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House Committee to Release Six Years of Trump's Taxes; 9K Migrants Moved Out of El Paso, Texas Over Last Week; Taliban Suspend University Education for Afghan Women; China Narrows Its Definition of COVID-19 Related Deaths. Aired 4:30-5a ET

Aired December 21, 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]

MAX FOSTER, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome back to CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Max Foster. If you are just joining us, let me bring you up to date with our top stories this hour.

In a surprise trip, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is on his way to Washington to meet with U.S. President Joe Biden who's expected to pledge an additional military aid package for Ukraine worth almost $2 billion. President Zelenskyy will also address a joint meeting of Congress.

Lawmakers have voted to release former President Donald Trump's tax returns. They say Trump claimed huge operating losses from his businesses to reduce his tax bills. But members of the House committee that voted to release those documents say it's not just about Trump here, it's also a check on the IRS and enforcing laws equally. CNN's Laura Coates spoke with Congressman Dan Kildee of Michigan.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

REP. DAN KILDEE (D-MI): We initiated this in 2019 with the intention of determining whether we needed to take up legislation to address what seemed to be a weakness in the audits of presidents. I mean, the president kept talking about his returns being under audit. He failed to release his returns, as every president since Nixon had done. So, a big question mark hung over this. But we needed to get the facts. And so, we asked for the facts to determine whether the IRS was properly enforcing the law on the president of the United States.

The reason it took so long was because of Donald Trump, because of those who support him. Many of the same Republicans now crying foul supported his effort to sue us, to delay, delay, delay until finally the Supreme Court of the United States, just a few weeks ago, said, no, the Ways and Means Committee is correct. These documents should be delivered to them.

And so, we've had just a couple of weeks to examine the information, come to the conclusion that, yes, legislation is warranted, craft that legislation, and now hopefully move that to the floor of the House of Representatives. Trump is a unique individual in the presidency, a person with hundreds of different, you know, corporate identities that he can hide behind and move money in between. And so, it is a unique set of circumstances, for sure. But President Trump could have answered one of these two questions if he had simply done what he would said he would do, and that is he himself releases his tax returns.

Remember, going all the way back to 2015, he kept saying over and over again he'll release his returns. And we've been waiting all this time. We still would've had to seek under Section 60103 of the tax code information about whether the IRS is properly auditing those returns. But he could've resolved the big question that the Republicans seem to have such a big difficulty with, and that is the release of the tax returns themselves.

He promised to do it. We need that information now because the questions that have arisen around whether or not the IRS did its job.

I worry more about the precedent that says we have suspicion that there's something wrong going on. The IRS is not doing its job enforcing the tax laws on the president of the United States. The president's returns are complex and raise a lot of questions. The precedent that I want to avoid is Congress saying, nah, to bad, he's the president.

[04:35:00]

There is one set of rules for people like him and another set of rules for the hundreds of thousands of Americans who, for no other reason than getting a child tax credit, are facing an audit by the IRS. That is a precedent we don't -- we don't want to enforce and reinforce this precedent that the people the very top of the economy have their own special set of rules. Donald Trump has operated as if he was exempt from law for a long time. Finally, he's being held to account.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FOSTER: The Biden administration is asking the Supreme Court to end the Trump era pandemic policy restricting migrants from entering the U.S. but not for at least a week. It's requesting the top court rejected an emergency bid by Republican legislators to keep Title 42 but wants the policy to stay in place until next Tuesday to have time to wind down the program. And meanwhile, cities and states on the southern border are preparing for a massive influx of migrants once restrictions are lifted.

Now the Department of Homeland Security says officials have already moved more than 9,000 migrants out of El Paso, Texas in just the last week. El Paso officials say two vacant schools will be used as temporary shelters for migrants. Meanwhile, hundreds of migrants are also arriving daily in Brownsville, Texas. CNN's Rosa Flores spoke to some of them.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ROSA FLORES, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Brian and his mother left their native Venezuela full of dreams three months ago. He made it to south Texas after being processed by immigration authorities. She did not.

FLORES: What happened to your mother?

FLORES (voice-over): He says they were traveling through the Darien Gap, a mountainous jungle between Colombia and Panama.

FLORES: He says that he was helping his mother cross and that she grabbed a branch, and then she fell down a cliff and into the river. He says that he will never forget the look in his mother's eyes.

FLORES (voice-over): He is one of more than 300 migrants who are processed by border patrol, and dropped off in Brownsville every day, says migrant advocates Sergio Cordoba.

SERGIO CORDOBA, TEAM BROWNSVILLE: Our worry is, are we going to be able to order the supplies that we need?

FLORES (voice-over): Late Monday, the Trump era policy, which allows immigration agents to swiftly return migrants to Mexico, was paused by the Supreme Court just days before it was scheduled to lift. The decision, easing concerns about the sudden surge of migrants at the border that's expected when the rule ends.

RICHARD CORTEZ, HIDALGO COUNTY, TEXAS JUDGE: Quite honestly, we are relieved that Title 42 has been extended. We were preparing for the worst. You know, we were pretty almost already to capacity in some our locations.

FLORES: I'm in Brownsville, Texas, and just across the river in Matamoros, Mexico, there are thousands of migrants, mostly Venezuelans and Haitians, who are living in camps and on the streets. I've been talking to them.

What do you think about Title 42 staying in place?

FLORES (voice-over): They say they are happy Title 42 is still in effect, but they are also preparing for the worst. Buying inflatable rafts, like in this photo shared with CNN, to cross the Rio Grande, if they are not allowed to enter it legally. In nearby McAllen, Texas, Border Patrol is dropping off about 450 migrants per day at this respite center, says the director, Sister Norma Pimentel. Pimentel is monitoring the anxiety that is growing across the border in Reynosa, Mexico. Where there's an estimated 8,000 migrants in packed shelters and open air camps according to advocates.

SISTER NORMA PIMENTEL, CATHOLIC Charities of the Rio Grande Valley: It's not safe to be in Mexico because of the fact they are exposed to all the elements and exposed to all the dangers.

FLORES (voice-over): The dangers that still haunt Brian after his mother's death.

FLORES: What did you see in her eyes?

Fear, sadness.

FLORES (voice-over): Brian says seeing his mother's photos is painful, especially this one. His mom is not in the photo. She took the picture days before she perished.

FLORES: I've been messaging with Brian and says that the other thing that he can't forget is the smell of death in the Darien Gap and that just speaks to the risks that migrants are willing to take to come here to America for a better life.

Now I also want to say that one of the things I keep on hearing from migrants is that they have sold everything in their home countries to come here to the United States and it's all part of misinformation. They say that simply word has spread that the U.S. southern border is open and of course the United States says that that's not the case. But the back and forth with Title 42 is not helping in their messaging.

Rosa Flores, CNN, Brownsville, Texas.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FOSTER: Meanwhile, New York Governor Kathy Hochul is thanking lawmakers for securing money to support asylum seekers in the state. The source tell CNN that New York City is expected to get federal aid aide at providing relief for areas overwhelmed by asylum seekers.

[04:40:00]

This comes as lawmakers in New York say cost related to migrants arriving daily has strained the city's resources.

And yet another crackdown on women's rights. The Taliban has suspended university education for all female students in Afghanistan effective immediately. Human Rights Watch called the decision shameful. The U.N. Secretary General says he's deeply alarmed. Calling it another broken promise by the Taliban. The U.S. also strongly condemned the move. The Taliban had promised a more moderate government after seizing power last year. But ever since they've gone backwards looking more like the hardline rulers of the 1990s. They close 70 schools for girls back in March. Women can no longer work in most sectors and have to cover their faces in public.

CNN's Nada Bashir has been covering this story. And cynics predicted all of this but it wasn't what the Taliban promised.

NADA BASHIR, CNN REPORTER: And of course, the Taliban since its takeover has been trying to present a more moderate image, perhaps a more modernized entity than what we saw in the late 1990s. But since that takeover, we have seen the Taliban flattening those pledges to the international community, rolling back those fundamental rights and freedoms. Rights that women have fought so hard for over the last two decades.

Now of course this is shocking and troubling news for women and girls attending university in Afghanistan. Of course, just a few months ago many of them would have been taking entrance exams across the country with the hopes of going to university.

Of course, we have seen restrictions in education over the last few months as you laid out there. Back in March we saw their access to secondary school being closed permanently for young girls. We've seen segregation being enforced in universities. And this is all part of the Taliban's efforts to really roll back those freedoms, to really tighten those restrictions.

But we've seen that condemnation once again from the international community. And what we will likely see now is the Taliban becoming even more isolated from the international community. We've already heard from the United States, the State Department spokesperson just yesterday condemning the Taliban's position. He had this statement to make yesterday.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NED PRICE, U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT SPOKESPERSON: The Taliban have permanently sentenced Afghan women to a darker and more barren future without opportunity. No country can thrive when half of its population is arbitrarily held back. Education is an internationally recognized human right and it is essential to Afghanistan's economic growth and its stability.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BASHIR: And the concern is that as Afghanistan and the Taliban becomes even more isolated from the international community, we could see the Taliban taking even harsher measures against women and girls. And you're going to see Afghan population in general and we may see a further rolling back of those fundamental rights and freedoms.

FOSTER: OK, Nada, thank you.

Chinese cities facing a major surge in COVID-19 infections. Coming up, why we may never know the full price China is paying to the abrupt end to its zero-COVID policy.

[04:45:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

FOSTER: Stunning video shows the moment a train collided with a truck in Tennessee. The truck was carrying a 130 foot concrete beam when it stopped on the tracks whilst waiting on the red light. Authorities say it happened despite the railroad crossing warning signs signals working normally at the time of the crash.

Two crew members on board the train were injured. The driver of the truck wasn't hurt. Some of the train's fuel spilled in the crash but emergency responders were able to contain it. Look at that.

Two people are dead after a major earthquake rocked Northern California. Authorities say the 6.4 magnitude quake hit early on Tuesday morning shaking people from their sleep and damaging roads and buildings. There are also 12 reported injuries. About 15,000 homes and businesses in the area remain without power nearly 24 hours after the quake. A state of emergency is in place allowing disaster assistance to flow into the affected areas.

China is narrowing its definition of COVID-related deaths in the face of an unprecedented surge of cases. The count will now only include patients who died of respiratory failure directly caused by the virus. That decision raises real concerns that officials are trying to keep the true scale of the outbreak under wraps. CNN's Selina Wang reports from Beijing.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SELINA WANG, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): China has only reported a few COVID deaths since abandoning its zero-COVID policy, but what we see on the ground tells a different story.

WANG: There is a long line of cars that snakes across this entire area, of cars waiting to get into that cremation area. I'm in the parking lot right now, and it's completely full of cars. I am speaking here because there are many, many security guards patrolling this entire area.

And I spoke to a man earlier who said that his close friend passed away from a fever that the hospital didn't say why. He said he's been waiting here for hours, and he still has no idea if his friend's body can even get cremated today.

WANG (voice-over): And it's not just in Beijing. Social media shows crematoriums and funeral homes around the country overwhelmed.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)

WANG (voice-over): In this funeral home in Jinan, the man is saying it's going insane. Here it is packed with cars and vans carrying bodies stretch all the way into the distance in front of this crematorium in Shijiazhuang. And families wait and stand in their mourning clothes at this Wuhan funeral home, with no idea how long they have to wait before their beloved ones can be cremated.

A new study by Hong Kong researchers estimates nearly 1 million people in China can die from COVID if the country doesn't take necessary public health measures like increase vaccinations.

Long lines like these are forming across the country outside of hospitals. In Hangzhou, people wait for hours outside in the cold rain. Crowds form outside of hospitals in Wuhan, ground zero of the original outbreak.

WANG: This is a COVID-designated hospital in Beijing. There's been a steady stream of elderly patients in wheelchairs being led into this hospital.

I spoke to a man who's been waiting outside for his elderly family member, who he said is very sick with a high fever from COVID. But he says this hospital is running out of beds space.

(SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)

WANG (voice-over): Are you busy? I asked a COVID worker outside this hospital.

Yes, extremely busy, he tells me. We even work into the evenings.

Did a lot of people die here? I asked.

Yes, every day, he says.

Is it all because of COVID?

Yes," he says. People with underlying conditions.

The country's COVID strategy has suddenly swung from one extreme to another. This is what China's metropolis, Chongqing, looked like a month ago during a mass COVID lockdown. A ghost city.

[04:50:00]

But now, not only has Chongqing lifted its lockdown, the government announced on primetime television that people who have COVID, as long as they are only mildly sick or asymptomatic, well, they can return to work.

But people are still scared to go out. Restaurants and shopping malls in the city barely have any customers. Subways across major cities are eerily empty.

But none of this is stopping Chinese state media from hailing the country's COVID strategy as victory after victory. As the Chinese people feel they are suddenly left to fend for themselves.

Selina Wang, CNN, Beijing.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FOSTER: Just ahead, parade pandemonium. Millions turned out in Argentina to greet the World Cup champions. The celebrations got a bit out of hand.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

FOSTER: Amazing pictures. Buenos Aires through the party of the year to celebrate Argentina's World Cup champions and everyone was invited. The government declared it a national holiday for Tuesday's victory parade. But things did get a bit out of hand when two men jumped from an overpass bridge onto the team's open airbus.

[04:55:00]

The parade was later halted and Lionel Messi and his teammates were forced to leave the area by helicopters. Police estimated 4 million people flooded the streets to celebrate the country's first World Cup title. The New York Yankees have reportedly resigned outfielder Aaron Judge

for the largest free-agent contract in Major League Baseball history. That's according to ESPN and MLB network. Who say the deal is worth $360 million -- would you believe -- over the nine years through to the 2031 season. The record contract is fitting for the MVP slugger who is coming off an historic season.

The Phoenix Suns and Phoenix Mercury will soon have a new owner. A group led by mortgage lender Mat Ishbia will reportedly buy both franchises for a record $4 billion. The deal is for more than 50 percent ownership including all of the embattled owner Robert Sarver's stake. Sarver was suspended by the NBA for a year and fined $10 million after an investigation found he had engaged in hostile, racially insensitive and inappropriate behavior.

Now it looks like the future may be uncertain for Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson and his days playing D.C. anti-hero Black Adam.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Black Adam, what have your powers ever given to you?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FOSTER: The star of "Black Adam" says the character is not in DC's plans for the immediate future as the company's new management team looks to reset its cinematic universe. Johnson updated fans on Tuesday amid speculation that DC would not proceed with a sequel to the latest super hero film.

The announcement comes on the heels that DC studios is not bringing back Henry Cavill as superman, despite his recent cameo in the "Black Adam" movie. DC and CNN are both owned by Warner Brothers Discovery.

Thanks for joining me here on CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Max Foster in London. "EARLY START" with Christine Romans is next.

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