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Russia Denies Withdrawal from Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant; University of Idaho Students Return to Class with No Arrest in Case; Final Jan. 6 Committee Report Expected to Focus on Issues Beyond Trump. Aired 10:30-11a ET

Aired November 28, 2022 - 10:30   ET

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

[10:30:00]

SARA FISCHER, CNN MEDIA ANALYST: But in the short-term, he is reliant on advertising. Twitter, of course, makes that vast majority of its revenue on advertising, about $4.5 billion last year. And so he if continues to do things that are going to alienate those advertisers, it's going to be hard for him to keep the lights on.

You have to remember, even though he's gutted a lot of those employees, there are still a lot of things that need to be paid out. Those employees, some of them have severances. The company still has physical headquarters where they have to pay electricity and other utilities. And then, of course, Twitter still operates like a business that has to pay vendors for various things that it does. And so it is going to be a big problem if he continues to alienate that advertising community in the short-term, but, hopefully, in the long-term, if he can hedge on subscriptions, maybe he can solve that problem.

BIANNA GOLODRYGA, CNN ANCHOR: $8 for a check mark, that is questionable math there given that we don't know how many people would actually pay that. But given the check mark program, what could we expect in terms of a new color coded system this week?

FISCHER: Yes. So, that $8 could would go towards anyone, a random person, you me, me, a celebrity, that wants to be verified, and they could get a blue check mark similar to what exists today. What Musk is now saying is that companies will get a gold check mark and governments will get a gray check mark. So, there would be some sort of visual differentiation between the different types of accounts.

But my question is how do you characterize certain accounts that are important to the app. So, for example, a local fire department or any sort of first responder, a local police department, are they considered government? Are they considered a company? What about nonprofits? I think we have a lot yet to be seen as to how this color coding is actually going to work and whether or not, to your point, people are actually going to pay for it.

GOLODRYGA: And that could be a big role for regulators. There is concern here in the U.S. but, of course, regulators are even stricter in Europe, and there is concern about some of these issues that you just brought up, about oversight, about who will be maintaining these accounts given that he has laid off so many employees. What are the challenges the company is facing in adhering to some of the regulations, particularly the strict ones out of Europe?

FISCHER: Well, in Europe, there is a new law called the Digital Services Act, which basically requires large social platforms, which would include Twitter, to very thoughtfully review anything that is happening on the platform so that they can reduce harmful content, things that are illegal or things like disinformation.

And part of that is you have to have a diligent and objective review process and when you're evaluating which accounts to leave up and which accounts to leave down, same thing with content and posts. And what experts are telling us is that by sort of arbitrarily saying, well, we're just going to give amnesty to suspended accounts but for some, we're going to suspend them if they do X, Y and Z, they're not being objective and diligent enough in proving out how they're going to moderate the content. And so if Twitter does not adhere to the expectations of that law, of course, that would result in things like fines and penalties out of the E.U.

GOLODRYGA: How would you rate thus far -- we're a few weeks in, we know the company is private so it does give Elon Musk a little bit more leeway and control of the company, but his role as leader overall, internally from a business standpoint but also just his behavior and his tweets, and some of them have been rather questionable to say the least.

FISCHER: Yes. It has been chaotic and unexpected. I'm trying to take a bullish approach. There have been people that have said Twitter is going to be knocked out tomorrow, it is not going to be online. I do think that is the case. I think there is going to will be a lot of bumps along the way as he tries to bring reform this product, which hasn't innovated so much in the past decade.

But I do think in terms of his leadership style, it's very jarring to see it. I mean, you see him tweeting out that Paul Pelosi misinformation article, that is not something normally big tech CEOs want to get into the crosshairs of. Of course, he deleted it. Some of his blanket approaches to moderation have been jarring, especially compared to likes of Mark Zuckerberg and Sundar Pichai, other CEOs who have tried to be very thoughtful so that they don't come on the bad side of regulators.

But Elon Musk, I will say, this has always been his M.O. He's led many other companies being erratic and being spontaneous. And so whether or not this gets him into big trouble with Twitter, yet to be seen. But for now, I'm hoping for the best.

GOLODRYGA: Well, you'll be covering it all for us this week. Sara Fischer, thank you so much.

FISCHER: Thank you.

JIM SCIUTTO, CNN ANCHOR: This morning, Ukraine's national power supply company says it is running at a 27 percent deficit. This is as Russia missile strikes continue to target the country's energy grid. This is deliberate, Russia trying to punish average Ukrainian people.

GOLODRYGA: Yes, these are war crimes as well in many cases.

Russian-backed authorities are denying Ukraine's claims about a withdrawal from the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant because of fears of a nuclear accident due to the continued shelling.

CNN's Sam Kiley is live on the scene in Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine, this morning. So, Sam, what is latest there?

[10:35:01]

SAM KILEY, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, this is a claim being made by the head of the atomic agency industry here in Ukraine. Now, we should take what he says because it is being said in the context of a propaganda war, which is going alongside the hot war that is being prosecuted here. He's claiming that to have information from sources on the ground but above all from looking at blogs and other statements made by Russian journalists that there might be some kind of Russian withdrawal from Zaporizhzhia nuclear power station.

The Russians captured this back in March. It has been used by Russia as a fire base for attacking civilian targets on the other side of Dnipro River still in Ukrainian hands. The Ukrainians have tried to recapture it at least twice, to my certain knowledge. It is very, very unlikely indeed that the Russians are even thinking about evacuating that nuclear power station because it would mean giving up a stranglehold on the very electrical-generating capacity that they currently hold.

That nuclear power plant, when it is at its peak, provides 20 percent of Ukraine's energy needs. And as you pointed out in the intro there, the energy structures here have been systematically attacked several times, at least seven, by wave upon wave of cruise missile strikes and other use of drones, Iranian drones, over the last month-and-a-half.

And in addition to that, I have to say, it is also an important tactical location if the Ukrainians were able to move back in there. They would use that as a bridge head to further their prosecution of the war and try and drive south towards the Crimean Peninsula.

But, ultimately, though the overwhelming number of targets here in this country, according to the Ukrainian government remains civilian. They're saying 32,000 targets, less than 3 percent of them have been military.

SCIUTTO: If they're not killing them, they're freezing them as winter happens there. It takes its toll. Sam Kiley, good to have you on the ground. Please stay safe.

GOLODRYGA: Up next, University of Idaho students return from Thanksgiving break with still no arrests in the stabbing deaths of four students. We're live with details on the stepped up security.

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[10:40:00]

GOLODRYGA: Fall break is now over and students are back in class today at the University of Idaho but there has still been no arrest in the killing of four of their schoolmates.

SCIUTTO: It has been two weeks now since the students were found stabbed to death in their off campus house. Police, however, have yet to announce an arrest and the murder weapon still hasn't been found.

CNN's Veronica Miracle is live from Moscow, Idaho, this morning. Veronica, I know school administrators are trying to reassure students for their safety but is there any progress in the investigation?

VERONICA MIRACLE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, certainly, investigators say they have been making progress but that fear and uncertainty lingers in the air. For those students that are coming back to class this week, they are going to be seeing a heavy police presence. There are patrols around to try to make students feel more comfortable.

But the University of Idaho is allowing students to stay at home for the rest of the semester. There is about two weeks left. And for those who want to do virtual learning who just don't feel comfortable coming back, they are giving students the options to do so.

Investigators say they are making progress. They have received hundreds of tips, many of those tips in the form of surveillance video and they are asking for more. But there has still been no suspect information released. There has been no arrest. There are no motives. Students who have returned say that campus is certainly emptier than usual.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: My mom didn't want me to go back.

I feel safe but some of my friends don't and so like I know a lot of the campus doesn't so it has been pretty empty.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I feel safe and I did the whole online school thing during COVID and it did not work out. So, I just, you know, I came back up here to get the in-person education.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MIRACLE: For those students that are coming back, there is going to be a vigil held by the University of Idaho this Wednesday to commemorate the lives of those four students who were murdered. Jim, Bianna?

GOLODRYGA: It really is stunning, Veronica and Jim, to know from two weeks ago initially when the murders were first reported that authorities said there was no risk to the public. They walked that back quickly. But now here we are two weeks later, so many unanswered questions and students are now given the option to work from home. It is incredible. Well, turning now to prosecutors in Mexico who have issued an arrest warrant in the death of a 25-year-old North Carolina woman who died while on vacation. Shanquella Robinson arrived in San Jose del Cabo with six college friends a month ago today and died just a day later. Mexican authorities say they've begun the extradition process for one of those friends.

GOLODRYGA: Prosecutors now say Robinson died as the result of a spinal injury sustained in a, quote, direct attack. I spoke to her mother last hour and she said that was not the story she was originally told, and that the friends who traveled with Robinson came to see her when they got back from the trip, they also told a different story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SALLAMONDRA ROBINSON, MOTHER OF WOMAN FOUND DEAD IN MEXICO: When they arrived back to charlotte, they came over to the house and tell us what had happened.

SCIUTTO: What was that conversation like? What did they tell you, exactly?

ROBINSON: Well, they told us it was alcohol poison.

[10:45:01]

And we questioned each one of them because we had heard different. We had got a call saying that they was over there fighting her. There was no such thing as alcohol poisoning. So, we started asking each one of them questions about the situation and they said it was never a fight. It was alcohol poison.

SCIUTTO: Who told you that there was a fight? Who told you that?

ROBINSON: Well, it was someone called on the phone. We don't know who it was. They just called us and told us that they were over there fighting. So, the video had to be already out and when they called to tell us that because they had seen the video and we haven't seen it.

SCIUTTO: I see. Okay.

ROBINSON: And that is how we learned the information.

SCIUTTO: Now, CNN deliberately has not aired this video that appears to show your daughter being attacked. Do you have any idea, did anyone tell you who filmed that video?

ROBINSON: No, we have no idea.

SCIUTTO: So, when you asked each the friends, you say you asked each of them individually what happened, they all stuck to that story, they all stuck to the story, it was just alcohol?

ROBINSON: Yes.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SCIUTTO: Remarkable and such sad times for her mother. Shanquella's mom told us she is in touch now with the FBI but the authorities in Mexico or the FBI have not told her the suspect's name or why this suspect has not been arrested yet. She did say to me, Bianna, that she thought they weren't able to find the suspect yet. We'll see. It is a story we're going to continue to stay on top of.

GOLODRYGA: Yes.

SCIUTTO: Well, another story we're following this morning, all public schools in the city of Houston are closed today after the city issued a boil water notice, this because of a loss at a water pressure at a purification plant. Officials say the boil water order will likely not be lifted until at least tomorrow morning, so proper testing can be performed to ensure the water safety. That notice affects more than 2 million people. It's a big city.

GOLODRYGA: Yes, among them my parents. I sent them that report last night. They didn't even know. But until then, until tomorrow, the city is urging resident to boil water to drinking, cooking, washing hands and brushing teeth for at least two minutes to destroy all potentially harmful bacteria. We'll follow that story for you.

SCIUTTO: Well, coming up, members of the January 6 committee are in active discussions about what exactly to include in the panel's final report. We're going to discuss how the Justice Department might use those details in their own ongoing criminal investigation.

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[10:50:00]

SCIUTTO: Just moments ago, Kellyanne Conway, who served as a senior adviser to former President Trump, there she is, arriving on Capitol Hill. A source familiar tells CNN she is meeting with the January 6 committee.

GOLODRYGA: Now, all of this as the committee prepares to release the final report by the end of the year. And CNN has learned that members on the panel are still deliberating over what it will contain and how those findings will be presented. But the report is not expected to focus solely on former President Trump's role in the lead-up to the Capitol attack.

Joining us now is Caroline Polisi. She's a federal and white collar criminal defense attorney. So, all of a sudden over the weekend, we do hear reporting from The Washington Post that there is conflicting debate going on internally within the committee about how much to focus of this report solely on President Trump. There are some who are suggesting that co-Chair Liz Cheney would like to just do that. Her camp is pushing back. But, clearly, you are sensing that there is some discord where over the past year we've heard none of that.

You say, though, given the timing of the report expected to be handed in and submitted imminently, this is something that you would expect. Why?

CAROLINE POLISI, LECTURE IN LAW, COLUMBIA LAW SCHOOL: Yes, Bianna. I mean, it's the not the greatest look for the committee for the sort of internal discord to appear on the pages of the papers. However, it is -- it makes sense that there would be some internal back and forth because, remember, Bianna, just how much information they distilled over the course of last summer in those plentiful hearings. I mean, mountains and mountains of evidence, deposition testimony, things of that nature.

There were five teams apparently within the committee focusing on five separate issues. So, it is not surprising to me that there would be, you know, some discussion about what should be front and center.

SCIUTTO: Yes. Everybody will want their best stuff to be front and center.

Big picture here, the committee, we know that the DOJ has taken in, in effect, the committee's work here. Their work is largely public. We've seen the testimony, DOJ's work remains private. But based on what you've seen publicly from the January 6 committee as an attorney, do you see the evidence there that merits indictments, including against the former president.

POLISI: Well, the answer is potentially, and I think that the appointment of Jack Smith as the new special counsel overseeing this investigation, as well as the Mar-a-Lago documents investigation, sort of points to the potential for an indictment.

At the end of the day, Jim, though, we talk a lot about potential criminal referrals from the January 6 committee to DOJ. It doesn't really matter. Jack Smith, Merrick Garland, they are not going to be reading this document as -- to give them insights in how to go about potentially charging crimes.

[10:55:08]

They will be looking at the facts and the evidence in their own sort of realm and make that decision on their own.

SCIUTTO: Well, a lot of big decisions to come on those issues. Caroline Polisi, thanks so much for joining us.

POLISI: Thanks for having me.

GOLODRYGA: Thanks, Caroline.

And thank you all for joining us today. I'm Bianna Golodryga.

SCIUTTO: Nice to have Bianna back. I'm Jim Sciutto.

At This Hour with Kate Bolduan will start right after a quick break.

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