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More Than 1,100 Ex-Justice Department Officials Call For Bill Barr's Resignation; Rep. Madeleine Dean (D-PA) Is Interviewed On Call For A.G. Barr To Resign; Democratic Candidates Pivot To Diverse States Like Nevada And South Carolina; U.S. Evacuating Americans On Ship Quarantined Over Coronavirus; Some Republicans Look To Disrupt South Carolina Democratic Primary; Residents Flee As Pearl River Nears Historic Flood Levels; Miami Heat's Derrick Jones Jr. Wins Controversial Dunk Contest; Lakers Star Dwight Howard Honors Kobe Bryant During Dunk Contest. Aired 4-5p ET

Aired February 16, 2020 - 16:00   ET

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

[16:00:05]

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN HOST: Hello, again, everyone. Thank you so much for joining me this Sunday. I'm Fredricka Whitfield.

We begin this hour with a growing firestorm surrounding the nation's top law enforcement official. More than 1100 former Justice Department prosecutors and other DOJ officials are now calling on U.S. attorney general William Barr to resign.

The stunning development is in response to Barr's controversial decision to ask for shorter prison sentence for Roger Stone, a longtime Trump adviser. The officials who served in both Republican and Democratic administrations signed and released a rare statement today demanding Barr step down.

CNN's Jeremy Diamond joins us now from the White House.

So, Jeremy, what more can you tell us about this letter? What kind of response is it getting from the Department of Justice and the White House?

JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: Well, Fredricka, this all began earlier this week when we saw the Attorney General Bill Barr rebuke the president for his tweets about the Department of Justice and specifically that Roger Stone case. Barr said that those tweets were disruptive and he said they made it impossible for him to do his job.

But nonetheless, the undercurrent of Barr's remarks, really the focus of them, was that he was defending his decision to interfere in the Roger Stone case, specifically to overrule career prosecutors who recommended a certain sentence for Roger Stone and this is where this rebuke from these 1100 former Justice Department officials comes into play.

They write in this open letter, "Mr. Barr's actions in doing the president's personal bidding unfortunately speak louder than his words. Those actions and the damage they have done to the Department of Justice's reputation for integrity and the rule of law require Mr. Barr to resign."

Now these are more than 1100 former Justice Department officials, mostly career officials, some political appointees, but who have served in both Democratic and Republican administrations. Meanwhile at the White House, we have seen the White House already put out statements, insisting that the president was not upset by this mild rebuke that we saw from the Attorney General Bill Barr.

And this morning, our Dana Bash spoke with Marc Short, the vice president's chief of staff. Here is what he had to say about this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MARC SHORT, CHIEF OF STAFF TO VICE PRESIDENT PENCE: I don't think that it's impossible to do his job. In fact, I think that Attorney General Barr is doing a great job. He has a lot of confidence inside the White House. I think that the president's frustration is one that a lot of Americans have, which feels like the scales of justice are not balanced anymore. There has been a bias inside the Department of Justice that Attorney General Barr is trying to correct.

I think, as he has said, that the president has not called him directly to say, please do this. He has acted independently to initiate these reviews and I think he's doing a fantastic job of it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DIAMOND: And ultimately, that is the bottom line from the White House is that they are really thrilled with the job that Attorney General Barr has done, even as he's rebuking the president. Again, he's standing by his decision to interfere in this case to the benefit of one of the president's longtime advisers Roger Stone. And the president himself has shown that he has no intention of changing his habits on Twitter or social media in the wake of Mr. Barr's rebuke.

In fact, just after Barr made those comments, the president reasserted his right to intervene in criminal cases even though Barr said it would be inappropriate for the president to do so with a political motive -- Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: All right. Jeremy Diamond, thank you so much, at the White House.

Let's talk further now. With me now is Congresswoman Madeleine Dean. She is a Democratic representative from Pennsylvania and a member of the House Judiciary Committee.

Congresswoman, good to see you.

REP. MADELEINE DEAN (D-PA): Thank you for having me.

WHITFIELD: All right, so let me begin, you know, by getting your thoughts on this letter from more than 1100 former Justice Department officials calling for the U.S. attorney general to resign. Do you think he should resign?

DEAN: I applaud the more than 1100 former prosecutors for writing that open letter. It did call for Attorney General Barr to resign. I agree with them, that he has disqualified himself. The letter went even farther. It told all the members of the Department of Justice across this country, if you see something inappropriate, if you see more of this, doing the bidding of the president's personal, political errands, say something. Say something to Congress. Say something to the Office of Professional Responsibility.

The letter went even further and said if you do not get any reaction from that, you must act, act by resigning and resign publicly. It's an extraordinary --

WHITFIELD: Do you see them doing that? Do you see them doing that? Knowing the kind of support that Bill Barr has received from the president openly and, you know, the inferences are there that even not openly there's been that kind of, you know, agreement on action.

DEAN: I do see that, because these are extraordinary career public servants, not politicians, not Democrats, not Republicans. And we did see, of course, the case of four prosecutors on the Roger Stone case resigning from the case, one resigning from the department.

[16:05:06]

You know, it reminds me of something that always stood out to me in a magnificent Martin Luther King letter from Birmingham jail. He said that history will record the tragedy, not of the clamor of bad people but of those who -- the appalling silence of good people. So I give these prosecutors, former prosecutors kudos for being patriots and standing up against the appalling silence of some would-be good people.

WHITFIELD: So Attorney General Barr, you know, gave an interview this week. I know you saw it, you know, where he said that the president's, you know, tweets make it difficult to do his job, impossible was his word, you know, to do his job. We've since learned that Barr has now ordered the Justice Department to reexamine the case of former national security adviser Michael Flynn, who pleaded guilty to lying to investigators in the Russia probe.

So do you see in any way or at any time that Barr is acting independently, or is he, you know, carrying out the president's wishes?

DEAN: He has not acted independently since before he took the position of attorney general and continuing from day one. We saw his appalling behavior at the time of the release of the Mueller report, misleading the American public for a month as to the contents of that report. He has been doing the political bidding of this president. And people are tired.

I'll tell you my constituents are awfully tired of the corrupt chaos of this president, who utterly disregards the law, utterly disregards the independence of the Office of the Attorney General and the Department of Justice. They would like to go back to a time where people understood the limits of their office and had respect for co- equal branches of government and the independence of this agency.

WHITFIELD: Do you think there is a way in which to go back to that?

DEAN: I believe there is a way and I think it will be at the ballot box. It will be by continuing oversight that Congress must do but ultimately it will be at the ballot box. That's what my constituents tell me. Because they're excited about the things that we are working on. Last week, we passed ERA and got one step closer. I'm very excited for my granddaughters and my grandson, that hopefully one day very soon our Constitution will enshrine equal rights for women, for everybody. It's a long time past due.

We also passed HR-3. Here's a president who said in his State of the Union he cared about prescription drug pricing. Well, if you care about it, tell the Senate to take up HR-3 and then sign it. If you care about building our infrastructure, if you care about protecting our planet, if you care about gun violence, do something about it. People at the ballot box will want to end the chaos and corruption of this administration.

WHITFIELD: So let me ask you, you know, back to Barr. You know, because while there is so much skepticism, you know, being expressed about, you know, his candor or whether that was theater, that he said that the president's tweets made it impossible to do his job, yet the next day, you know, he was willing to reopen and look further into investigations that are appealing to the president.

He has also agreed to testify before the House Judiciary Committee that you sit -- you know, that committee on which you sit on next month. What do you believe his motivation will be in how he answers questions? Do you believe that his willingness is genuine?

DEAN: I have no idea. We'll be able to judge his credibility when he is before us on March 31st. I'm certainly glad he's coming before us. He failed to come last year when he was scheduled to be in front of the House Judiciary Committee, of which I am a member. But it won't be about what we think is in his heart. It will be about us making sure that we test the independence of this office, of this attorney general.

Sadly, this attorney general poured away his credibility in terms of independence and the administration of justice as the top law enforcement officer of this country many, many months ago. So, we'll be able to question him, continue our oversight. And I just applaud the people who worked for attorneys general in the past, who said that we must not be silent when we have a corrupt administration that is using all the levers of power that he possibly has, including his own attorney general to do his own political bidding.

WHITFIELD: All right, let's turn now to the 2020 Democratic presidential race. You know, you have yet to endorse a candidate. You're, you know, free to do so today if you would like. Do you think Joe Biden, who is a native of your state, you know, he's from Scranton, Pennsylvania, can win the nomination? Is he the one that you want to throw your support behind?

DEAN: Well, thank you for asking me. I have not endorsed any of the candidates. I am a fan of Joe Biden for his heart, for his public service, for his intellect. And I see among all of our Democratic candidates extraordinary talent. So, I'm very excited about that.

[16:10:05]

What I will say is I'm excited also that Pennsylvania will be the Keystone State. I believe the nation and the world will be watching what happens in Pennsylvania. And so I'm looking forward to getting farther down the road, having another debate and making sure that we put forward the strongest candidate in the end who will defeat Donald Trump. I'm a big fan of Joe Biden. I'm not endorsing anybody today. But Pennsylvania is the one to watch.

WHITFIELD: Congresswoman Madeleine Dean, thank you so much.

DEAN: Thank you.

WHITFIELD: All right. Still to come, hundreds of Americans who have been quarantined for two weeks aboard a cruise ship because of coronavirus are now ready to head home. Why not all passengers are happy with the evacuation plan.

And breaking news out of Colorado, where a desperate search is under way to find two people missing after an avalanche.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[16:15:03]

WHITFIELD: All right. The countdown to the Nevada caucuses, well, it's on. We are now less than a week away from the next stage of the Democratic presidential race. It's a busy day on the campaign trail. Candidates are out in force with events and rallies across the state energizing voters will play a key role in who comes out on top on Saturday.

So far, their efforts seem to be paying off. There are long lines for early voting in Nevada, which kicked off this weekend. At one precinct in Las Vegas, people had to wait in line for more than three hours.

Saturday's caucuses come at a crucial time for these campaigns. Nevada will be the most diverse state to vote thus far in the race. And for the first time, candidates will get to see where they stand with a large portion of the Democratic base.

CNN's Gary Tuchman spoke with a group of voters about their views on the current state of the 2020 field.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GARY TUCHMAN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This is the Fountain of Hope AME Church in Las Vegas, an evangelical African- American church. (On camera): The eyes of the nation are now on Nevada. Right?

(Voice-over): We asked church members attending an evangelism conference to talk to us about the upcoming Nevada caucuses, the first nominating contest in a diverse state.

(On camera): How many of you are leaning towards Joe Biden? One, two, three, four, five, six, seven.

(Voice-over): Joe Biden is one of three candidates who did well among this group but he wasn't number one.

(On camera): How many of you are leaning towards Elizabeth Warren? One, two, three, four, five, six, seven.

(Voice-over): Elizabeth Warren tied with Biden. So who is the candidate who gets the most support here?

(On camera): How many of you are leaning toward Tom Steyer? One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight. What do you like about Tom Steyer?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I like the fact that he's got fire in his belly.

TUCHMAN (voice-over): Tom Steyer and groups supporting him have spent around $14 million on TV ads in Nevada, compared to under a million for both Biden and Warren. And Steyer has spent considerable time on the campaign trail in the state.

REV. GREGORY MCLEOD, SENIOR PASTOR, FOUNTAIN OF HOPE AME CHURCH: He seems to be passionate about the people and he seems to be real about what it is that he's setting out to do.

DAVID JONES, CHURCH MEMBER: Tom is direct and to the point and I believe that he can do and claim what Donald Trump really is, and that's a fraud and a failure.

TUCHMAN: As for Joe Biden, his supporters tout genuineness.

LASHELLE LELEWIS, CHURCH MEMBER: And I think that he honestly cares about helping not just a small group of people, but the majority of the people. Not just African-American people but all minorities and all people in general.

SANDRA MACK, CHURCH MEMBER: I will probably caucus for Joe Biden.

TUCHMAN (on camera): But based on Iowa and New Hampshire, are you worried that he might not be electable, though?

MACK: I'm not worried because I don't think Iowa and New Hampshire are reflective of the country.

TUCHMAN (voice-over): And for Elizabeth Warren?

GAIL GHOLSON, CHURCH MEMBER: I like the way she handled Trump with the Pocahontas thing. She didn't let it get to her and she has that dismissive way, like Nancy, of putting Trump in his place.

DEAN ISHMAN, CHURCH MEMBER: My heart says Elizabeth and now my mind kind of tells me Bloomberg.

TUCHMAN: Michael Bloomberg got some interest here even though he's not on the Nevada caucus ballot.

DEMADELINE RICE, CHURCH MEMBER: I like Bloomberg because he has the money, he has the experience and he knows what kind of person Trump really is.

TUCHMAN: President Trump has a lot of support from evangelical Christians, so we thought he could have some support here.

(On camera): How many of you are leaning toward Donald Trump for president?

(Voice-over): But that is not the case.

(On camera): Is it important for you to get a candidate who you feel can beat Donald Trump?

CHURCH MEMBERS: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Absolutely, yes.

TUCHMAN: Is that more important than a candidate who shares your principles who you think may not be?

CHURCH MEMBERS: Yes.

TUCHMAN (voice-over): The Nevada caucuses are Saturday, February 22nd.

Gary Tuchman, CNN, Las Vegas.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: Right around the corner. All right. Joining me right now CNN Political Analyst, Nathan Gonzales and Political Reporter for The Nevada Independent, Megan Messerly.

Good to see you both. All right, Megan, you first. You know, let's start with what we just heard there. You know, it seems at least just in that small sample size that there really is one consensus favorite in Nevada among those voters. Is that the feeling that you're seeing on the ground there, particularly among black voters, that they are not voting, you know, in a monolithic way?

MEGAN MESSERLY, POLITICAL REPORTER, THE NEVADA INDEPENDENT: Definitely. I mean I think that's always true. Nevadans are certainly independent and make up their own minds, you know, regardless of what happened in Iowa and New Hampshire. But, you know, I met a voter at a Joe Biden event earlier this week, you know, who told me she was just starting to shop around the candidates and she had no idea who she was going to vote for. She wanted to go see all of them. So I think we've certainly seen a fluid field especially I think as a

result of Iowa and New Hampshire, have been giving some folks who are set in their support for Joe Biden, you know, they're taking a second look, folks looking at Elizabeth Warren and saying, OK, can she really, you know, build a coalition to get the nomination, you know?

[16:20:05]

So I think we have seen a lot of movement just since Iowa and New Hampshire.

WHITFIELD: So, Megan, that's really interesting that you said, you know, people are kind of waiting. And we saw that in New Hampshire, you know, to a degree but in a big way in Iowa, that there were people even leading, you know, just days away from, you know, the caucus or the vote to say that they really hadn't made up their mind yet. They wanted that face time. So you're saying a lot of those Nevadans want to be up close and personal with some of these candidates before they even make a decision?

MESSERLY: They do. I mean, I think Iowa, New Hampshire folks are used to candidates coming through and spending so much of the year before the election in their states. You know, Nevada, we get that as well, but not to the same extent. And a lot of folks are looking for that personal relationship and do want to build that even though, you know, we're just a week out from the caucus here.

But I talked to, you know, one man yesterday who was standing in line, getting ready to vote at the Culinary Union because early voting has started here in Nevada. You know, and he told me he was going to vote for Bernie Sanders but he didn't realize he had to pick multiple choices on his early vote ballot. We sort of ranked choice voting here.

WHITFIELD: Yes.

MESSERLY: And he wasn't sure who he was going to choose for second and third. We were talking about it while he was standing in line and he was making a choice right then. So this is certainly a fluid race.

WHITFIELD: OK. So Tom Steyer, he's shaking things up. You know, he spent a bundle in Nevada and South Carolina, two very diverse states, and it seems to be serving him well thus far. You know, here's South Carolina Congressman Jim Clyburn put it this morning.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. JIM CLYBURN (D-SC): I've always said money is the mother's milk of politics. He has money and he has been spending it. And so I think that will always make a difference. Where was Bloomberg nationally among voters a month ago? But he has money. He's been spending it and he's changed the calculations a lot. So for us to just pretend that money doesn't make a difference, that would be foolhardy. Money makes a difference. Steyer has it. He has been spending it and he's reaping the rewards.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Nathan, don't forget, money is the mother's milk of politics, he says, you know, and we have seen in Steyer and Bloomberg that that money is making a difference. They're both rising in the polls. Can their spending carry them all the way to the nomination, Nathan?

NATHAN GONZALES, EDITOR AND PUBLISHER, INSIDE ELECTIONS: Well, we're about to find out how far money can take you. I think we should make a distinction between the amount of money that Steyer is spending and the amount of money that Bloomberg is spending. I mean, Mayor Bloomberg is spending at levels that we have never seen before.

You know, Steyer has been spending for a while now and really he wasn't doing particularly well nationally. But he was very strategic about spending heavily in South Carolina at a time when all of the other candidates were focused on at least the first two states. And so he is going to do much better in South Carolina than what he has done in Iowa and New Hampshire.

And we're running this, you know, live experiment about how far money and spending can get you in a race. And it might be that because the field is so divided that that gives someone like Mayor Bloomberg a chance even if he doesn't have to win a majority that a plurality can eventually push him through.

But Super Tuesday is going to be key. I mean, remember, Bloomberg isn't going to be -- he hasn't -- he's not participating in the first four states and he has to make a big impact on Super Tuesday or it's just not going to work.

WHITFIELD: Nathan, on that money for Tom Steyer, $14 million spent in ads in South Carolina, $141 million on ads in multiple states thus far. And again we're really still at the early stages of this, you know, race.

So, Megan, voters in your state, you know, seem to be eager to cast their ballots during the early voting period. Why are they doing that? Is it something about what happened in Iowa? You know, trusting, you know, the outcome, or is it a measurement of how eager they are about this primary season?

MESSERLY: I think it's a few different things. So, one, we just know that Nevadans like early voting in general. About 57 percent of Nevadans early voted in the midterm election in 2018. It's just people's preference to vote early. It's easier. And for the caucus, obviously, you don't have to show up at noon on a Saturday and stand in a room and wait around. You can just go into a polling place, cast your vote.

Obviously we saw long lines yesterday so not quite that easy but we know that Nevadans like that in general. I think as well I've heard a lot of concerns about Iowa. Folks like the fact that for early voting you go and you fill out a paper ballot and there's a record of it. It just seems more straightforward to folks. And they feel like there's more of a paper trail. So I know I've heard from some voters who said that they just prefer it. They feel like it's a more normal, more secure method of voting.

So I think there's a number of factors that are influencing folks to go early vote. And the third one, like you mentioned, is enthusiasm. I heard that talking to people in line yesterday. They waited three hours. They got to know their neighbors in line and they really like having a discussion about who they were going to vote for. So I think it's a combination of factors.

[16:25:05]

WHITFIELD: All right. Nathan, and then there's the president. He's not just on the sidelines conveniently.

(LAUGHTER)

WHITFIELD: He's going to have a rally in Nevada during this whole, you know, caucus season. His rally is on Friday. He was in New Hampshire and Iowa as well, you know, conveniently, you know, at rallies. So what is he doing? What's his strategy here?

GONZALES: Well, there are no accidents when it comes to the president's schedule or any president's schedule. I mean, clearly, he wants to be part of the spotlight. He's just not going to cede all of the news coverage and everything to the Democratic candidates.

But he is also a visible reminder to the Democratic voters about why it's so important that they vote. At the very end of that package when Gary was talking to those voters at the church, you could see and feel and hear how important it is to those Democrats to defeat President Trump.

And that's why I think that this primary is going to get more divisive, more bitter, there's going to be a lot of hand wringing if their candidate didn't end up winning, but I think Democrats will be united in November around defeating President Trump because -- and that's a powerful force in turning out voters when you have something to rally against.

WHITFIELD: All right. Nathan Gonzales, Megan Messerly, thanks to both of you. Appreciate it.

GONZALES: Thank you.

WHITFIELD: All right. Next, a landslide caught on camera. A house in Tennessee goes over a cliff during heavy storms. Frightening moments.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[16:30:50]

WHITFIELD: All right. Breaking news out of Colorado where a search and recovery mission is underway after an avalanche near Vail. The Eagle County sheriff's office says they received a report in the area of Muddy Pass yesterday afternoon and believed a group of people snowmobiling in the back country may have triggered the avalanche. One individual was able to free himself and contacted authorities. The avalanche danger in the area continues to be very high today.

Also breaking at this hour, hundreds of Americans who have been quarantined for two weeks aboard a cruise ship because of coronavirus are now heading home. Led by a police escort in Japan, a convoy of buses took passengers from the Diamond Princess to chartered flights that are getting ready to take them back to the U.S.

They're still facing a two-week quarantine at military bases in California and Texas once they return. At least 46 Americans on board the ship tested positive for the virus. And anyone either testing positive or showing symptoms will remain in Japan for treatment.

CNN's Matt Rivers is at Tokyo International Airport. So, Matt, it looks like one of the planes is about to take off?

MATT RIVERS, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes. We just watched it push back. There are two 747s being operated as these charter flights and we saw the first 747 back up. And that's going to be welcome news for passengers considering that they got the news to disembark the boat around seven hours ago. So, they -- it's been a very long process on top of a two-week in which they couldn't really leave their rooms on board that ship because of regulations, quarantine regulations, put into effect by the Japanese government.

As you mentioned, though, they are now going to have to face more quarantine in the United States according to the CDC out of an abundance of caution. Once they arrive, they'll either do that quarantine at either Travis Air Force Base in California or Lachland Air Force Base in San Antonio.

And you know, a lot of people that we spoke to said they understand the concern over public safety. They don't want to cause this infection to spread in the United States.

The big complaint, though, was where was the U.S. government ten days ago? What took them so long to choose to evacuate them now? It was only on Saturday that the U.S. government decided to do this and announced this 14-day quarantine. That's why so many passengers are upset just the fact that they can't return to their lives for another 14 days.

WHITFIELD: And so, Matt, for many of those who were, I guess they consider this being, you know, really inconvenient because, you know, they have to be quarantined more than once. What happens during that time? What are they going to be experiencing during that time?

RIVERS: Yes. Well, I mean, they're basically going to experiencing life on a military base that they can't really leave. They're going to have to be stuck in one area. They'll probably be allowed out for exercise lot. In a way, it's kind of a form of temporary prison is the way some of these people had described it to us.

The people who were on board the ship said, you know, they couldn't really leave their guest rooms for a while. They could walk around on the deck for an hour a day under supervision and that's more than likely what it's going to be like on these military bases. And that's by design.

If it's a quarantine, you can't let people interact with each other. You can't let them go out into the public. That's what's going to happen. And these people have already done that already for 14 days. They're stressed. They're tired. They're exhausted. They're frustrated. And unfortunately for them, out of an abundance of caution, according to the U.S. government, they're going to have to go through that process again albeit with a bit more of the creature comforts of home.

WHITFIELD: All right. Matt Rivers, thank you so much, in Tokyo.

All right. It's appropriately titled Operation Chaos, a plan South Carolina conservatives have launched to disrupt the upcoming race. How the state's open primary could spell trouble for Democrats.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[16:33:56]

WHITFIELD: All right. Not foreign interference but homegrown. It's being called operation chaos, Republicans actively interfering with the Democratic Party primary process by voting for who they believe to be the weakest Democrat.

CNN's Lauren Fox has more on the effort in South Carolina.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

LAUREN FOX, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Conservatives in South Carolina pushing for Republican voters to disrupt the upcoming democratic primary.

CHRISTOPHER SULLIVAN, CONSERVATIVE DEFENSE FUND: You know, I guess you could call it meddling.

FOX: One grassroots organizer, Christopher Sullivan, calling it, quote, operation chaos, a nod to Rush Limbaugh's 2008 effort to encourage Republicans to vote in democratic primaries and keep Hillary Clinton in the race longer to hurt Barack Obama.

SULLIVAN: I would love to see the Democrat's, whoever, wins the South Carolina democrat primary, for everybody else to accuse him of having stolen the election because he was actually elected with Republican support; and therefore, prolong the chaos and the disruption.

FOX: It's also the latest obstacle for Joe Biden who needs a victory in South Carolina to bolster his campaign.

[16:40:05]

JOE BIDEN, (D) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Our votes count, too.

KAREN MARTIN, CONSERVATIVE ORGANIZER: Biden was expected to win South Carolina. We wanted to disrupt what was expected.

FOX: South Carolina has an open primary allowing eligible voters to cast ballots in either party's primary. Conservatives have complained for years. It's resulted in Democrats boosting moderate Republicans in the state. With South Carolina's Republican presidential primary canceled this year, Conservative Leader Karen Martin said she saw an opportunity to finally give Democrats a dose of their own medicine.

MARTIN: We thought, aha. What would happen if we made a grassroots statewide effort to crossover and vote for one candidate in the democratic primary?

FOX: Martin is pushing for voters to back one candidate, Bernie Sanders. Others say they're leaving it up to the voters.

MARTIN: Just for the sake of optics, it would be great to be able to contrast the ideology of a devout socialist against a capitalist.

FOX: The campaigns have caught the attention of Biden's team including surrogate and State Senator Marlon Kimpson. He says Republicans in the state fear Joe Biden in a one-on-one match-up with Trump.

MARLON KIMPSON, (D) SOUTH CAROLINA STATE SENATOR: They are trying to interfere with this election to choose the weakest candidate because they know without cheating Donald Trump will not be re-elected.

FOX: Now, it's not clear how many Republican voters are going to participate and come out for the Democratic Party or if they'll be able to have an impact in this process. But the South Carolina Republican Party is arguing they are not endorsing this effort writing, "We do not like Democrats meddling in our primaries and we certainly do not encourage the same thing from Republican voters."

Now, the South Carolina Democrats, they're arguing the turnout is going to be so high, they're base is so energized that Republicans can't meddle in their primary.

For CNN, Lauren Fox.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: As voters start casting the first ballots in the 2020 Presidential Election cycle, CNN is taking you behind the scenes of some presidential elections of years past. The premiere episode of the all-new season of "Race for the White House" tracks the history making 2008 race between freshman Senator Barack Obama and revered campaign veteran Senator John McCain. Here's a preview.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: John knew the campaign wasn't working. He was either going to get out of the campaign and cut his losses or he was going to have to change the campaign dramatically. And so, John McCain did what was a typical John McCain move, in order to get a little relaxation and clear his mind he went to a battle zone. He went to Iraq.

MAHERSHALA ALI, ACTOR: In Baghdad, on the fourth of July, surrounded by the military he so admires, John McCain attend the reenlistment and naturalization ceremony.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: When he got to the ceremony, he saw boots of the guys who are going to be made naturalized citizens there. They have been killed in action and that got to him.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: John came back and told us the story. And it was very emotional. And he said, I looked at that and I realized I need to fight as much for my country as they are.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: All right. Let's talk about all this, very dramatic. People kind of forget about that. They think this is, you know, entertaining to an extent the "Race for the White House" but very serious moments.

Joining us right now, CNN presidential historian, Tim Naftali. Tim, appears in the series, of course. How could we do a series and you not be in it when it's talking about the White House and History? So, how did that trip -- let's talk about that trip to Baghdad. You know, this was a serious moment for John McCain and it was a turning point for him in the race.

TIM NAFTALI, CNN PRESIDENTIAL HISTORIAN: Well, John McCain had been a serious contender in the -- in 2000. And George W. Bush had beaten him. And in 2008, many people saw him as the heir apparent. But his candidacy wasn't getting traction. His campaign wasn't getting traction. And he needed to find the fire within because the public can see if you are connected to them and the process. And if they think you're going through the motions, they're not going to -- they're not going to rally around you. And for John McCain, it was -- it was that trip to Baghdad.

For Hillary Clinton, although she ultimately is not the nominee in 2008, but you'll see in the show tonight, for her, it was finding her voice in New Hampshire. She loses the Iowa caucus to Barack Obama, senator -- then Senator Obama.

WHITIFIELD: Yes.

NAFTALI: And it looked like the race was absolutely over at that point. And it doesn't end that quickly because Hillary Clinton has a moment where she finds that inner passion and shares it. It's very important for candidates.

[16:45:06]

WHITIFIELD: Yes, she was very emotional. She was very emotional. I mean, you know, she revealed herself and her thought process and how deeply it was affecting her. And that was pretty powerful for a lot of people. So then, you know, before that nomination process, you know, in 2008, Barack Obama faced Hillary Clinton, you know, in one of the most competitive democratic primaries in recent memory. And what lessons, you know, can Democrats, you know, take from that race as they embark on their own this go around?

NAFTALI: One of the first lessons that Senator Obama took was to be prepared. You will see a clip of his first debate with Hillary Clinton. And, I mean, our memory of him is someone who is superbly in control of the agenda, of the ideas, of the issues. He wasn't in that first debate. And he schooled himself pretty darn fast.

I think one of the lessons for Democrats is that there are turning points you cannot anticipate. There will be challenges along the way. The Reverend Wright problem for Senator Obama, then Senator Obama, how he managed it, how he came back, the great speech he gave on race, that showed a presidential quality in him that a lot of people weren't sure he had because of his lack of, you know, long-term experience.

So, the tests that candidates will face, we can't even predict them at this point, but they will face them. And it's how they deal with those tests which will -- that's what will allow one to emerge from the pack.

WHITFIELD: So, for Barack Obama, you know, something happened in that Iowa caucus and it was critical, you know. It helped him, you know, clinch the nomination in 2008. But this year, may be a little different story, or do you expect that that first contest is -- will offer some foreshadowing, you know, in the ultimate outcome?

NAFTALI: One of the fun things about being historian is since it's happened you can always get it right, right, because you'll say, oh, well the turning point was -- but the beauty of the series is that you see these turning points. You realized how many there were. What's clear? I mean, we all see this now. The momentum that the first two contests helped make one person a champion in earlier nomination contests, that's not there right now.

WHITFIELD: Yes.

NAFTALI: Iowa -- well, Iowa had a muddled finish ultimately, right?

WHITFIELD: Yes.

NAFTALI: But I mean, Pete Buttigieg wins it. But it's a muddled outcome. New Hampshire seems to give Buttigieg, and of course, Sanders, who wins New Hampshire, and Klobuchar momentum. But we don't know what will happen --

WHITFIELD: To maintain that.

NAFTALI: -- when you get to these other states that are more diverse. So, I would say at the moment what we're looking at is the kind of the outcome of both South Carolina and Nevada and see if that gives one person or maybe two the momentum to really succeed in "Super Tuesday". Because the point of "Super Tuesday" is that you cannot do retail politics everywhere.

WHITFIELD: Yes.

NAFTALI: You can't. It's not possible. So, what you hope is that you've developed enough momentum and enough name recognition that people will vote for you even if they haven't shaken your hand.

WHITFIELD: Wow. All right. We shall see. And you know it, Tim Naftali. Thank you so much.

NAFTALI: Thank you, Fred. My pleasure.

WHITFIELD: All right. Be sure to tune in to an all-new season of "Race for the White House" premiering tonight at 9:00 p.m. Eastern and Pacific only on CNN.

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[16:53:05]

WHITFIELD: Checking our top stories in Mississippi. A state of emergency as the Pearl River nears historic flood levels. Hundreds of people in the state capital of Jackson have fled their homes as authorities fear the swollen river will soon unleash catastrophic flooding.

More rain is falling in the region today. And first responders are warning residents this flooding emergency will last several more days.

Unbelievable. That was the sound and sight of a house collapsing as it slid down a rain-soaked bluff and into the Tennessee River. This is what the scene in Hardin County, Tennessee looked like in the morning, like heavy rainfall, fear of landslides prompted several evacuations. So, this house was empty when it collapsed. Emergency responders in the rain-soaked area say they are worried about what's to come potentially.

And players couldn't help but think about the late Kobe Bryant who, as a rookie, won the all-star slam dunk contest back in 1997, but this was this year. The 2020 NBA slam dunk contest will be hotly debated for many years to come.

The "Miami Heat's" Derrick Jones Jr. crowned champion following a controversial dunk-off against the "Orlando Magic's" Aaron Gordon. Some people say Gordon was robbed after he dunked overflow NBA player Tacko Fall who is seven feet, five inches tall. Tacko Fall told the reporter that he was scared for his life because that dunk was not planned. Wow, what a moment.

"Los Angeles Lakers" star Dwight Howard honoring Kobe Bryant during the contest. Howard dunking a basketball signed by Kobe Bryant while wearing a "Superman" shirt with Kobe's number 24 right there in the middle of his chest. Wow, so many beautiful moments.

All right. Thanks for being with us this weekend. I'm Fredricka Whitfield. So much more ahead in the NEWSROOM. But first, a look at "The Windsors".

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

[16:55:05]

QUEEN ELIZABETH II, QUEEN OF THE UNITED KINGDOM: We are present at the making of history.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Twenty-seven million people watched this ceremony.

PRINCE HARRY, DUKE OF SUSSEX: I know that I'm in love with this girl and I hope that she's in love with me.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The public totally in love with this ideal couple. And yet, the public cannot see everything.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Edward leaves and he throws the monarchy into chaos.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Throughout much of Diana's marriage to Charles, there was a third figure hovering around.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She called herself the queen of hearts, which really stuck a knife in the queen.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This was a woman of color who married into the royal family. And within two years of marriage, she wants out.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There is this terrible balance that they've got to strike between being extraordinary and being ordinary.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: "The Windsors: Inside the Royal Dynasty" tonight at 10 on CNN.

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