN: Yes.
FITZWILLIAMS: And the production value is brilliant.
Having said that, may I just say, Claire Foy was a brilliant queen like the romantic portrait that so many loved. Olivia Coleman seems to me awkward in the role. Her voice is squeaky. And she doesn't have the conviction that Foy had. So there are real problems with it.
The first was brilliant, the second mixed, and the third is more fiction than fact --
DEAN: All right.
FITZWILLIAMS: -- as far as I can see.
DEAN: A little film critique from Richard Fitzwilliams.
Thanks so much for joining us. We appreciate it.
FITZWILLIAMS: My pleasure.
DEAN: We have some breaking news now on that deadly Louisiana plane crash we told you about at the top of the hour. We have just learned, among the five victims killed was the daughter-in-law of LSU's offensive coordinator, Carley McCord. McCord, a sports reporter for WDSU, was on her way to Atlanta to watch today's LSU/Oklahoma bowl game. And in a statement, WDSU said, "We are devastated by the loss of such
an amazing talent and valued member of our WDSU family. Carley's passion for sports journalism and her deep knowledge of Louisiana sports from high school to the professional ranks made her an exceptional journalist. As we reflect on her impressive body of work we offer our condolences to her family."
Again, breaking news there, Carley McCord a victim in that Louisiana plane crash.
We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[15:52:09]
DEAN: It has been an incredible year in sports, from controversy on the racetrack to that spectacular World Cup win by the U.S. women's soccer team.
Andy Scholes has a look back at the biggest sports moments of the year.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ANDY SCHOLES, CNN SPORTS ANCHOR: From dominant performances, to controversy, to comebacks, this past year had it all when it comes to sports.
Here's a look at our top nine moments in 2019, and we start with a single tweet that rocked the NBA.
BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN HOST: The NBA is standing up for free speech and behind Houston Rockets General Manager Daryl Morey.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The fallout has been huge.
ALISYN CAMEROTA, CNN ANCHOR: Chinese businesses are cutting ties with the Rockets and the league.
JAKE TAPPER, CNN HOST: China's sports channel now says it will not broadcast any of the NBA games being held in China this week.
SCHOLES: Before the start of the season, Houston Rockets general manager Daryl Morey, tweeting support for Hong Kong's pro-democracy protesters. This caused a firestorm in China, where the NBA is the most popular sports league.
Chinese officials condemning the tweet and response from Commissioner Adam Silver. The whole controversy greatly affecting the NBA's bottom line.
ADAM SILVER, COMMISSIONER, NATIONAL BASKETBALL ASSOCIATION: We will have to live with those consequences.
SCHOLES: Number eight, what were you doing when you were 15 years old? Well, Coco Gauff was capturing the hearts of sports fans everywhere with an incredible run at her first Wimbledon Tournament.
COCO GAUFF, AMERICAN TENNIS PLAYER: Ya'll, (INAUDIBLE) -- tweeting me.
SCHOLES: Coco, the youngest player to ever make the main draw at Wimbledon, she beat Venus Williams in her first match and advanced all the way to the fourth round before losing to the eventual champion, Simona Halep.
Number seven -- controversy on the track.
ANA CABRERA, CNN ANCHOR: A stunning outcome at the Kentucky derby.
CHRISTI PAUL, CNN ANCHOR: The horse that crossed the finish line first did not win.
SCHOLES: The winner of the Kentucky Derby was disqualified. Maximum Security winning the race but, upon review, was seen veering out of his lane.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He came on a little bit and I grabbed and ran away, I stayed straight, you know.
SCHOLES: Country House was declared the winner at odds of 65-1. Country House had the second-longest odds of any Kentucky Derby winner.
COY WIRE, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: Did that really just happen?
SCHOLES: Number six, on January 3rd, 2019, the St. Louis Blues had the worst record in the NHL, but that's when they turned it around.
ANNOUNCER: Oh, on rebound they score!
(CHEERING)
SCHOLES: The Blues' season culminating with them beating the Boston Bruins in Game Seven of the Stanley Cup finals to win their first-ever championship.
And Blues super fan, Laila Anderson, an 11-year-old battling a life- threatening autoimmune disease, was an inspiration for the team all season. And she got to celebrate with the team on the ice after they hoisted the Stanley Cup.
[15:55:00]
Number five, 2019 was a year of more controversy for the NFL.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It was simple, they blew the call.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Blaming easy call for sure.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's tough, tough to swallow.
SCHOLES: The Saints were robbed of a chance to play in Super Bowl 53 when the refs failed to call a pass interference. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Worst call in history. I felt like somebody just robbed my house.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Honestly.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They didn't throw a flag.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The guy has to be blind.
SCHOLES: The NFL responded by making pass interference reviewable for the next season.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It doesn't help us at all. It's too late.
SCHOLES: The New England Patriots, meanwhile, beat the Los Angeles Rams in the Super Bowl, making Tom Brady the first player in NFL history to win six rings.
Number four, finally something everyone in Washington, D.C., could agree on, that's cheering on the Nationals. The team taking their fans on a miraculous run in the post-season.
And for the first time ever, the road team winning every game in the World Series. The Nationals beating the Astros in seven games to win their first-ever title.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I hope they're ready for a party because we're coming home.
(CHEERING)
SCHOLES: Number three, it was an emotional year for Simone Biles, as she opened up about being one of the victims of Dr. Larry Nassar and the failure of USA Gymnastics to intervene.
SIMONE BILES, AMERICAN ARTISTIC GYMNAST: We've done everything that they asked us for, even when we didn't want to. And they couldn't do one damn job. You had one job. You literally had one job and you couldn't protect us.
SCHOLES: Despite the controversy, the 22-year-old dominated the World championships to become the most decorated gymnast ever.
Number two, the U.S. Women's National Team capturing the hearts and minds of people everywhere with their efforts on and off the field.
BALDWIN: The U.S. thoroughly dominant so far.
DAVE BRIGGS, CNN HOST: The U.S. Women's Soccer Team rewriting the record books.
CHRISTINE BRENNAN, CNN SPORTS ANALYST: This couldn't have been a bigger story.
SCHOLES: As the team took on opponents in the World Cup, they were battling the U.S. Soccer Federation in their fight to be compensated the same as their male counterparts.
The team winning their second consecutive World Cup title, beating the Netherlands 2-0 in the final, with fans chanting "equal pay."
(CHANTING)
SCHOLES: The women's equal pay lawsuit now looks like it's headed for a trial in 2020 as the team prepares to take the field in the Tokyo Summer Games.
And finally, the number one sports story on our list for 2019, Tiger Woods was back on top of the sports world, winning the Masters.
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Breaking news, Tiger Woods is donning the green jacket once again.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Tiger Woods has made a fairy tale comeback worthy of the silver screen.
DON RIDDELL, CNN INTERNATIONAL SPORTS ANCHOR: It is an extraordinary comeback.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The greatest comeback ever.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Tiger Woods is back.
SCHOLES: It was Tiger's first win ever in a major since the 2008 U.S. Open after multiple knee and back surgeries. Many didn't know if Tiger would ever win major number 15, but the 43-year-old won the Masters in dramatic fashion, making his ever final-round comeback in a major.
Tiger shared the incredible moment with his 10-year-old son, Charlie.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
