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Former Chinese President Jiang Zemin Died at 96; Mauna Loa Lava Flowing with Miles of Major Hawaiian Roadway; Herschel Walker Can't Shake Residency Questions; Macron in U.S. for First State Visit of Biden Administration; Inside the Battle for Bakhmut in Eastern Ukraine. Aired 4:30-5a ET

Aired November 30, 2022 - 04:30   ET

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

[04:30:00]

BIANCA NOBILO, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome back to CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Bianca Nobilo. If you are just joining us, let me bring you up to date with our top stories at this hour.

At least 20 tornadoes have been reported across the U.S. Southeast. Tornado watch alerts are in place for parts of Alabama and Mississippi.

And a federal court investigating the January 6th Capitol riots has convicted the leader of the Oath Keepers and an associate for seditious conspiracy.

Now to some breaking news out of China. State media are reporting that the former leader Jiang Zemin has died of leukemia and organ failure at the age of 96. He served as president from 1993 to 2003 and met with world leaders from Bill Clinton to Vladimir Putin, to Fidel Castro. CNN's Kristie Lu Stout has a look at the life and legacy of the former Chinese leader.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KRISTIE LU STOUT, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): He was the communist hardliner with a softer side. Jiang Zemin was also a shrewd and cunning politician. He rose to the pinnacle of power after massacre of pro-democracy demonstrators in Tiananmen Square in 1989. He didn't order the crackdown but was handpicked by the man who did, supreme leader Deng Xiaoping.

A year after the bloodshed Jiang Zemin told America's ABC News, it was, quote, much to do about nothing. At first, he was written off by most as a political light weight who wouldn't last. He was known as the flower pot. Lots of decoration and no action. But history would prove them wrong.

DAVID SHAMBAUGH, GEORGE WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY: Jiang Zemin has had many more successes than failures and he surprised many people with his staying power.

STOUT (voice-over): As leader he courted the military and was determined to keep the communists in power while pushing ahead with economic reforms.

WENRAN JIANG, ALBERTA UNIVERSITY: He's definitely not going to be remembered as China's Gorbachev, he's not even close.

STOUT (voice-over): On an official U.S. visit in 1997, Jiang was lauded by Wall Street and chastised by President Bill Clinton over human rights.

BILL CLINTON, THEN-U.S. PRESIDENT: On this issue we believe the policy of the government is on the wrong side of history.

STOUT (voice-over): But he never gave ground on political reforms and explained why during a rare interview with CNN.

JIANG ZEMIN, FORMER CHINESE PRESIDENT (through translator): I do think that to require all countries to adopt the same model of democracy would itself be undemocratic.

STOUT (voice-over): He was leader when Hong Kong was handed back to the mainland, when Beijing was awarded the Olympics and business people were allowed to become communists. In 2003 he retired as president, a year after that he gave up his last post as Chinese military commander, completing the first smooth leadership transition ever in communist China.

I want to thank you for accepting my resignation, he said at the time. Jiang still exerted political influence behind the scenes for years, including the selection of current Chinese leader Xi Jinping who secured a norm busting third term as party head. Xi, China's most powerful leader in decades, has eviscerated political rivals including those in Jiang's faction and rolled back much of the economic and personal freedoms enjoyed during the Jiang era.

In retirement Jiang reportedly Saying an aria at Beijing's National Grand Theater before it was officially opened. For man who once ruled more than a billion people, the performance was said to be the fulfillment of a lifetime ambition.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NOBILO: Promises from the Chinese government to ease some COVID restrictions and not keeping protestors off the streets. This was the scene in northeastern China as crowds pushed back COVID police in hazmat suits with big, wide barricades. Protesters in the south marched through the streets chanting, lift the lockdowns. Police are also stopping people on the streets and on public transit check mobile phones and even calling people to find out if they're protesting.

The world's largest active volcano continues to erupt in Hawaii spewing lava for the first time in almost 40 years. The lava flow from Mauna Loa is now within a few miles of the Big Island's main highway. Hawaii's governor has signed an emergency proclamation due to the eruption. Allowing the government to issue alerts and order evacuations when necessary.

[04:35:00] Officials say no communities are in immediate danger though conditions could change at any moment.

Joining me now to discuss is Kenneth Rubin, a professor in earth sciences at the University of Hawaii. So good to have you on the program, sir, thanks for joining us.

KENNETH RUBIN, PROFESSOR, UNIVERSITY OF HAWAII AT MANOA: Aloha. Thank you for having me, Bianca.

Aloha. So, this is very good news that right now, no communities are being affected. But can you explain the geography of this volcano and also how the conditions could change and impact local populations.

RUBIN: Yes. It's a very calm volcano. It is almost 14,000 feet tall and most of the eruptions in its historical record which has covered the last 200 years occur somewhere near the summit region which is quite a ways from any population center many tens of miles. Different parts of the volcano are more or less steep. And so, the steepness of the volcano determines how fast the lava can flow down towards the coast and affect the population centers.

Fortunately, the current eruption is happening in the northeast sector of the volcano where the slopes are the most gentle. But in the past if lava flows from there have reached population centers, it's taken multiple weeks. So, there would be plenty of warning if that were to be how the eruptions proceed.

NOBILO: And how long may this erupt proceed for? What can we expect about progress based on previous eruptions?

RUBIN: So, there's a range of activity that happens at Mauna Loa. The eruptions tend to be measured in weeks to perhaps months. You might be familiar with Kilauea Volcano which is much more active volcano that sits just next to it. It's been erupting nearly continuously since the mid-1980s. So, this difference of behavior where Kilauea erupts for very long periods of time.

Mauna Loa tends to have short and more intense eruptions although, you know, much like a mutual fund, we can't predict what the future will be based on the past but we can say with some confidence that we anticipate that the eruption will likely be short lived.

NOBILO: We hope so. And what signals were there prior to the eruption starting? How useful were they as a warning?

RUBIN: So, the -- much like many volcanos in the world that are near population centers, there's a lot of instrumentation both on the volcano as well as measurements made from satellites. They detect things like changes in the shape of the volcano. We call this ground affirmation. We detect earthquakes and we detect volcanic gases. And there was an uptick in activity. It wasn't a dramatic uptick. It was sort of a gradual increasing of activity over the last year really starting to step up during this past summer. And this caused the combination of the volcano observatory, which is run by the U.S. Geological Survey, and the local civil defense officials, to start to warn the local population that an eruption might be coming and to prepare.

Interestingly enough, this volcano had a couple of other periods of similar unrest in the last 10 to 15 years which then proceeded to not have an eruption. So even, you know, though the precursor activity was indicative of something going on, we weren't sure if it was going to erupt until just right before it happened.

NOBILO: Professor Kenneth Rubin, that was fascinating. Thank you so much for your perspective. Mahalo.

In Georgia Republican Senate candidate Herschel Walker is facing growing questions about his residency in the final week of his runoff campaign against Democrat Raphael Warnock. Georgia Democrats have called for an investigation after CNN reported that Walker was getting a tax break in Texas intended for a primary residence.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HERSCHEL WALKER, REPUBLICAN U.S. SENATE CANDIDATE: I represent the great people of Georgia. I've lived here my whole life.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FOSTER: But in January, he described himself as living in Texas and said that he decided to run for Georgia's Senate seat while at his Texas home. Walker and his campaign have yet to comment on reports of the tax break or questions about his residency but some of his supporters seem unphased by it all.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JACOB BYRD, GEORGIA VOTER: I just like how he talks and like the stories he tells. And you know, he just -- he's off the cuff. He's not all serious about everything. Everything's not a big deal to him, you know. Is he the best candidate for the job? Maybe not. I mean, is he the most qualified guy in the world? I don't know. Maybe not but does he have a great attitude? Yes.

PAULA SENN, GEORGIA VOTER: When Herschel decided to run for Senate, it was a no brainer for us. We don't know his opponent but we do know Herschel.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

[04:40:00]

NOBILO: Walker's also hoping that support from Republican Governor Brian Kemp will help sway the voters as they head to the polls.

Coming up, Ukraine's military fights back against near constant bombardment from Russian forces. We'll take you to the front lines.

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NOBILO: A 21-gun salute and a black tie state dinner at the White House awaits France's Emmanuel Macron. The French president and his wife Brigette arrived Tuesday for the first state visit to the U.S. By a foreign leader since President Joe Biden took office. Mr. Macron's schedule is jam packed with visits to NASA headquarters, the State Department and Arlington National Cemetery. Topping the agenda, of course Russia's war in Ukraine, trade issues and climate change.

CNN senior international correspondent Jim Bittermann joins me now. And Jim, it's interesting because the context of this is actually quite strange relatively speaking. There is this trade war that the EU and U.S. are flirting with that people haven't been speaking about. What is Macron hoping to achieve on this trip?

JIM BITTERMANN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, I think he's kind of hoping to achieve something for France but Europe as well. As far as the Inflation Reduction Act is concerned, this is an act that gives billions to American industries and to help Americans get out from underneath inflation. And also, at the same time to put a stake in some of the climate change issues and encouraging the production of electric cars, for example.

But the Europeans and particularly the French, are saying that there are some provisions of the act which are, in fact, against their interests, that are in fact unfair advantage and give unfair advantage to American companies, particularly in the area of electrical vehicles, for example. The act gives a $7,500 tax break to Americans who buy electric cars that are made in the United States and the Europeans say that's just unfair -- Bianca.

[04:45:03]

NOBILO: Jim Bittermann live from Paris. Thank you so much.

The Ukrainian military officials in the Donetsk region say that Russian strikes have killed at least five civilians and injured 15 in the past 24 hours. Two were killed in the city of Bakhmut where some of the heaviest fighting is taking place right now. Russia has concentrated a large forces there and one Ukrainian commander says that his troops are struggling to hold off that onslaught. CNN's Matthew Chance is there reporting from the front lines.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: The brutal fight for Bakhmut. Where Ukrainian troops are battling rushes onslaught. These exclusive images are from the soldiers themselves. Their commanders tell us dozens of lives and now being sacrificed here every day.

The road into town is heavy with thick smoke and danger. Explosions ahead force us to pull over before another slams into a building close by.

CHANCE: All right, well, you can hear the incoming rounds. The incoming rounds from Russian artillery fire are really intensive here as we have entered the outskirts of Bakhmut which is, you know, certainly for everything we're seeing, everything we've been told, is now the most fiercely contested patch of ground in the entire Russia- Ukrainian conflict.

CHANCE (voice over): So fierce, we made a rapid exit, leaving the relentless barrage behind.

CHANCE: It's a new passage (INAUDIBLE).

CHANCE (voice over): Much of this battle is fought avoiding the artillery threat. In underground bunkers like these where local Ukrainian commanders like Pavlov (ph) can respond to Russian attacks.

There are assaulting opposition's from early morning until night, he tells me. What the real problem is we are heavily outnumbered, he said.

With the innovative use of low cost tech is helping to bridge that gap. In another frontline bunker we saw how commercially available drones are giving Ukraine an edge.

CHANCE: Wow. That's incredible because we just seen an artillery strike in this position that the Ukrainian drone operators have identified as being full of Russians like you can see. Russian soldiers as we look at them live now running for cover as Ukrainian artillery pounds their positions.

CHANCE (voice over): But battery commanders at the front line like to Tuman (ph) tell me they're now running low on ammunition rounds.

That even guns sent from the United States are breaking under such constant strain. They need more of both they say if this battle for Bakhmut is ever to be won.

Matthew Chance, CNN in Bakhmut, Eastern Ukraine.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NOBILO: And as you saw there, Ukraine is denying Russia's claims that its forces have Bakhmut surrounded. CNN's Fred Pleitgen joins us now live from Moscow. Fred, what do we know for sure about the fighting in Bakhmut and if you could explain the strategic importance of the city?

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, strategically important both for the Ukrainians and for the Russians. And you know, one of the things that we've seen for months in that place is both sides definitely showing no signs of wanting to back down in that area.

I think for the Russian's it's now become even more important after they've suffered those setbacks in places like Kherson but also in the north in Kharkiv as well. And you can really see the Russians pouring resources into that place. And the Ukrainians really as we just saw there in Matthew's report, only being able to fight back because they used that modern technology. We ourselves saw that on the front lines there about two months ago when we were in Bakhmut. So certainly, a place where there is extreme fighting is going on.

The other thing, Bianca, that we always have to keep in mind about Bakhmut is that the Russians are sending some of their most ruthless and most capable forces there and mainly of the Wagner private military company. And we've been in touch with the Wagner military company and they have told us that they are indeed sending for instance prisoners to the front line as well, to try and charge positions.

[04:50:00]

So, some of the things the Ukrainians were saying in the video, that there's waves of Russian forces trying to charge their positions, that's something that certain elements in Russia have actually acknowledged as well.

As far as the front line right now is concerned, we know it's extremely fluid. It certainly does not seem as though the Russians are close to encircling that city. One of the things that we saw when we were there is that the area around the city is mostly high ground. So, it is not easy but it's certainly possible for the Ukrainians to continue to have high ground and shoot with their artilleries to try to hold the Russians back. But it certainly is an extremely fierce battle that's going on in Bakhmut.

NOBILO: Fred Pleitgen in Moscow, thank you so much.

Coming up, details on a new drug that shows promise in slowing the progression of Alzheimer's.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NOBILO: Kim Kardashian and Ye, formerly known as Kanye West, have reached a divorce settlement nearly two years after filing to dissolve their marriage. CNN obtained a draft of the agreement. Stating that Kardashian will get $200,000 a month in child support from her ex- husband. The couple married in 2014 and shared joint custody of their four children.

[04:55:00]

Kardashian was declared legally single in March ahead of an antisemitic tirade from Ye, which caused him to lose multiple brand patch.

South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem has signed an executive order banning state employees from using TikTok on government devices. She says the Chinese Communist Party uses information gathered from the app to manipulate the American people. A TikTok executive told Congress last year the company doesn't share information with the Chinese government and the U.S.-based security team decides who can access U.S. user data from China.

Meanwhile, Snapchat's parent company is asking employees to return to the office 80 percent of the time. So, that's equivalent to four days a week. A Snap spokesperson tell CNN that the company believes that being together in person would enhance their ability to deliver on strategic priorities. The new policy will take effect in February. Snap's just the latest tech company to try and bring workers back to the office.

And some good news. There may be hope in the fight against Alzheimer. A drug called Lecanemab has shown promise in showing the progression of the disease. The New England Journal of Medicine published results from the phase 3 trial showing the drug reduced cognitive and functional decline by 27 percent. But researchers say the drug is associated with some serious adverse effects and that longer trials are needed to determine its safety and efficacy. The drug maker hopes to file for approval in the U.S. by the end of March and the FDA says it will get a priority review.

That does it here on CNN NEWSROOM. I am Bianca Nobilo in London. "EARLY START" with Christine Romans is up for you next. See you tomorrow.

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