Return to Transcripts main page
CNN Newsroom
Bodies Pulled From Rubble As Death Toll Nears 16,000; State Media: Nearly 300,000 Displaced By Quake In Syria; Biden Reaffirms Continued United States Support For Ukraine; Ukraine Makes Renewed Pleas For Western Fighter Jets; Multiple Tornadoes Reported As Storms Pummel Unites States South. Aired 2-3a ET
Aired February 09, 2023 - 02:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[02:00:33]
ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR (on camera): Hello and welcome to our viewers here in the United States, and all around the world. I'm Rosemary Church.
Just ahead on CNN NEWSROOM --
CHURCH (voice over): The window for miracles is closing in Turkey and Syria's quake zone, as search and rescue efforts will soon become a recovery mission.
Plus.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: This is a blue color blue print to rebuild America.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: After the State of the Union Address, President Biden takes his economic message on the road.
And later, a massive military parade in North Korea that highlight numerous ballistic missiles, thought to be capable of hitting the United States.
ANNOUNCER: Live from CNN Center. This is CNN NEWSROOM WITH ROSEMARY CHURCH.
CHURCH (on camera): It is 10:00 a.m. across Turkey and Syria, where the death toll from the worst earthquake in the century has climbed nearly 16,000.
CHURCH (voice over): In northern Syria, there are huge mountains of rubble, where residential buildings once stood, Damascus says close to 300,000 people have been forced from their homes, and that's only in the path of Syria under government control. Turkey has restored Twitter service in the quake zone after it was restricted for most of the day, Wednesday. Rescue workers and aid groups have been relying on the social media platform to coordinate their efforts. The government detained nearly two dozen people for tweets criticizing its response to the disaster.
With each day passing, rescue workers are pulling fewer survivors, and more victims from the debris. CNN's Nick Paton Walsh begins our coverage.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NICK PATON WALSH, CNN INTERNATIONAL SECURITY EDITOR (voice over): It is hard to imagine how this rubble give anyone hope. Yet, for 50 or so hours after the quake, it almost did. And when it stopped, when the chances of surviving egged, the body so near the epicenter here kept coming.
The paralysis of grief when these two parents see their 8-year-old daughter's red hair blood stained. Another 4-year-old girl with no parents here to bury her.
Another father, simply walking behind.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (text): My son.
WALSH (on camera): It's been constant intense activity desperately trying to save lives, but we are sadly now into the window where so many of the ambulances that arrived will likely be taking away people who have perished.
WALSH (voice over): Up high, hope is strongest -- digging furiously by hand here.
on the other side of the rubble, medics rushed forward growing fury at how nothing here came sooner.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (text): Why did you not look for the ones at the top first? Oh, father!
WALSH: Stretchers here too late, return empty. Another body pulled out of a Syrian refugee in his 40s as the excavations gained pace. An audience of agony watches, wait.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (text): Heaven's garden is where they have gone.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (text): My little lamb, her bed has flown. She is only 7, how could she move it? She is in heaven.
WALSH: A hospital volunteer told us, over 300 bodies here are unclaimed the (INAUDIBLE). The numbers rising fast along with tempers.
It is chaos and whether any government could have moved faster, was the question dogging Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, when he flew into town briefly. This stadium suddenly home to possibly 1000s. Who knows how long? Many refugees from Syria now perhaps losing their homes for the third time. That's nearly as many years as some have been alive.
They have nothing but the state's generosity to rely on, which for now means 12 people in this tent.
[02:05:06]
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (text): I don't know how long they'll let us stay here. We have no house to go to. Until there's a safe space.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (text): We are just waiting for our government. Whatever they give, we will accept.
WALSH: For now, the question is what they could have done to not arrive for so many in tuned here too late.
Nick Paton Walsh, CNN, Kahramanmaras, Turkey.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHURCH: Joining me now from Amsterdam in the Netherlands, Sherwan Qasem is a spokesperson for Doctors Without Borders. Thank you so much for talking with us.
SHERWAN QASEM, SPOKESPERSON, DOCTORS WITHOUT BORDERS: Thank you very much for this opportunity.
CHURCH: Now, tragically, the death toll is rising now at nearly 16,000, but rescue efforts continue in the hope that more survivors can be pulled from the rubble. What are your doctors telling you about conditions on the ground and the injured patients that they've been caring for?
QASEM: Yes. So, I'm in touch with our colleagues in western Aleppo countryside in Idlib area, they are talking about a very dire situation, let's not forget that this area was in conflict for the last 12 years.
So, already the medical sector is struggling and suffering from severe problems. We are trying as Doctors Without Borders to work with our partners, and supported medical facilities to be able to deliver supplies, to do to provide trainings, and to increase the capacity of these hospitals. To provide some other operational materials. Also, to help them to do their job.
One of the main problems is the lack of access to this area. The main access in this area is called Bab al-Hawa, and this humanitarian corridor is organized and regulated through Security Council mechanism that is making it a bit not easy to deliver support.
We call ourselves Doctor Without Borders. And we act in this in this sense, but unfortunately, there are many borders, and we are trying to overcome them. CHURCH: Yes, I totally understand that. And, of course, as you mentioned, the problem is getting access. Aid is arriving. But Bashar al-Assad, the leader of Syria, has asked that, that aid be sent to Damascus.
There's a lot of politics involved here, as you say, you know, there has been war in the region. So, people are dealing with so much, and then on top of it, they have to deal with this.
So, how worried are you that any aid sent to Damascus will not find its way to those most in need in northwest Syria?
QASEM: Yes, so as, I'm, myself, Syrian, so, I have also family inside Syria. And in all control areas, I have family, in a Kurdish control area, in the government control area, and in the opposition control area.
For us, we see the Syrian population as a whole -- one group of civilians that need and require our support. What we are trying to do in these moments to try to find different ways and different accesses of aid to deliver this aid to the people in need.
The situation is really dire there in both government control area and in the opposition control area, besides the Kurdish control area, there is a lack of fuel, the economical situation is quite difficult, the access to medical health is very complicated. And what's making make it -- make it even harder that I was talking to my mother actually yesterday, and she was telling me, like, my son, I don't know what we may happen tomorrow.
You know, like, I mean, the last 12 years, every year, we were hoping that this will be the last one. We are in February, and in March -- next month will be the 12th year, you know, and actually this this is making it even harder and more complicated.
For us, as a neutral, independent medical organization, we are trying to do our best to support the population, and to deliver the aid to the people who need, whether -- doesn't matter in which access in which way.
Our main aim right now to reach the people in need in all parts of Syria.
CHURCH: Yes, I mean, that is the great value of Medecins Sans Frontieres is that there are no there are no politics involved in that. It's about helping people.
And, of course, as the death toll climbs, hope is fading that more people will be found alive. But miracles have happened, of course, in the past. How long though can people survive in these freezing conditions without access to food or water?
What point do they decide that this becomes a recovery mission?
QASEM: Indeed, unfortunately, the time is not easy. It's already going quite fast. Until now, the aid entering the northwest Syria, from Bab al-Hawa, which is the only humanitarian corridor, as we said, is -- it's quite limited.
[02:10:09]
I hear from the White Helmets that only one Egyptian rescue team arrived through Bab al-Hawa from Turkey, but also the corridor was not really accessible.
For us, what we mainly are trying to focus on right now, we are trying to do two parts, let's say, we first focus on the life-saving activities, through supporting the medical facilities supported by Medecins Sans Frontieres.
We are trying to provide them with fuel for generators, electricity, and heating. Fuel for ambulances. We are trying to provide them with some medical supply, so they can do their job in terms of life saving.
Or the same time our brave Syrian colleagues inside Idlib and western Aleppo are doing their best to also reach the reception centers to support those people who are in -- because there were 1,000s of homeless people already.
I think, I heard in the report, you mentioned something about some Syrian refugees in Turkey, for example, being displaced for the third time.
Actually, I talked to some people who have been displaced 20 times in the last 12 years. Whether like more than 10-15 times inside Syria, and even now some of them inside Turkey, but also in western -- in western Aleppo, and in Idlib, they were in clusters of camps that is making it very difficult to reach these people.
And actually, this morning, I was talking to one colleague. they told me one specific incidents happened. There was like a -- like a low dam on Al-Assi River in southern Idlib, (INAUDIBLE) area, and the dam is collapsing.
So, it's not like a major damage, it's like one of these two meter -- like small, not very big one, but the population build it by themselves. And now they were saying that the villages and the IDP and the internally displaced persons -- shelters are flooded in this area. So, I wanted to also report on this.
So, we are trying to provide also blankets, heating materials, non- food items like hygiene kits to prevent any further medical casualties or medical problems.
CHURCH: As you describe this is tragedy upon tragedy. Sherwan Qasem, thank you so much for talking with us. We do appreciate it and all the work that your organization does.
QASEM: Thank you very much.
CHURCH: Thank you.
CHURCH (voice over): And if you're looking for information on how to help earthquake survivors, you can go to cnn.com/impact. You'll find a list of organizations working on rescue and relief efforts.
Again, that's cnn.com/impact.
CHURCH (on camera): President Joe Biden is reaffirming U.S. support for Ukraine as the war nears the one-year mark, but some Republican lawmakers have been critical about the money being sent to Ukraine, sparking fears they could pull back funding now that Republicans control the House.
And here is how Mr. Biden responded.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BIDEN: If these guys don't want to help Ukraine, I get it. They don't want to do that. But what are they going to do when Ukraine rolls, when Russia rolls across Ukraine or in the Belarus or anywhere else?
JUDY WOODRUFF, SENIOR CORRESPONDENT, PBS NEWSHOUR: So, is it open ended for now?
BIDEN: Yes, it is. Look, there is no way that Putin is going to be able to cope. He's already lost Ukraine. The idea that he's ever going to be able --
Well, here is what he thought. He thought that if he invaded Ukraine, first of all, he'd get a welcome by every Russian speaker, they'd say, come on in.
Secondly, he thought what would happen is that NATO would collapse. NATO would not do anything. They'd be afraid to act.
WOODRUFF: Right.
BIDEN: Then, he thought, anyway, go down the line. None of that's happening.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has been invited to participate in the E.U. summit in Brussels, just one day after surprise visits to London and Paris.
CNN's Clare Sebastian is following developments for us. She joins us now live from London.
Good morning to you, Clare. So, President Zelenskyy received positive responses from the U.K. and France in terms of continued weapons support. What can he expect at the E.U. summit?
CLARE SEBASTIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (on camera): You know, Rosemary, I think we're going to hear continued expressions of support, and that it's likely open ended. As President Biden was saying there, yes, extremely positive responses in the U.K. Very much met with applause and red-carpet treatment in Downing Street.
But this, it was an unequivocal pitch for more weapons, and in particular, fighter planes.
Take a listen to some of his words when he addressed the U.K. Parliament.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, PRESIDENT OF UKRAINE: I appeal to you and the word was simple, and yet most important words, combat aircrafts for Ukraine. Wings for freedom.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SEBASTIAN: Well, he did get some progress on this front. This trip came alongside. An announcement for the U.K. that they would be expanding their training program for Ukrainian forces to include pilots and marine stopping short of promising those fighter jets that President Zelenskyy was so clear that he felt he needed to get Russia out of Ukraine.
[02:15:18]
But, a spokesman for the prime minister for Downing Street say that the United Kingdom is actively looking at options for this.
He, then went to Paris, continued expressions of support there. And I think, when speaking, if he does indeed address the E.U. this morning, we can expect to hear again, this unequivocal pitch for more weapons, for fighter planes, for longer range missiles.
But this is also about the longer term for Ukraine. Don't forget that this is a country that has, in the past year, got E.U. candidate status. President Zelenskyy very much wants his country to take its place in the western international order; the E.U., NATO, all of that.
So, I think we can -- we can hear that long -- those longer-term expressions of integration with the European Union, Rosemary.
CHURCH: All right, our thanks to Clare Sebastien for that live report.
And a closer look now at Ukraine's renewed push for Western fighter jets, and how it could make a major difference in driving back Russian forces. Fred Pleitgen has a report.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Ukrainian towns getting decimated by Russian firepower every day.
This is Marinka in the east of the country almost completely reduced to rubble.
Around Bakhmut, combat at close quarters, as Ukrainian troops tried to prevent a Russian fighters of the Wagner private military company from encircling the city. Wagner boss, Yevgeny Prigozhin, so confident in his own private air force, he took to the skies and challenged Ukraine's president to a dog fight.
Tomorrow, I'm boarding a MiG-29, he said. If you desire, we'll meet in the sky.
ZELENSKYY: To you, Speaker.
PLEITGEN: But Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is in Europe, visiting the U.K.'s Parliament, pleading for Western combat jets.
ZELENSKYY: In Britain, the king is an Air Force pilot, and in Ukraine today, every Air Force pilot is a king.
PLEITGEN: Despite being much smaller and older than Moscow's Air Force, the Ukrainians are still very much in the fight in the skies, but they're losing planes and having trouble maintaining their Soviet fleet.
Even a small number of Western fighters would make a big difference, says Ukraine's Air Force spokesman.
We can start with a few squadrons, he says, each with 12 jets. If we have one to two or more squadrons, it would be the first step for our pilots to transition. They can be information and perform combat missions on different directions.
The U.S. has given the Ukrainian some air-launched anti-radiation missiles called HARM. But Kyiv says those too would work much better if launched from Western jets.
The HARM missiles aren't as efficient as if they were used from American or other allied aircraft, the spokesman says. Their functionality is restricted. The range is shorter, making the efficiency lower.
Ukrainian officials say they want U.S.-made F-16. So far, President Biden has ruled out giving Kyiv combat aircraft. But the U.K. says it will soon start training Ukrainian pilots. And Ukrainian officials tell CNN, they're confident they'll get jets, just like eventually they got the main battle tanks they requested.
We'd like help as soon as possible like yesterday, he says, and our partners say it will come tomorrow. And the space between yesterday and tomorrow is very important to us.
And Ukraine civilians remain in the crosshairs of Russia's cannons, missiles, and jets, while Kyiv hopes for more Western support to start beating them back.
Fred Pleitgen, CNN, Kyiv, Ukraine.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHURCH (voice over): And still to come, the U.S. House is set to vote on whether to condemn the incident of the Chinese balloon flying in U.S. airspace.
More on Washington's grievances with Beijing, just ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[02:23:01]
CHURCH (on camera): Flash flood warnings are in effect for much of the area around New Orleans, as heavy storms with possible tornadoes pummel millions of people across the United States.
CHURCH (voice over): Storms ripped through an area near New Orleans, just a short while ago, in fact.
Officials say it damaged multiple homes and injured at least three people. It happened after this video captured what looks to be a tornado in the area.
Tornado warnings and watches were issued across much of the south on Wednesday. All part of a storm system that stretches all the way to near the Canadian border.
So, let's bring in meteorologist Britley Ritz. She is been keeping a close eye on all of this. So, what is the latest on this severe weather?
BRITLEY RITZ, CNN METEOROLOGIST (on camera): We've had several severe weather reports, Rosemary. Three being a tornado report, 18 wind, and one hail over the last 24 hours and more to come here in the next 24.
There is the cold front. The rain extending from New Orleans all the way up through the Ohio Valley, pressing into the Great Lakes. Behind it, much colder air, dealing with snowfall. But we're still focusing in on that heavy rain threat. Not only the severe weather threat, but the flooding concern across the lower Mississippi Valley.
Some areas have already picked up roughly about four inches. Now, mind you, these are estimated rainfall amounts. But still, more to come on top of that.
Not only that, but the wind that comes along with that area of low pressure. Wind advisories and high wind warnings up through the Ohio Valley or wind gusts can reach over 60 miles per hour times. And there's the colder end of the storm on the back end, dealing with winter weather advisories, and even winter storm warnings for parts of eastern Iowa, including Cedar Rapids, where we could pick up three to six inches of snowfall today.
And, of course, that front rolls through and back behind it much colder air. So, holding on to that threat of severe weather for parts of the Ohio Valley, down into parts of the Florida Panhandle, rolling into Thursday, as this whole system continues its trek further east.
[02:25:01]
Hold on to that threat of damaging winds and isolated tornadoes with that. You'll see the front slide eastward. Areas highlighted in red, indicating that threat of severe weather again for Thursday.
And then, rolling into parts of the Carolinas, as we get into Friday. So, holding the same threats. Rosemary.
CHURCH: All right. Britley Ritz, many thanks for staying on top of all those details. Appreciate it.
Well, in the coming hours, the U.S. House is set to vote on a resolution condemning China's use of a suspected spy balloon over U.S. territory.
CHURCH (voice over): It is the latest in the dispute over the balloon, which was shut down Saturday, prompting even NATO to acknowledge there is been an increase in Chinese surveillance activities globally.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken addressed the matter on Wednesday.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANTONY BLINKEN, UNITED STATES SECRETARY OF STATE: Senior administration officials are on the Hill this week. And we already shared information with dozens of countries around the world, both from Washington and through our embassies.
We're doing so, because the United States was not the only target of this broader program, which has violated the sovereignty of countries across five continents.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH (on camera): And CNN's Kristie Lu Stout, joins me now live from Hong Kong. Good to see you, Kristie.
So, President Biden has said that U.S. China relations have not been damaged by this spy balloon incident. What is Beijing is saying?
KRISTIE LU STOUT, CNN CORRESPONDENT (on camera): Well, you know, China is repeatedly called the U.S. shooting down the Chinese balloon as an overreaction.
But, what's interesting to see those comments from the U.S. president in an interview with PBS News Hour, when he said that the U.S. shooting down the Chinese balloon did not make us China relations worse.
He's obviously trying to downplay this situation. But when you talk to China watchers and analysts, they disagree.
In fact, I want to show you this bit of analysis from Jude Blanchette of CSIS, who tells CNN, this, "The relationship, I think, is just heading to a very, very dark place if the two sides don't find some way to put a floor underneath."
Now, analysts point out that U.S.-China ties are under strain, and that there is very little window of opportunity ahead to put a floor in the relationship, to be able to reset this relationship.
They point out that the Nationals People Congress, this is the annual legislative meeting that China hosts. That's going to be taking place shortly in early March.
China will be preoccupied with that. And they also point out the reported planned visit of the U.S. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy to Taiwan, which will surely provoked the ire of China, and getting the way of any sort of reset and ties.
Now, China continues to insist that this balloon was a civilian craft that blew, off course. The United States saying it was a spy craft, and part of a broader Chinese military surveillance program that spans continents. With the Pentagon, adding, it has 100 percent certainty, it was not just a weather balloon. Back to you.
CHURCH: All right. Kristie Lu Stout, joining us live from Hong Kong. Many thanks for that report.
Well, still to come, the mission to rescue earthquake survivors grows more urgent.
Three days after the disaster in Turkey and Syria. A live report from the region when we return.
[02:30:00]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHURCH: Countries around the world are pledging aid for Turkey and Syria in the wake of Monday's powerful earthquake. More than 16,000 people across the region have been killed tens of thousands more are injured. Turkey's President admits there were shortcomings in the government's response to the disaster but insists the situation is now under control. Bitter cold temperatures are slowing rescue efforts and endangering survivors who are now stranded without shelter. Syrian state media report more than 300,000 people have been displaced in the country. So, we do want to head to Istanbul Turkey now and to CNN's Salma Abdelaziz. So, Salma, how are these rescue and recovery efforts going in the quake zone?
SALMA ABDELAZIZ, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, in Syria, it's being described as a crisis, within a crisis, within a crisis, Rosemary. This is a country that's been in a civil conflict now for over a decade, nearly 12 years. That means any child under the age of 12 essentially in that country has been born into a warzone. And now many of those traumatized children are suffering, after the aftermath of an earthquake. Take a look at that.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ABDELAZIZ (voiceover): This is no way to come into the world. Birthed during an earthquake, thrust into a warzone, orphaned and alone. This newborn girl was found alive, her umbilical cord still attached to her dead mother's body buried under the rubble of their home. This video shows the moments after rescue workers pulled her out of the ruins. We found the parent's bodies lying next to each other. Then, we heard a faint sound. He says, we dug, we cleared the dust, and found the baby, still tied by her umbilical cord. So, we cut it off and sent her to hospital. The rest of baby John Doe's immediate family lies in the back of this pickup truck, all dead before they even knew she was alive.
An entire generation of Syrians has been born into war, now those traumatized children face yet another catastrophe. Diplomatic efforts are underway to open a humanitarian corridor. But already there are concerns access is being politicized the Damascus government heavily sanctioned by the West, insist it should be the sole coordinator.
BASSAM SABBAGH, SYRIAN AMBASSADOR TO UNITED NATIONS: So, if it's happened to your country or to his country, it will be the same. Without the control of the government, without permission of the government, without approval from the government, this is violation. Very simple.
[02:35:09]
ABDELAZIZ: But few in rebel-held areas, places bombarded for years by President Bashar al-Asad, believed the government that once leveled their neighborhoods would care to save them now. And the clock is ticking to find any survivors under hundreds of collapsed buildings. Like Mariam (PH), this social media video shows her more than 36 hours after the quake, soothing her little brother Ilaaf (PH). Please, she says to the rescue workers, please help us. I'll do anything if you could just help us. Siblings are eventually extracted, and brought safely to their terrified parents. In another rare moment of triumph, an entire family is retrieved by emergency responders. Just watch the crowd's reaction as they bring them out one by one, dad, daughter, son. In Syria, just surviving is a victory.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ABDELAZIZ (on camera): When you look at that little enclave and those harrowing stories of survival and grief there, Rosemary, what's important to remember, is that aid has not reached that rebel-held area. The one road that connects Turkey to that area was damaged in the earthquake. We do understand now from officials that it has been repaired. And we could start to see a trickling in as early as today, but it can't come soon enough, Rosemary.
CHURCH: (INAUDIBLE) right. Thank you so much, incredible report from our Selma Abdelaziz, in Istanbul. Many thanks. Well, missiles on parade, North Korea rolls out what's been called an unprecedented number of ballistic missiles thought to be capable of hitting the United States. We'll have more on that in just a moment.
[02:40:24]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHURCH: Welcome back, everyone. The U.S. President is heading to Florida today, where he will discuss plans to protect and strengthen Medicare and Social Security, while lowering healthcare costs. On Wednesday, Joe Biden visited another key swing state Wisconsin, and try to build on the momentum from his rousing State of the Union speech. During that address, he played up his plans to rebuild the middle class with a big focus on the blue-collar economy.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: My first two years in office, we've created 800,000 manufacturing jobs, where -- I mean, necessary, jobs you can live on. Where is it written, America can't lead the world of manufacturing again? I didn't see it written anywhere.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: President Biden's visits two battleground states of fueling speculation that he's getting ready to announce a reelection campaign. CNN Economics and Political commentator Catherine Rampell joins me now from New York. She is also a Washington Post opinion columnist. Appreciate you being with us.
CATHERINE RAMPELL, CNN ECONOMICS AND POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Great to be here.
CHURCH: So, despite the many challenges this country has faced during the pandemic, including major supply chain issues, President Biden said the State of the Union is strong in his address Tuesday night. Is he right?
RAMPELL: Certainly, by a lot of metrics, it looks that way. The economy, in any event, looks a lot stronger than I think a lot of people predicted, myself included. You have very strong job growth. If anything, it looks like the labor market may be heating up. You have inflation still too high, but moderating, so not as bad as it was. There have been fears of a recession that doesn't seem to have materialized, yet. It doesn't mean it won't. Things could still go awry, particularly if there's some very unwelcome shock, like an escalation in the war in Ukraine, for example, which we wouldn't want, for other reasons as well. But, you know, we may not be out of the woods yet, but it does look like the economy is doing much better than consumers, at least voters seem to be willing to give the President credit for.
CHURCH: Yes, it'll be interesting to see how he delivers that message and continues to try to bang that home. So, how does the President's economic plan stack up against what the GOP are proposing as an alternative?
RAMPELL: I have some bones to pick with each of them, I would say. But at least President Biden and the Democrats seem to have some plans, that most of the party agrees on, even if there are some holdouts. With the Republican Party, it's been very difficult to discern what exactly their objectives are. I mean, always they want lower taxes, of course, but lately, they have been beating the drum about reducing deficits, which they were not interested in pursuing, when a Republican was in the White House, of course, but now that there's a Democrat in the White House and they control Congress, they're very interested in getting deficits down, but of course, that somewhat intention with their desire for tax cuts.
CHURCH: So, what will likely happen with the debt ceiling? Do you expect an agreement will be made before this country defaults on its debt and drags the rest of the world into a downward spiral?
[02:44:50]
RAMPELL: I don't think that there will be a lot of progress on the legislative front. But I'm worried that there could be a lot of destruction in the form of the United States coming either very close to or even accidentally defaulting on its debt. Now, we have seen this kind of brinksmanship before, of course, where there has been one party generally the Republicans holding out and refusing to essentially raise the debt ceiling, which means paying off bills already incurred that past Congresses have already committed to. And in the past, they've been able to resolve it, even if there was a very stressful period leading up to that resolution.
I'm quite worried that this time around, you know, there will not be that somewhat happier result -- resolution, let's call it that. And that we could enter a period where the United States perhaps accidentally becomes unable to pay some of its bills, because they're, you know, locked in these negotiations. I really hope it doesn't come to that, as you say, it would be very, very damaging not only for the United States economy but potentially for the global economy and global financial markets. You could imagine a lot of turmoil if suddenly, U.S. debt, which is currently considered the safest of safe assets turns out to be risky, and we are not reliable borrowers, the United States.
CHURCH: President Biden got under the skin of some Republicans Tuesday night, particularly Marjorie Taylor Greene, who jeered and heckled him, calling the President a liar when he suggested some in his -- in her party, I should say, want to end Social Security and Medicare entitlements. Now, that exchange got him a commitment on record to those entitlements. How significant was that? Was it necessary?
RAMPELL: You know, to be clear, Republicans have -- some Republicans have floated the idea of cuts to these very popular programs. But for the most part, they seem to have ruled it out. The leader of House Republicans, Kevin McCarthy, had himself basically ruled out this as a negotiating ploy, because it's quite unpopular. Even if you -- if you look at the country's fiscal challenges with regard to those programs, probably eventually something will need to change either in the funding mechanism, or the amount of the benefits, or however it's structured. It can go on indefinitely as it works now, given our demographic trends, but nobody really wants to talk about it. It's very unpopular to make any of these -- any of the kinds of necessary changes that would be on the table.
CHURCH: Catherine Rampell, always a pleasure to have you with us, many thanks.
RAMPELL: Thank you.
CHURCH: North Korea has been showing off its advanced intercontinental ballistic missiles, nearly a dozen were on display during a massive military parade marking the 75th anniversary of the army. Only weeks after leader Kim Jong-un called for an exponential increase in his country's nuclear arsenal. And missiles weren't the only thing being shown, has been shown off. The state media also published images of the North Korean leader's young daughter who is being described as beloved. And CNN's Paula Hancocks is covering this for us. She joins us live from Seoul. So, Paula, what are the experts saying about these missiles, that were on display at the parade and of course, the significance of the presence of Kim Jong-un's young daughter?
PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Rosemary, to start off with the missiles, the main takeaway was really the sheer number of the biggest intercontinental ballistic missile, that North Korea has within its arsenal the belief to be the Hwasong-17. There were 11 of them, which rolled into Pyongyang's Kim II Sung square for this nighttime parade. So, a significant number now we have been hearing from Kim Jong-un, consistently that he wants a bigger and better nuclear arsenal. And it certainly appears as though there has been a fair bit of production of this particular ICBM.
Now, another thing that experts say is a takeaway from this parade, is the fact that's -- does appear to be a mockup of a solid fuel ICBM, as opposed to a liquid fuel. Now, what that means is, it is a lot quicker to be able to launch this kind of solid fuel ICBM, it's more mobile, you can move it around. And of course, that means it is more difficult for the U.S., for South Korea to be able to track. So, those are two key points that they have taken away at this point. It has to be pointed out though, we only have still photos at this point. We don't have the footage of the parade itself. And experts will be poring over that to see if it gives us any more indication of the capabilities, and also the intentions of Kim Jong-un.
But as you mentioned Rosemary, there is obviously another headline here, and that is the fact that a child of a North Korean leader has been present at one of these military parades for the first time in North Korea's history. We have been seeing this daughter who's believed to be called Ju-ae. She's believed to be about 8 or 9 years old. And she has been with her father at a number of military events since she was first debuted, if (INAUDIBLE) first seen in public on -- in November of last year. So, certainly, it is fueling speculation, as to what exactly this means. Does this mean she is being groomed to be a successor? And there are many differing views about this, but the very fact that she was there at this military event is significant, as well as the wife. Rosemary?
[02:50:20]
CHURCH: All right, our Paula Hancocks, joining us live from Seoul. Many thanks, for that report. And we'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHURCH: Welcome back everyone. Well, U.S. football player Damar Hamlin, is this year's winner of the NFL Players Association Community Award, which recognizes a player's positive impact on his community. The Buffalo Bills safety received the most votes from other players in the league. It comes one month after he went into cardiac arrest during a game and was rushed from the field to the hospital on live T.V. And here's what Hamilton had to say as he accepted the award.
[02:55:20]
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DAMAR HAMLIN, BUFFALO BILLS SAFETY: One of my favorite quotes, is a blessing to be a blessing. With that being said, I plan to never take this position for granted, and always have an urgent approach and making a difference in the community, where I come from, and also communities across the world. Thank you.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: The Bills say his Toy Drives Foundation, subsequently raised almost $9.00 million in donations, just incredible. Thank you so much for joining us I'm Rosemary Church. I will be back after a quick break, with more CNN NEWSROOM. Do stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[03:00:00]
