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Biden Holds Crucial Hour-Long Call With Ukraine's President; Canadian Police Begin Arresting Protesters Near The Bridge; National Security Adviser: Invasion Would Likely Begin With Missile Attacks; Federal Hate Crimes Trial Begins Monday for Arbery's Convicted Killers; Law Enforcement On High Alert At Super Bowl, But No Specific Threats. Aired 2-3p ET

Aired February 13, 2022 - 14:00   ET

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

[14:00:00]

FAREED ZAKARIA, CNN HOST: We all have bemoaned the lack of trust in the United States these days but this shows in an emergency, a lack of trust and social capital can actually cost lives, hundreds of thousands of lives.

Thanks to all of you for being part of my program this week. I will see you next week.

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

We begin with the crisis in Ukraine. President Biden just a short time ago, wrapping up a crucial call with Ukraine's president where he told him the U.S. would respond, quote, "swiftly and decisively" to quote, "any further Russian aggression".

National security adviser Jake Sullivan warned again today that a Russian invasion could come at any time. He made it clear there would be dramatic civilian casualties.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JAKE SULLIVAN, NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER: If there is a military invasion of Ukraine by Russia, it's likely to begin with a significant barrage of missiles and bomb attacks. Those are never as precise as the army -- any army would like them to be and we don't even know how precise the Russian army would like them to be.

So innocent civilians could be killed regardless of their nationality. It would then be followed by an onslaught of a ground force, moving across the Ukrainian frontier.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: The U.S. State Department is telling Americans inside Ukraine to leave the country and no rescues will come for anyone trapped there if Russia does invade.

We're also seeing new video today of a Russian submarine passing through Turkey's waters on its way to the Black Sea where other Russian ships are positioned.

Arlette Saenz is at the White House. Alex Marquardt is in Ukraine.

Arlette, you first. What more are we learning about this call between Presidents Biden and Zelensky of Ukraine?

ARLETTE SAENZ, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well Fred, President Biden spoke with Ukrainian President Zelensky for just under an hour from the presidential retreat at Camp David as they talked about the threat of that possible Russian invasion into Ukraine.

The White House released a statement read out of that phone call saying that President Biden made clear that the United States would respond swiftly and decisively, together with its allies and partners to any further Russian aggression against Ukraine.

They added the two leaders agreed on the importance of continuing to pursue diplomacy and deterrence in response to Russia's military build up on Ukraine's borders.

Now this phone call with Zelensky follows President Biden's phone call yesterday with Russian President Vladimir Putin. And officials have told us that there were no major breakthroughs in that call. But that the president made clear to Putin that there would be swift and severe cost if he moves forward with a Russian invasion.

Now this morning, national security adviser Jake Sullivan told our Jake Tapper that Russia could move forward with an invasion at any moment. They do not have a particular day that they are eyeing right now but it could come before the end of the Olympics, within the coming week. And also that what they are seeing on the ground there is that Russia has started to maneuver their operations in a way where there is a very real possibility that they could launch a military attack.

Now officials have made clear that they still want to pursue this diplomatic route but that they're also remaining clear eyed about Russia's intentions. Now the president still remains at Camp David. He's expected to stay there throughout the day.

We will see if he has any other phone calls with foreign leaders in the days ahead. And additionally, we're just learning that the U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, Linda Thomas Greenfield, has canceled a trip to Liberia in order to stay behind here to focus on that situation regarding Russia and Ukraine.

Right now there's a full-court press within this administration to try to deter Russia from an invasion which may very well the diplomatic window, may be narrowing very quickly.

WHITFIELD: Arlette at the White House, thank you so much. Alex there in Ukraine. Do you have any idea what the president of that country would have either asked for or requested in that hour-long call with the U.S. President?

ALEX MARQUARDT, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Fredricka, we are getting more details about this phone call from the Ukrainian side. A senior Ukrainian official speaking with our colleague Matthew Chance and what really has stood out is President Zelensky requested that President Biden come and visit Ukraine as soon as possible.

That would be an incredible show of solidarity. So incredible, Fred, that it almost certainly will not happen. U.S. officials are telling CNN that that is extremely unlikely that president Biden would come, at this moment, at a moment when the United States is telling all of its citizens to get out, when the embassy is being drawn down, non- essential personnel being flown and embassy personnel moving to a different part of the country.

[14:05:01]

MARQUARDT: So that almost certainly will not happen despite the fact that Zelensky made this request.

Now, we understand also from this official that President Zelensky has asked for more advanced weaponry. The U.S. has sent around $650 million of weaponry to Ukraine over the course of the past year or has allotted that amount, I should say.

But Ukrainians have repeatedly pressed for anti-aircraft weapons and air defenses to fend off Russian helicopters and fighter jets. That is something that I have heard from the Ukrainian generals as well that they desperately need.

So that request was made to President Biden, we are told. And as well as a financial package. Something that President Zelensky also asked President Biden for.

Now, Zelensky has had to walk this very careful line of agreeing that the situation is dire enough to make these major demands of hundreds of millions of dollars worth of American weaponry but at the same time, not making the situation seem so dire that his population panics or, you know, or there's a sense that there's any sort of chaos here.

We have heard President Zelensky repeatedly downplay what Ukrainian officials have called American alarmism. Just yesterday President Zelensky in the wake of new American intelligence showing that Russia may invade in the coming days saying that he needs to analyze this information and that he has other information.

And that message that we have heard from Zelensky has trickled down into the general public, Fred. We are seeing concern among many people. We are seeing people being very dismissive of the prospect of a Russian invasion.

You're really seeing a whole range of emotions. But what you are not seeing is any sort of panic. Not any sort of chaos. You know, we've been out in the streets all day today. And over the course of the past few days speaking with people.

A lot of people say that they're worried. I did spoke with a young woman today who said that she expects that this week will simply be the same as any other. This is a threat, many say, that they have lived with over the last eight years, since the last time Russia invaded Ukraine.

WHITFIELD: Wow. Well, that's a remarkable contrast of messaging inside Ukraine.

Thank you so much. Alex Marquardt in that country, and Arlette Saenz at the White House. Thanks so much.

All right. Let's bring in Congressman Adam Smith. He's a Democrat from Washington state and chairman of the House Armed Services Committee. So good to see you congressman.

So President Biden wrapping up this call and sending some pretty strong signals, you know, about the response that would be swift and decisive, if there's any further Russian aggression.

So let's break that up a little bit. First of all, what, to you, is responding swiftly and decisively mean?

REP. ADAM SMITH (D-WA): Well, I think what we have to make clear and what I think the Biden administration and our allies in Europe have done a good job is that the consequences for Russia would be extreme economically, certainly the sanctions that would be put in place. But also that it will make NATO more active in eastern Europe.

I mean Putin's stated goal here is to reduce the influence of the U.S. and NATO in eastern Europe. By threatening Ukraine, other countries in eastern Europe, Romania, Poland, The Baltics. They are asking for us to give them more help and we are providing because they have a legitimate fear.

So what Putin wants it will go in the opposite direction than if he invades Ukraine. And then we've seen with the Ukraine efforts to up their defensive posture and with the efforts to get them more weaponry, that the war itself, if Putin invades, would be extremely costly. The last month it's been fairly effective at making sure that Putin knows the world is watching and the costs will be high.

WHITFIELD: All right. So all of that you said in a response to what the president is also saying any further Russian aggression. So help us understand what would be further Russian aggression against Ukraine?

SMITH: Troops going into Ukraine. I mean that's what we are focused on. The troops are amassed on the border.

WHITFIELD: That's always been -- that's always been what's been understood is if there were an invasion by Russia. But now to say further Russian aggression, does that mean more Russian troops building up? Does it mean something else that Russia would be sign posting --

(CROSSTALK)

SMITH: Well, I don't know for sure. I have watched Jake Sullivan speak about this in detail. And I know the administration has been very clear that the focus is on Russian troops going into Ukraine.

I can't say for sure what President Biden might have meant by further Russian aggression at this point. But the focus has been laser clear in the administration and by our European allies. We want to stop a Russian invasion of Ukraine. Obviously --

WHITFIELD: Do you worry about that language then, further Russian aggression? Do you worry about that.

SMITH: I haven't actually seen that. All I have is the reporting you have given me. I haven't looked at the context he said it. I'd have to look at that before I could say whether or not I'm concerned about it.

[14:09:51]

WHITFIELD: Ok. We also just heard our Alex Marquardt report that a senior Ukrainian official says President Zelensky used the Biden call to ask for greater military and financial support for Ukraine.

How quickly will that happen in your view?

SMITH: Well, I think it's what we need to focus on. I think we do need to provide them more weaponry and more support. It takes time. So I don't know how quickly it would happen. It's going to take more time than any of us would like.

(CROSSTALK)

WHITFIELD: So not in a matter of hours, but it would take time in a matter of days?

SMITH: Weeks probably. Depends on what you're talking about. I mean we're already providing anti-tank weapons, small arms and all of that.

WHITFIELD: Right. Well, I mean Alex said it would be advanced weaponry. I mean Air defenses. That's part of the request that Zelensky is making. Could that happen in a matter of days or hours if the State Department is sending messaging that it could happen at any moment?

SMITH: Well, here's the problem. The problem is what you just said is it doesn't -- and what they said and what you're interpreting is it doesn't actually mean anything. If you want to talk about Patriot missiles, if you want to talk about specific weapon systems, then I can give you a specific answer.

But the generic idea of how quickly can we get them more air defenses, that isn't actually anything specific. I will tell you, if you're talking about Patriot missiles, if you're talking about that type of anti-missile weapon, we're talking at least weeks if not months.

Smaller arms, javelins, things like that. That can be a matter of days and weeks. WHITFIELD: President Biden also spoke with Vladimir Putin for an hour

yesterday but it appears no substantial progress was made and that call as far as the reporting, what's being divulged from that call.

Is the administration, you know, spinning its wheels trying to make diplomacy work here with Putin or do you see that it's a necessary avenue that has to be taken first?

SMITH: It's an incredibly necessary avenue. I mean the whole point here is to stop the invasion, stop the military action and to keep the pressure up and keep the diplomacy going forward.

I think the big thing we need to see now is what is the off ramp here. If Putin decides not to invade, what face-saving thing can he say about what he accomplished by doing this, even though he doesn't militarily go forward.

I think we can talk about arms control treaties. We can talk about nonaggression pacts. What we can't do is we can't sacrifice the sovereignty of sovereign nations in eastern Europe because Putin threatened us.

So I hope in those discussions, and they were clear about not wanting to be negotiating publicly, but what we need the Biden administration to be doing with Putin right now is to find those off ramps.

WHITFIELD: Ok.

SMITH: What's a plausible layout of this for Putin that stops the war?

WHITFIELD: Do you believe that that's where the concentrated efforts are, helping to create an off ramp or helping to brace for an invasion that may be imminent?

SMITH: Yes, I think it's both. I think, you know, you try to find the off ramps and then you want to also build up the deterrence capability within Ukraine. You can certainly do both of those things at the same time.

And look, I think that's what the Biden administration has been doing. It's hard. Messages haven't always been clear. Certainly President Biden has I think made some mistakes in the way he's described this. His team by and large have been very clear about their goals and their objectives.

I think Jake Sullivan laid it out very clearly in his appearances this morning about we're trying to stop this invasion. And we're trying to be transparent about it to show the world what is happening so that Putin can't sneak in and just sort of do it and then present it as sort of a fact on the ground that everybody has to live with, which is what happened with Crimea.

So I think they've handled that appropriately to deter this but it is still a very dangerous situation.

WHITFIELD: Congressman Adam Smith, thank you for so much being with us today. Appreciate it.

SMITH: Thank you.

WHITFIELD: All right. Still ahead this hour, the standoff at a key border bridge between the U.S. and Canada could be coming to a close as police begin towing vehicles, making arrests.

Plus --

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

Go, go, go, go, go.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Oh, my goodness. With just seconds to spare, the pilot of a downed plane is pulled to safety as you saw just right there in that video. Just before that speeding train crashed through the wreckage. You'll meet the officers who saved that man's life.

[14:14:23]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right. Welcome back.

Today a dramatic shift in that standoff with truckers protesting against COVID mandates in Canada. Police in Windsor, Ontario now seizing vehicles and arresting some of the demonstrators who have refused to end their blockade of a critical supply route to the U.S.

CNN's Miguel Marquez is there for us. Miguel, so why the sudden crackdown from authorities who have been allowing these protesters to continue for days and in some cases Canadian cities, even weeks long.

MIGUEL MARQUEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, well, that is really the situation here. You have so many protests across the country. and I think officials wanted to show their strength here in Windsor and the protest itself has come to an end but how do you get this thing, how do you get this bridge and all that traffic that's meant to come over it hopefully they are hoping starting tomorrow morning, Monday morning for another busy workweek.

That's the big question. This morning after what was it, six days, six nights locking the bridge here, police moved in, finally. They had moved about 200 or 300 yards yesterday. The protesters back from the immediate area of the bridge and then this morning they went in and removed the final small handful of protesters. They towed a couple of vehicles. They made a few arrests.

[14:19:48]

MARQUEZ: You know, for all the drama of the last week, it did end with a bit of a whimper. What police are doing now is securing the entire area. This bridge connects to a road, sort of a surface road that then connects to a freeway about three miles away. How they are going to protect all of that and preventing further blockades from this area. That's one thing they've got to figure out. They also emplaced some blockades during their operations yesterday and today they have to remove those so traffic now can get through. And then they have to coordinate with U.S. officials on the other side of the bridge so that everybody is on the same page and customs and border patrol and everybody else can get back to their positions and life can get back on at this bridge.

But the bigger question is in Ottawa, where you had weeks now of protesters around their Capitol building there, that's something that they are sort of paying attention to and then there are other bridge crossings and other protests across the country that are starting to grow.

This has really morphed from anti-vaccine and concerns about vaccine from truckers to anti-mandates to now just sort of a generic anti- government, we want them all gone sort of protest. So what started off small has certainly grown and grown and grown.

Back to you.

WHITFIELD: All right. Miguel Marquez, thank you so much.

All right. Today we're getting more clarity on why the FDA chose to delay moving forward on vaccines for children under 5.

Former FDA administrator and current board member for Pfizer, Dr. Scott Gottlieb, saying the decision was not because of any safety issues regarding Pfizer's vaccine but rather clearly defining its level of efficacy.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DR. SCOTT GOTTLIEB, PFIZER: Given the fact that that is changing, that's evolving, new data is accruing. It's hard for the FDA to give its advisers a fixed snapshot of what the absolute efficacy is of this clinical trial of the data set. And so if they wait a little longer, if they administer the third dose in that clinical trial, they're not only going to have perhaps a better measure of effectiveness from this trial but also have a settled data set. They'll have a very firm picture of what level of effectiveness the vaccine is delivering.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: The FDA's advisory committee was originally scheduled to meet on the vaccine for kids under 5 this week. It's unclear when they will reconvene to make that approval potentially.

All right. Next, back to our top story.

President Biden talks with the president of Ukraine, promising that the U.S. will act swiftly if there's any further Russian aggression. We'll talk about that, next.

[14:22:29] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right.

Returning to our top story: the crisis in Ukraine. President Biden spoke with Ukraine's President Zelensky for just under an hour this morning. It wasn't President Biden's only crucial diplomatic call of the weekend however. He also spoke with Russian President Vladimir Putin yesterday.

Earlier today, national security adviser Jake Sullivan said if Russia does invade Ukraine, U.S. intelligence points to the possibility of a so-called false flag operation as a pretext for invasion.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SULLIVAN: This is consistent with the Russian playbook. We have seen them do this before many times. You ask any Russia expert they'll point to examples of where Russia has used false-flag operations as pretext to start military action.

And then third, if you look at the Russian media, they are laying the ground work for a potential pretext by raising the possibility of attacks by Ukrainian forces on either Russians themselves or Russia's proxy forces in the Donbas.

And then finally, what we've said, stood at the podium and shared with our allies that we have information that we have gathered through intelligence that indicates that there's active planning for this.

It's not just the United States saying it. We have our NATO allies stepping out and saying it as well because they've been able to review that intelligence, assess its credibility and reach the same conclusion we've reached.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Aaron David Miller is a CNN global affairs analyst. He is also a former Middle East negotiator for the U.S. State Department. So good to see you, Aaron.

So let me ask you first, you know, what it means for President Biden to tell Ukraine's president that the U.S. will respond, I'm quoting now, "swiftly and decisively" to, quoting now, "any further Russian aggression".

I mean what is the president saying to both Ukraine's Zelensky and Russian's Putin?

AARON DAVID MILLER, CNN GLOBAL AFFAIRS ANALYST: Well, I think to Putin he's made it unmistakably clear that there will be a huge cost for any Russian military incursion -- small, medium and large. And that gets to the question of whether or not our allies will stay with us if Mr. Putin decides to limit Russian military move, for example, into eastern Ukraine. To Zelensky, look, I think once Russia commits its military power into Ukraine, the United States can share operational intelligence. It can help the Ukrainians with cyber. It can sanction, sanction, sanction, it can beef up NATO's eastern flank.

And assuming -- if the military operations are not comprehensive or expansive, it can conduct supply operations to the Ukrainian military. But if Mr. Putin decides on a full-fledged invasion designed to destroy the Ukrainian military, destabilize the government in Kyiv, and for at least a short period of time occupy key cities, I think there's going to be very little that the United States is going to be able to do for the Ukrainians on the ground.

WHITFIELD: And then you just heard, you know, that this is straight out of the Russian playbook.

[14:30:05]

And, you know, using this as, you know, pretext to start a military operation. If the U.S. feels like it is aware of that, then why would the U.S. allow itself to walk right into that trap and promise to engage militarily, even if it means supplying military, you know, forces or resources if they know that Russia is using this to kind of instigate a war?

MILLER: Well, the United States is guessing to have to tread a very fine line. Under no circumstances, Mr. Biden has made this unmistakably clear. Is the United States prepared to deploy its own military forces into Ukraine? Our advisers have been pulled out, let alone engage the Russian military directly.

But at the same time, he has to stand for the territorial integrity and sovereignty of the Ukrainian government. Look, any Russian military incursion, the president in this respect has -- in many respects laid out what he intends to do, will try to cripple the Russian economy. It's going to be very difficult. They've had years to sanction the economy. Putin has got $600 billion in reserves. Even if we separate Russia from SWIFT, from the Western financial system and markets, it's not going to deter Putin in the event he's determined to undertake a major military operation into Ukraine.

WHITFIELD: So I read some notes from you earlier and you said, you know, it's Putin who started this problem and so it has to be Putin who gets himself out of it. Then perhaps because you have advised this country in so many conflicts, including in the Middle East, if you were to be a part of advising this White House or being part of this diplomatic conversation with Putin, what would you advise would be his off ramp because he is all about saving face and if he's the one to extricate himself from this conflict, how do you do that and make it appeasing to someone who is looking at himself, you know, on the world stage as one who never backs down?

MILLER: Fred, I think you answered your own question. The reality is, the Russians have climbed -- Putin himself and Russia, has climbed up such a high tree diplomatically by putting out a set of demands so excessive that no U.S. administration and certainly not NATO would be prepared to meet them.

He's mobilized a hundred tactical Russian battalions, maybe 130,000 Russian forces and threatening posture, which would indicate he's prepared to invade, actually launch a full-scale invasion of Ukraine. It seems to me finding a diplomatic off ramp that creates a balance of interest in which Putin can walk away as a winner, NATO could walk away as a winner, the U.S. could walk away as a winner and Zelensky can maintain his own political credibility at home, I don't see that balance of interest.

And as the days go by, it seems to me the drift and deterioration spells some form of Russian military action into Ukraine. I just don't see the diplomatic off ramp that would meet these conditions right now.

WHITFIELD: And then if that conflict is to happen or that invasion as you just spelled out, after exhausting all diplomatic measures, are you seeing, you know, high casualty count? I mean, you know, the Ukrainian president is saying we're trying to maintain calm here, yet at the same time requesting the right kind of arsenal. But overtly, our own reporters are saying there's no evidence overtly that they're positioning themselves to respond militarily.

MILLER: I mean, this will be the largest military operation in Europe since the end of the Cold War. Perhaps even since World War II, assuming the Russians mass a major ground, air and sea operation to crush the Ukrainian military and destabilize the government. I think if we're talking about Russian missile and air strikes, precise or not against Ukrainian military units and civilians, you are talking thousands of casualties and 50,000 perhaps. Tremendous loss on the battlefield for the Ukrainian military and Russian soldiers as well, assuming they put ground forces in.

And then you need to consider the problem of refugee flows. This will be a huge catastrophe. And I think right now, we really are on the cusp of watching it unfold.

[14:35:02]

Again, Fred, Putin created this crisis. He now owns -- he still has an option, presumably, to figure out a way out of it, but Vladimir Putin, the grand strategist, the master tactician, the guy who basically has had his way in Syria, in Crimea, in eastern Ukraine, this is of an order of magnitude far greater than that.

And, again, Putin may have become a victim of his own rhetoric, his own emotional commitment to doing something about Ukraine and his determination to refigure NATO security commitments in Europe. He may well have miscalculated. Sad and tragic that Ukraine may pay the price. We all will.

WHITFIELD: Very costly. Very costly mistake.

All right. Aaron David Miller, always good to see you. Thank you so much.

MILLER: Thank you, Fred.

WHITFIELD: All right, still ahead, the three men convicted of murdering Ahmaud Arbery face another jury. Their federal hate crime trial begins tomorrow. We'll take a look at what exactly they are facing straight ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[14:40:51]

WHITFIELD: All right. Opening statements in the federal hate crime trial for Ahmaud Arbery's killers could begin as soon as tomorrow. The three defendants are already serving life sentences on state murder convictions in Georgia.

CNN's Nadia Romero joining me now.

So, Nadia, what do we know about the jury selection process?

NADIA ROMERO, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Fred, it will likely wrap up tomorrow morning, according to the judge. She wants to move things quickly and start opening statements Monday afternoon. And that will mean the trial will likely last about 7 to 12 days.

As you mentioned, Fred, we already had the state case where all three men were convicted of killing Ahmaud Arbery. This case, the federal case, centers around their motive. Was it racially motivated?

And that's why they are facing these hate crime charges. Look, there's a list of them. A handful of charges the three men are facing in this federal case.

So this is all about their intent, their motive. Were they attacking Ahmaud Arbery, targeting him, chasing him down and ultimately killing him simply because he was a black man? And you'll hear the prosecution bring up text messages and social media posts from Travis McMichael who talked about black people likening them to animals, to savages, to being less than human, using racial slurs.

And they are going to say that that was part of the reason, the main reason why they targeted and killed Ahmaud Arbery. Now the defense will push back on that and all of the defendants have pled not guilty to all of the charges. But all the potential jurors were sent out a questionnaire. They were asked, do you think racism is still a big problem in America?

And at least one juror said no. Really, it's the media that's pushing that narrative, trying to divide us that racism is not a big deal anymore in this country. Listen to one civil rights attorney talk about why she says that's just not the truth.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARBARA R. ARNWINE, PRESIDENT & FOUNDER, TRANSFORMATIVE JUSTICE COALITION: The claim that the media is over-blowing it because people don't want to see it? That's what it really means. There's a lot of people who don't want to see it on TV. They don't want to believe it.

Talking about there's no racism in their communities? Really? What country do they live in? What world are they in? What planet are they on?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMERO: So, that is really the sentiment you'll hear from those supporting Ahmaud Arbery who want these men convicted in federal court. That again will play out starting tomorrow morning with jury selection wrapping up, then going to opening statements.

And we know the men are facing life in prison, but legal experts say this is about sending a message that being a racist and acting on that racism towards another race, killing them, targeting, assaulting in any way will mean you face consequences -- Fred.

WHITFIELD: And then will we be seeing the same witnesses called in the state's case also called in the federal case?

ROMERO: Well, see, some of those same witnesses, Fred, but the key component of the video in the state case is not as important. They were convicted of killing him. Now it's about motive. That's why legal experts say the burden of proof is much harder to prove in this case for the prosecution.

WHITFIELD: All right, Nadia Romero, thank you so much.

All right. Coming up -- t-minus four hours until kickoff. Super Bowl LVI is right around the corner. Next, how officials are ensuring the safety of the massive crowd expected at today's game.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[14:48:40]

WHITFIELD: All right. A live look outside of So-Fi Stadium in Inglewood, California, where in less than four hours, Super Bowl LVI will kick off. Law enforcement is on high alert as well at the stadium despite no specific or credible security threats.

Charles Marino, I'm told I can call you Chuck. He's a former Department of Homeland Security Adviser and former Secret Service supervisory special agent.

Jack, good to see you.

CHARLES MARINO, FORMER DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY ADVISER: Good to see you, Fred. Thanks for having me.

WHITFIELD: OK. So what are the kind of preparations that have been going on that you can share with us, you know, going on behind the scenes leading up to kickoff?

MARINO: Yeah, as we know, big day, and big responsibility for law enforcement officials. So the Department of Homeland Security has a mechanism to help law enforcement plan for this type of event. So this year, as they've done in previous years, they've designated the Super Bowl as a special event, what's known as a SEAR 1 special event assessment rating.

And that assessment takes everything into consideration, like the overall threat, the vulnerability and the consequences when designating. So, while there's no specific or credible threats, as you alluded to, you're going to see a whole of government approach based on the appeal of the target to potential adversaries and national significance of the event.

[14:50:02]

And that's why federal, state and local officials have been working closely with the NFL for the past year to prepare.

WHITFIELD: OK. Everyone has become familiar with the if you see something, say something while working with Homeland Security. You were part of that team had a helped come up with that phrase and campaign. So, law enforcement is using that slogan for today's game as well. Congrats to that because it stuck, right?

MARINO: Thank you. It did.

WHITFIELD: Tell us why this is such an effective strategy of engaging participants to be part of the process of, you know, paying attention to things.

MARINO: Yeah, we unveiled see something, say something when the Super Bowl was held at Dallas Cowboys Stadium several years ago, and really what it does is it invites the public to be part of the solution, right? We're not asking them to become tattle tails, but what we're asking them to do is if something doesn't look for feel right, hand it over to the experts in law enforcement to make the final decision as to whether or not something is a concern.

So really people want to be involved in their own safety and security. We did that they are. And as you said, the program has been quite successful and we're happy about that.

WHITFIELD: Fantastic. That's very encouraging. I mean, just looking at these pictures of So-Fi Stadium, it's remarkable and it's very u neon in so many ways because we also understand because the stadium is so close to the airport, it's only about three miles away, it's also built in a very unusual way.

Three quarters of that stadium is actually underground so it doesn't conflict with flight paths. What does that mean about your security measures or any kind of challenges that persist as a result of the construction? Any?

MARINO: Yeah, great question. Listen, So-Fi stadium and the Hollywood Park Complex as it's known, we are talking about 300 acres. This is a massive undertaking for security officials. So you're going to see large perimeters, inner perimeter, middle perimeter, outer perimeters and each of those perimeters have their own controls and you're also going to see the same thing in the sky as you alluded to.

A TFR is what it's called, they will restrict the air space, it's a temporary flight restricted zone, and they will control who comes in the air space, but as you alluded to, some of these locations are close to airports and airports need to continue to function. So that's why this whole of government approach will include communication with the FAA throughout the event.

WHITFIELD: All right. Chuck Marino, so glad you to go with us, perfect name especially talking about football-related security, for goodness sakes.

MARINO: Thanks, Fred.

WHITFIELD: All right. Any relation to Dan?

MARINO: No Super Bowl folks (ph) in Miami.

WHITFIELD: All right. Very good.

All right, Chuck, good to see you. Thank you so much.

MARINO: All right.

WHITFIELD: We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[14:57:49]

WHITFIELD: All right. A heroic rescue with just seconds to spare.

Here is CNN's Josh Campbell.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOSH CAMPBELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A Los Angeles commuter train slamming into a downed plane. Mere seconds before impact, the pilot was still trapped inside.

POLICE OFFICER: Go. Go. Go. Go.

CAMPBELL: First, he survived the plane crash, then that speeding train, saved from certain death by the heroic efforts of Los Angeles police officers.

OFFICER ROBERT SHEROCK, LOS ANGELES POLICE: I knew that if we failed this man that he would die and I didn't want to be the one to have to watch him die.

CAMPBELL: It all started on a sunny Sunday, a pilot in distress, unable to reach a nearby runway.

LAPD Sergeant Joseph Cavestany saw it all going down.

SGT. JOSEPH CAVESTANY, LOS ANGELES POLICE: It took me a second to realize what it was, but knowing that the airport is right here, I pretty much understood that it was going to be an airplane.

CAMPBELL: The pilot managed to avoid a busy intersection, instead coming to a stop on the tracks. LAPD radioed dispatch to stop all trains.

CAVESTANY: I wasn't sure of his injuries, if he had neck or spinal injuries, we were just going to wait for the fire department to get there to extricate him and render first aid.

CAMPBELL: Now, Metro Link says it can stop a train within five minutes, the problem for these officers the next train through this intersection was only minutes away.

SHEROCK: How could this get any worse? Well, it just happened.

CAMPBELL: Officers Robert Sherock and Damian Castro (ph) were directing traffic when warning bells began sounding and the gates started to come down.

SHEROCK: And then I looked over to my right down the tracks and I saw these three giant head lights from a train and, I don't know, something -- I know we had requested to stop the train but something in my head I knew this train is not going to stop.

CAMPBELL: Officer Castro tried to break a mangled panel trapping the pilot inside the plane.

OFFICER DAMIAN CASTRO, LOS ANGELES POLICE: As I was trying to pull it off it was not coming off and the train was approaching faster than I thought it was. I said forget about the panel, grabbed on to him and helped pull him out.

CAMPBELL: Four seconds later.

SHEROCK: I remember thinking, well, now is the plane going to hit me or is it going to catch on fire or blow up.

CAMPBELL: Pieces of the plane rained down on bystanders, but no one else on the ground or train was hurt. It's a story that has garnered international attention.