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Barr Orders Re-Examination of Michael Flynn's Case; Syrian Conflict; Americans to Be Evacuated from Diamond Princess Cruise Ship; Dozens of Accusers Emerge after Andrew Yang's Wife Reveals Sexual Assault; Zelensky Speaks at Munich Security Conference. Aired 5-6a ET

Aired February 15, 2020 - 05:00   ET

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

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NATALIE ALLEN, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): We're wrapping up a week of chaos in the Justice Department with yet another story of controversy. Our sources saying that the attorney general is calling for a closer look into Michael Flynn's case. That's coming up here this hour.

Also, Americans stranded by the coronavirus could get out as early as this weekend. We're live near the cruise ship that has been their prison for almost two weeks.

And caught up in a seemingly endless war in Syria, a look at life for hundreds of thousands of civilians trapped by fighting in the grip of winter.

Live from CNN World Headquarters in Atlanta, welcome to our viewers here in the United States and around the world. I'm Natalie Allen. This is CNN NEWSROOM.

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ALLEN: Thank you again for joining us, 5:00 am here in Atlanta.

We begin with U.S. attorney general William Barr facing harsh scrutiny over his motivations and President Trump making a stunning statement about his executive power.

Before heading to Florida for the weekend, President Trump tweeted he has the legal right to intervene in criminal cases but hasn't yet. That comes as we get word the attorney general has ordered the reexamination of several high-profile cases with close ties to the president.

CNN's Boris Sanchez has more on the rising concerns over whether Barr handles cases involving President Trump and his allies based on justice or politics.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Fresh off a denial he can be influenced by the president, attorney general William Barr facing new scrutiny today after sources say he secretly ordered a reexamination of Michael Flynn's case, seeking no jail time for Trump's former national security advisor, who pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI about his ties to Russia.

WILLIAM BARR, U.S. ATTORNEY GENERAL: The president has never asked me to do anything in a criminal case.

I cannot do my job here at the department with a constant background commentary that undercuts me.

SANCHEZ (voice-over): Trump today throwing Barr's words back at him, claiming he does have the right to intervene in DOJ investigations.

Tweeting, quote, "This doesn't mean that I do not have, as president, the legal right to do so. I do. But I have, so far, chosen not to."

While sources say Barr has voiced his frustrations to Trump in private multiple times, officials telling CNN Trump did not know Barr would go public. Press secretary Stephanie Grisham now insisting Trump wasn't bothered by Barr's comments, as Trump's Republican allies say the president should listen.

SEN. MITCH MCCONNELL (R-KY), SENATE MAJORITY LEADER: I have confidence in Bill Barr. I think he is doing a good job and I think he's told the president this isn't -- not helpful, making it difficult for him to do his job. I think the president ought to listen to him.

SANCHEZ (voice-over): Meantime, Trump eagerly awaiting findings from another investigation launched by Bill Barr into the U.S. intelligence agency's handling of Russian meddling in the 2016 election.

TRUMP: I have President Putin. He just said it's not Russia. I will say this, I don't see any reason why it would be.

SANCHEZ (voice-over): Despite a consensus among the entire intelligence community that Vladimir Putin launched a covert effort to undermine the 2016 election.

"The New York Times" reporting today, special investigator Jon Durham is looking into unfounded, deep-state conspiracy theories touted by Trump and some of his allies that U.S. intelligence agencies framed Russia. Sources say Durham is even investigating former CIA head John Brennan, who says the whole thing is ...

JOHN BRENNAN, MSNBC SENIOR NATIONAL SECURITY AND INTELLIGENCE ANALYST: Well, I think it's kind of silly. I am certainly willing to talk to Mr. Durham or anybody else who has any questions about what we did during this period of time in 2016.

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ALLEN: Well, let's talk about this developing story with Richard Johnson. He joins me from Lancaster, England. A lecturer in U.S. politics and international relations at Lancaster University.

Good morning to you, Richard. RICHARD JOHNSON, LANCASTER UNIVERSITY: Good morning.

ALLEN: Well, it has been quite the whirlwind inside the Justice Department.

What is your take on what's going on with the attorney general Barr and the president, in public and perhaps not in public?

JOHNSON: Well, I suppose what we've seen over the course of the Trump presidency is this sort of erosion of important but informal norms that have existed.

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JOHNSON: And one of those is the sense that although the attorney general is appointed by the president, of course, and is part of the president's administration, that there are certain things that the Justice Department has to do that are somewhat at arm's length from the White House.

And certainly, when we're talking about the sentencing of previously close associates of the president and the president trying to put pressure on the attorney general to recommend a certain sentence, that really does seem to cross one of those important norms in government.

You know, in a -- in one sense, yes, it is technically true that the president could put this pressure on his attorney general. But that really then starts to undermine the part of the power of the attorney general, which is that the attorney general isn't just some kind of personal lawyer of the president but is the lawyer of the entire country. And I think it's raised really serious concerns, to be quite frank.

ALLEN: Right, because this is a president, who, before he became president, had a big legal team and were, you know, called his fixers. And it almost seems like he expects the attorney general, in some respect, to be a fixer here.

Is the president also looking, does it seem to you, to be undermining the Mueller investigation?

JOHNSON: Yes. Well, I mean, you even heard Bill Barr say that he felt -- he felt undermined. I think what we're seeing is Donald Trump feeling empowered, unleashed, by the events of the impeachment trial.

You know, when there is a compliant Senate, as has been demonstrated by the impeachment trial, that gives the president an enormous amount of leeway because, at the end of the day, the way -- there are two ways in which a president can be held accountable for these kind of infractions.

One is, of course, at the ballot box and that will be remain to be seen in November. But the other is through congressional scrutiny. And when that congressional scrutiny isn't there, until we get to an election, it seems that the president now believes that he can sort of operate unchained. And that's a very serious development. ALLEN: Right. It seems that way.

Meantime, congressional Democrats are calling for an emergency investigation -- here we go again -- and even for Barr to be removed.

Do you expect some movement here from the Democrats?

JOHNSON: Well, I mean, you might -- you might be able to see some efforts coming out of the House.

But I suppose now that -- now that the Senate has demonstrated that it's going to protect the president, even when the evidence against him is so clear, it becomes a serious, you know, question actually as to, you know, what is the value of these -- of these movements from the House if they're constantly going to be stymied by the Senate?

There is a symbolic value and that may be important in itself. But in terms of concrete changes to the president's behavior, I think there has to be some other tactic. There has to be some other pressure brought to bear. I don't think it can just be relied on these formal investigating processes which the president just seems to wash off so easily now.

ALLEN: Absolutely. We appreciate your insights, as always. Richard Johnson, thank you, Richard.

JOHNSON: Thank you.

ALLEN: All right. Let's turn to the presidential election. We are one week away from the caucuses in the state of Nevada. And Democratic candidates are making their way through the state.

Former vice president Biden redeploying his campaign staffers to Nevada and South Carolina with hopes of regaining momentum that he needs. That comes after disappointing turnouts, of course, in Iowa and New Hampshire.

And for weeks, former New York mayor Michael Bloomberg has been able to stay away from the primary fray. But now, an audio clip has resurfaced of Bloomberg showing support for the controversial stop- and-frisk policy in New York. And candidates are taking the opportunity to lash out, as we hear from our Kyung Lah.

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KYUNG LAH, CNN SENIOR U.S. CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): As Mike Bloomberg rises in national polls, his past is drawing fresh scrutiny. The former New York City mayor apologized again Thursday for the controversial stop-and-frisk policy used by the NYPD during his time as mayor.

MICHAEL BLOOMBERG (D-NY), FORMER MAYOR OF NYC AND PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: What I can do is learn from my mistakes.

LAH (voice-over): The city policy allowed police to stop and search anyone for weapons discriminately targeting people of color, a policy Bloomberg supported, as heard in recently resurfaced comments from 2015.

(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP) BLOOMBERG (from captions): We put all these cops in minority neighborhoods. Yes, that's true.

Why do we do it?

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BLOOMBERG: Because that's where all the crime is. And the way you should get the guns out of the kids' hands is to throw them up against a wall and frisk them.

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BLOOMBERG: I defended it, looking back, for too long, because I didn't understand then the unintended pain it was causing to young black and brown families and their kids.

LAH (voice-over): His Democratic rivals say his words are just not enough.

SEN. BERNIE SANDERS (D-VT), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I think at the end of the day when people, A, learn about Mr. Bloomberg's record of stop and frisk in New York City, I think that will change some minds.

LAH (voice-over): Older Bloomberg comments also roaring back; in 2008, he appeared to defend redlining, a discriminatory housing practice that denied loans and assistance to people in low-income neighborhoods.

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BLOOMBERG: It probably all started back when there was a lot of pressure on banks to make loans to everyone.

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LAH (voice-over): Bloomberg seemed to suggest that ending redlining led to the financial crisis.

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BLOOMBERG: And then Congress got involved, as local elected officials as well. And said, oh, that's not fair. These people should be able to get credit. And once you started pushing in that direction, banks started making more and more loans, where the credit of the person buying the house wasn't as good as you would like.

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LAH (voice-over): His campaign put out a statement after those comments came to light, saying, "Mike saying that something bad, the financial crisis, followed something good, which is the fight against redlining he was part of as mayor."

His Democratic rivals pounced. SEN. ELIZABETH WARREN (D-MA), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: That crisis

would not have been averted if the banks had been able to be bigger racists. And anyone who thinks that should not be the leader of our party.

LAH (voice-over): Kyung Lah, CNN, Las Vegas.

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ALLEN: We want to turn now to a international security conference and a development there. The United States and the Taliban say they will both scale back the violence in Afghanistan. That's a possible step towards peace.

The agreement calls for a seven-day reduction in violence. The U.S. military, Afghan leaders and the Taliban will have a channel to discuss issues. A U.S. official says the agreement is very specific about bombs and rocket attacks. The seven-day reduction will take place very soon, according to that official.

For more about it, let's bring in CNN's Vivian Salama. She is there in Munich covering the story.

Vivian, U.S. secretary of state Mike Pompeo just spoke about this.

What did he have to say?

VIVIAN SALAMA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right. So the -- both secretary of state Mike Pompeo and Secretary Esper, addressing the fact that they are hopeful that Afghanistan will -- that there was going to be a resolution to the Afghanistan crisis and that the Taliban will honor its promise of a reduction in violence.

We spoke to U.S. officials in the last two days here in Munich and they said that the agreement, the seven-day agreement and a reduction in violence, is going to happen in the coming days.

We understand at CNN that could start as soon as Monday. And so it's really a promising thing. They're very encouraged but also cautious about it moving forward because a reduction in violence means everything from roadside bombs to rocket attacks and a number of other things.

So of course, the Taliban also hoping to get something out of this; possibly, the release of prisoners, Taliban prisoners, before they can kind of proceed with a full peace deal.

And the other issue that they're really hopeful about is that they're going to get the Afghan government on their side. The U.S. trying to talk with President Ghani, who is also here in Munich, to really have him be on board with these talks with the Taliban.

But of course, that's been a bumpy road from the start. President Ghani has been very critical about the way the U.S. has approached a potential peace deal with the Taliban. And so it remains to be seen what's going to happen. But ultimately, president Donald Trump trying to deliver on a campaign

promise he made back in 2016, which is to withdrawal U.S. troops from Afghanistan. And U.S. officials saying here we are one step closer to that being reality.

ALLEN: We hope so. Vivian Salama covering for us. Thank you, Vivian.

The Syrian regime steps up its campaign to take Idlib, leading to a mass exodus of hundreds of thousands of Syrian families. Why the bombing campaign isn't the only threat facing them. Tell you about that coming up here.

Plus, Americans on board that quarantined cruise ship in Japan are told they can fly home Sunday. But there is a big catch. We'll tell you about it. You're watching CNN NEWSROOM.

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ALLEN: The Syrian government has been stepping up its campaign to take the last rebel stronghold in Idlib province, pounding the region with an intense air campaign and massive troop movements. It is causing tensions between Turkey and Russia, who are backing different sides.

The U.N. says more than 800,000 people -- you're seeing some of them here -- have been displaced by the offensive. And freezing temperatures are making the suffering even worse. CNN's Arwa Damon is there.

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ARWA DAMON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: There are makeshift camps like this that you find throughout these rolling hills that are very close to the border with Turkey, because this is where people think they might be able to find some sort of refuge.

Eight hundred thousand people have been on the move since December. But when it comes to safety, there is nowhere inside Syria that is actually guaranteed. This is a family who we met earlier; we've been speaking to them. They just arrived here last night and they say that they're not entirely sure that they're going to come here.

(Speaking Arabic).

This is Fadya (ph).

(Speaking Arabic).

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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): The bombing is still very close to us here.

DAMON: (Speaking Arabic).

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): It's very hard. There is no proper heating.

I mean, look, the kids don't even have proper shoes, warmth. The ground, she's been burning what she can here: coal, wood, at times even rubber when she's had to.

One of her kids is actually sick back there.

(Speaking Arabic).

She has a fever. She has a fever. It was because of the cold temperatures. The temperatures here can drop below freezing and this is actually a big issue for a lot of these families.

We spoke to a family whose baby died from the cold. That's what the doctors had told the mother. She was in complete shock when we spoke to her.

And like this family, so many others that we're talking to say they're not entirely sure that even this is going to be safe. I mean, Fadya (ph) was telling us earlier that sometimes she wishes that they were all dead so that they didn't have to live like this.

And she was saying that their life right now is a matter of being stuck between trying to find somewhere safe to live and somehow escape the bombing -- Arwa Damon, CNN, Idlib province.

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ALLEN: Idlib is one of the strategic keys to the conflict. It is the last area in Syria held by the rebels. It stands in the middle of many Syrian government assets. But there is another reason Bashar al- Assad's government wants it back.

A key highway runs right through Idlib; the route from Aleppo to Damascus also links Turkey to Jordan to Syria. On Tuesday, Syrian government forces took control of the highway. Also, the city of Latakia, it's a Syrian government stronghold. And there is a Russian airbase nearby. Russia is an ally of the Assad government.

For more on this crisis, I am joined by Dr. Zaher Sahloul, the president of MedGlobal. The group sends medical missions of doctors to provide healthcare to areas of war and disasters. He has visited Aleppo five times since the war began and last week addressed the U.N. Security Council on the humanitarian crisis in Syria.

Dr. Sahloul, thank you so much for talking with us. I want to speak, first, about what you said to the Security Council about the situation.

DR. ZAHER SAHLOUL, MEDGLOBAL CHICAGO: You mean the issue in Idlib. So I was in Idlib in the first week of January, right after the large wave of displacement that started at the end of December. And at that time, there were about 250,000 people who are displaced.

Now there is about more than 800,000 people who are displaced because of the bombing in west of Aleppo and other villages and cities. The scale of this displacement have not been witnessed in Syria for the past nine years, since the beginning of the crisis.

The local communities, the local NGOs that are providing humanitarian assistance to the people who are displaced and the families who are displaced, are overwhelmed. They feel that the world has forgotten them.

And there's not enough assistance. There's not enough protection for the civilians and the families and the children who are fleeing from the bombing. And there is nowhere for them to go.

We're talking about situation where you have 3 million people in the province of Idlib. Half of them are displaced from other cities like Aleppo. Now they are trapped. They are squeezed to the Turkish border and there is nowhere to go. We haven't seen that in Syria, in spite of the large-scale humanitarian catastrophe over the past nine years.

ALLEN: Right. Our Arwa Damon talked with that same mother about that and she's like, where do you want to go?

And her answer was we have no idea where to go or how to get there.

What was the response from the U.N.?

SAHLOUL: Well, I mean, U.N. member states have been, you know, speaking about their concern about what's happening to the population. We had a meeting, also, with the U.N. director and members of the U.N. team who are supposedly providing assistance and watching what's happening.

But the local community, the local NGOs in Idlib, when I was there, feel that the U.N. has deserted them. The U.N. secretary-general, Antonio Guterres, should be now in Idlib, should not just be just watching from New York what's happening over there. This is the worst humanitarian crisis that the world is witnessing.

We have a large scale of people who are displaced, who are being bombed.

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SAHLOUL: We have an infrastructure, civilian infrastructure, hospitals, schools, neighborhoods are bombed. Since the beginning of the month, more than 53 medical centers have been closed because of bombing and targeting.

Just a couple of weeks ago, a hospital was bombed and director of the hospital was killed while on duty. And we have families who have no place to go, 85,000 people, civilians, 80 percent of them are women and children, have no place to live in and not enough shelters, not enough food for them. And also, in the last couple of days, we have seen on social media,

these two beautiful children, 4 months old and 18 months old, who died freezing to death. Idlib is very cold nowadays. The temperature a couple days ago was minus 6 degrees and children are freezing to death because there is not enough diesel fuel. There is not enough food. And they feel the world has deserted them.

ALLEN: They have said that for years, too, and it seems like it has.

SAHLOUL: And it's a shame on everyone who is seeing what's happening in Idlib and not doing anything. And doesn't take that much from the United States, from President Trump, to pressure Russia to stop the bombing.

It doesn't take that much from Antonio Guterres himself to go and visit Idlib and tell them we have not forgotten about the 3 million human beings trapped in concentration camps in Idlib.

I've seen desperate people. I met with a doctor who is a pediatrician, who was displaced herself with her family. She was traumatized because of the situation. And she told me that she's seen many children with severe malnutrition.

So what we're witnessing in the last few days, where you have children dying, freezing to death, is the tip of the iceberg. And what I am worried about is, if a physician in Chicago that's going to be seeing too many children who are dying because of malnutrition, too many patients are dying of chronic diseases, too many people are dying because of the bombing and they are trapped and there is no way to go.

ALLEN: Well, we appreciate your commitment and your work and these photos. Dr. Zaher Sahloul. Thank you.

SAHLOUL: Thank you.

ALLEN: Next here, preparing for the worst. Just ahead, as the coronavirus spreads, we take a look at what U.S. health officials are doing to help prevent a widespread outbreak in the United States.

And this creature could be the source of the virus outbreak. We'll tell you what experts are saying about the markets selling pangolins and other wild animals.

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ALLEN: And welcome back to our viewers here in the U.S. and around the world. I'm Natalie Allen. You're watching CNN NEWSROOM. Our top stories here.

(HEADLINES) ALLEN: And this just in to CNN. A Chinese tourist who tested positive to coronavirus has died in France. That's according to a statement from French health ministers. This is the first coronavirus patient to die in Europe.

About 400 Americans are expected to be off the Diamond Princess before the quarantine ends there in Yokohama. A plan is in the works to fly them back to the U.S. on Sunday.

But it's not quite that simple. Back in the U.S., they'll be quarantined for another 14 days.

And even though leaving the ship is voluntary, the U.S. embassy warns that any American who chooses to remain on board past Sunday won't be allowed back in the U.S. for the foreseeable future. That is -- could be a quagmire for many people that want to get off that ship.

But what next?

And, of course, Matt Rivers joining us from Yokohama.

This news just breaking from France that the first person with the virus has died in Europe. So still a very, very serious situation.

What's the latest there on this cruise ship?

MATT RIVERS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes. It's a very fluid situation here, Natalie. I mean, we've had a lot of news happen throughout the day today. Let's start with the one that's a bit easier to digest, if you will, with these Americans.

Some 400 Americans likely will say yes to this offer by the U.S. government to be flown back to the United States, especially, given what we know about how they would have to disembark this ship if they stayed. We'll get to that in a moment.

But what's going to happen is the U.S. government is sending at least one plane, if not two, here to Japan. That will arrive tomorrow evening, evening. Shortly after they arrive, the passengers who want to get on them, who are American, will get off the ship with their bags, get on a bus to the airport go back to the United States where they will be quarantined at Travis Air Force Base.

And exactly the same really to what we saw when the U.S. government evacuated citizens from Wuhan, China, where the outbreak of coronavirus started.

Remember, there are thousands of other people on this ship. Well, they're in a much tougher situation. Remember, the quarantine was supposed to end, according to the Japanese government, that's what they have been saying, on February 19th. That's no longer the case.

What the Japanese government is saying they're doing now is, on the 18th, they are going to begin testing all remaining passengers in an order that is yet to be released. They can't test everybody on the same day. [05:35:00]

RIVERS: So they test some people on the 18th, 19th, the 20th. And then they have to wait for the test results to get back. So this quarantine was supposed to end on the 19th. No one's going to be allowed off that ship until they've been tested. And who knows, Natalie, how long that takes.

ALLEN: Absolutely. All right. Matt, you've been there from the start we appreciate your reporting. Thank you.

As the infection spreads worldwide, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control is preparing for the worst, a widespread outbreak of the virus here in the United States. CNN chief medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta spoke with the director of the CDC about what's being done to contain the threat.

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DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: It was a fascinating interview, sitting down and talking to Dr. Robert Redfield, who is the head of the CDC, trying to understand this aggressive containment strategy.

To what end?

What's the real goal here?

Keeping in mind that some of the strategies that we're seeing haven't been in place in some 50 years in this country. Here is how he described it.

DR. ROBERT REDFIELD, CDC: You know, this is going to, you know, obviously be a significant investment.

GUPTA (voice-over): On the same day, the CDC confirmed the 15th U.S. coronavirus case, I went inside the agency's emergency operation center with director Dr. Robert Redfield.

GUPTA: How good is the public health infrastructure at reporting in?

GUPTA (voice-over): To give you an idea of how rapidly the situation is changing.

GUPTA: By the way, the numbers changed, I can tell you it's actually 15 there.

GUPTA (voice-over): It's a lot to keep up with.

GUPTA: What is the worst-case scenario here in the United States?

REDFIELD: So far, we have been able to contain it. But I think this virus is probably with us beyond this season or beyond this year. And I think, eventually, the virus will find a foothold and we will get community-based transmission. And you can start to think of it in a sense like seasonal flu. The only difference is we don't understand this virus.

GUPTA (voice-over): Which is exactly why the CDC wants to be on the ground in China. It's probably Redfield's biggest frustration.

REDFIELD: Right now, there's no evidence to me that this outbreak is at all under control. It's definitely not controlled. And the sooner we can help them get it under control, the better for the whole world.

GUPTA: So I guess that does raise the question, why are we sitting here in Atlanta talking about this, versus the CDC being in China, collecting some of this data?

REDFIELD: I don't think it's a medical decision that we're not being invited in.

GUPTA: What do you think it is?

REDFIELD: Well, I think it's above the medical --

(CROSSTALK)

GUPTA: You think it's a political decision?

REDFIELD: I think it's above the medical. I don't think the director of CDC is making that decision.

GUPTA: You think it's a political decision?

REDFIELD: All I can say is I think it's above the director of CDC because I know he would love to have a system.

GUPTA (voice-over): China has accepted help from the World Health Organization. The CDC is waiting to hear whether it is going to be part of that team. In the meantime, Redfield says his priority is to keep Americans safe.

REDFIELD: Our whole issue right now is, as I said, aggressive containment, to try to give us more time that it's going to take, you know, one to two years, to get that probably developed and out, to prepare the health systems to be able to be flexible enough to deal with the potential second major cause of respiratory illness.

GUPTA: I think the thing I really took away from the interview was this reminder that viruses don't respect boundaries. They don't respect geography. They're going to cross into many of these other countries.

So these containment procedures in the form of the quarantines, for example, that you are hearing, are really to slow down that process of the virus entering into countries, buying time.

And buying time matters because you're going to learn more about the virus that might give some insights and how to best deal with it. Buying time could mean that you are going to develop some therapeutics in the form of antivirals. And also, buying time means you might get the thing that everyone's

been asking about, which is a vaccine. That doesn't come quickly. That takes months or even a year. So that time can be helpful there as well.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ALLEN: And, again, as we just learned, someone now has died of the virus in Europe. This is the first death due to the virus in Europe. And they were in France.

Well, a Chinese study says the pangolin may have been the origin of this virus when it was sold at that wildlife market in the region in Wuhan. The pangolin is a scaly mammal that is popular for its hard outer shell and meat. They were some of the many live wild animals sold at the Wuhan market before it was shut down.

I talked with a wildlife expert about that and the dangers of these live markets.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ALLEN: Peter Knights is the executive director of WildAid. He joins me now from San Francisco.

Peter, good to see you. Thanks for coming on.

PETER KNIGHTS, WILDAID: Evening. How you doing?

ALLEN: We know that your nonprofit works to save endangered animals around the world. Let's talk about the coronavirus, though, and what could be behind it.

[05:40:00]

ALLEN: A study conducted by China indicates it might be the pangolin that carry this new strain. Describe this mammal. And I understand this is the most heavily trafficked wild mammal in the world.

KNIGHTS: Absolutely. Well, pangolin is the only mammal in the world that has scales, keratin scales like your finger nails. It's trafficked for two reasons. One, the scales are used in traditional medicine. And secondly, the animals are eaten in these live wildlife markets.

In fact, one of the dishes they use for pangolins, they just cut the throat of the animal and pour the blood straight onto rice without even cooking it. So in terms of hygiene and disease transmission, it is a huge, huge risk.

ALLEN: Right. Well, this animal is among the wild animals sold in China's wildlife markets. Let's talk about these markets because your group is calling for all wildlife -- wild animal markets -- to be shut down. They're also in other parts of the country.

How pervasive are they? KNIGHTS: Well, not just in China. All over Asia and also all over Africa, particularly Central and West Africa. And the reason these things are an absolute disaster is they bring lots of different types of animals together, things like bats and snakes and civet cats and pangolins. They mix them all together in very unhygienic conditions and very often they live slaughter them there in the market.

And they are also mixed up with chickens and pigs and other animals as well. So in terms of hygiene, it's terrible. Obviously, a lot of these problems are coming from viruses, which are jumping species. So if you are mixing species together, the likelihood of a virus coming from one species to the next and ultimately to humans is much, much higher.

ALLEN: We saw the video from the Wuhan wild animal market. And you could see the various animals in cages that were all brought there together. And it's these markets, you can see why they'd be a breeding ground of something like we're seeing now that's hurting people and killing people.

KNIGHTS: And costing billions of dollars to the economy in China. And, you know, they couldn't really make it much worse. These animals are hugely stressed. You've got predators next to prey. You have solitary animals all combined in lots together. And then you have them stacked on top of each other.

So any feces is dropping through the different cages. They are malnourished. Their immune systems are low. You couldn't really design a better way of trying to get these diseases to transmit so we need to stop these markets. They are just a disaster waiting to happen.

ALLEN: Well, your group has been successful in Asia and China, in particular, for stopping the ivory trade, for the killing of elephants and rhino horns, shark fin soup. And no one thought that, you know, you could really infiltrate people's minds and this culture and change. But your group did.

So what are the chances that groups like yours can have an impact here?

KNIGHTS: Well, we're already advising the Chinese government and, you know, our slogan, which is no trading, no killing, which, of course originally applied to the killing of animals, is being used by the Chinese government to try to persuade people not to buy these products.

A recent poll that came out in the end of January, 97 percent of people were strongly against wild animal consumption. So there is a groundswell movement of people going enough is enough. We need to stop this permanently.

There is still a small minority of people who indulge in this. But obviously, it's a hugely anti-social activity. We feel if the government bans it, there will be massive public support for that.

ALLEN: Right. I've heard a few people, citizens, interviewed about this say, well, we just don't have enough information on what's endangered, what's at risk and what shouldn't be consumed. And, in the past, China hasn't been that open with information.

But you're saying it changed now. And even young people are -- don't want certain animals killed for consumption.

KNIGHTS: Absolutely. So you know, in recent years, pangolins, for example, people posted a picture of someone eating a pangolin. There was like 7 million hits on social media against it, saying this guy should be arrested and he lost his job as a result of it. So attitudes in China are very, very much changed.

The southern area of China, Wuhan, is where this sort of consumption is really focused and there still needs to be a lot more work in that area.

But many places like this, it's no longer going on. But obviously, you know, we've had SARS. We've had other outbreaks in Africa. We really need to close these markets down now before it's something which could be way more deadly than we've got now comes out of this process.

ALLEN: Absolutely. Peter Knights of WildAid. Thank you so much for your information. We appreciate it.

And for more about these wild animal markets and the work of wildaid.org, you can go to their website. There it is on your screen.

He got a sweetheart plea deal in 2016.

[05:45:00]

ALLEN: Now more alleged victims of a former New York gynecologist are coming forward.

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ALLEN: We have an update on the horrific story involving the wife of former U.S. presidential candidate Andrew Yang. More than 35 new accusers have come forward since Evelyn Yang said in a CNN exclusive she was assaulted by her OB/GYN while she was pregnant. Bringing total to nearly 70 women now who say they, too, were victims of the doctor.

He received a sweetheart plea deal in 2016 and did not spend one single day in prison. CNN's Drew Griffin says, as more and more alleged victims come forward, the district attorney of New York is being pressured to file new charges.

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DREW GRIFFIN, CNN SR. INVESTIGATIVE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): An attorney now representing dozens of former patients say this man, Dr. Robert Hadden, could be one of the most prolific sexual predators in New York City's history. All the more stunning to his accusers that this former OB/GYN has never spent a day behind bars. EMILIA HECKMAN, HADDEN VICTIM: He's retired. He raped, molested all

these women and nothing's been done. And that makes me furious.

How can that be?

GRIFFIN (voice-over): Emilia Heckman, the latest to come forward, said she trusted Hadden, even believed he was doing her a favor, squeezing her in to being his last patient of the day back in 2012. She was told to completely undress and says, while naked on an exam table, he assaulted her.

HECKMAN: The exam went from a rubber glove examination to a tongue and beard. And I recoiled, tensed up. He just abruptly got up. And I put my clothes on really fast because I didn't know -- we were the last ones in the office. And I didn't know if he was going to rape me or...

GRIFFIN: You didn't know if the attack was over.

HECKMAN: Yes.

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HECKMAN: Yes. Yes. I didn't. I ran out.

GRIFFIN: And you never saw him again.

HECKMAN: Never saw him again.

GRIFFIN (voice-over): Heckman was a young model at the time. She says she didn't tell anyone about the assault, worried no one would believe her.

Years later, she learned there were many others. In 2012, New York police first arrested Hadden for allegedly licking another patient's vagina. But prosecutors didn't file charges and Hadden returned to work at Columbia University's medical clinic for more than a month.

That's when he allegedly assaulted at least two more women, including Evelyn Yang, wife of former presidential candidate Andrew Yang.

EVELYN YANG, WIFE OF ANDREW YANG: What happened to me should have never happened. He was arrested in his office and he was let back to work.

GRIFFIN (voice-over): Two years later, Hadden was arrested again. This time, indicted on nine counts involving six of his patients. But even though the office of Manhattan district attorney Cyrus Vance knew of 19 potential victims, prosecutors cut a deal.

Dr. Hadden pleaded guilty to two charges, gave up his medical license and walked away. No prison time, no probation, not even community service.

YANG: It's like getting, you know, slapped in the face and punched in the gut. The DA's office is meant to protect us, is meant to serve justice. And there was no justice here. GRIFFIN (voice-over): Since Evelyn Yang told her story on CNN last

month, her attorney says dozens more former patients have come forward, saying they, too, were assaulted. Emilia Heckman and 40 others not included in the plea deal want the DA's office to reopen the case.

HECKMAN: I want this district attorney to revisit some of these cases. I want to be included. I wasn't included before.

GRIFFIN (voice-over): Heckman and Yang, along with dozens of other women, are suing Dr. Hadden and Columbia University, his former employer, saying Columbia did nothing to stop the serial sexual abuse on countless occasions.

In legal filings, Columbia says it did nothing wrong. Hadden has admitted guilt involving just two of his patients.

Heckman, listed in her lawsuit as Jane Doe number 23, says, after Evelyn Yang came forward, her husband, James Heckman, a media company executive, encouraged her to go public.

HECKMAN: I think the more victims come out and show their face, like, hey, I'm a real person. You know, I'm not just Jane Doe. You know, maybe the district attorney will listen to that.

GRIFFIN (voice-over): Emilia Heckman says she plans to present her complaint directly to the district attorney.

GRIFFIN: Manhattan district attorney Cy Vance has not spoken publicly about the Hadden case and has refused CNN's request for interviews.

But in a statement, the DA told us that while we stand by our disposition of this difficult case, we regret that the resolution has caused survivors pain. Those alleged survivors of Dr. Robert Hadden say that's just not good enough -- Drew Griffin, CNN, Atlanta.

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ALLEN: Next here, a heat wave in the Antarctic just ahead, as icebergs melt and animal populations decline. We find out why scientists are blaming global warming.

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ALLEN: We want to take you live now to the Munich Security Conference underway. Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky delivering prepared remarks right there. This, of course, coming a little over one week after U.S. president Donald Trump was acquitted in an impeachment trial in the U.S. Senate.

Mr. Zelensky unwittingly finding himself in the middle of a massive political scandal after that infamous phone call last July. After that, he'll speak with CNN's chief international anchor, Christiane Amanpour, who was there. And we'll bring you that as soon as it happens.

A heat wave at one of the coldest places in the world is raising concern among scientists. They've observed a decline in local animal colonies and large portions of glaciers shearing off in Antarctica.

Thank you watch -- for watching CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Natalie Allen. "NEW DAY" is just ahead.